Pimento cheese is a staple here in the Southern states. It’s versatile and totally delicious. It’s also totally high in fat and calories, which got me thinking about whether it’d be possible to have the best of both worlds – a tasty pimento cheese with about half of the calories of the original.
Turns out, it’s totally doable! Instead of using mayo as the base, this version uses fat free Greek yogurt and lower fat cream cheese, with a bit of lemon juice and Worcestershire sauce to add the tang that’s missing from leaving out the mayo. This is a great, healthier substitute and I think you should give it a try – you might just fall in love with it like we did.
Servings Ideas For Pimento Cheese: Add it to a sandwich, either alone or with some seared slices of good ol’ classic deli ham. Eat it with some whole grain crackers. Add a scoop to the top of a green salad. Stuff it into a hollowed out tomato or bell pepper. You can even make a seriously tasty grilled cheese with it!
The possibilities for how to use pimento cheese reach as far as your imagination will allow, and with this lightened up version, you can enjoy it a little more often than the higher calorie original. Enjoy!
| Lighter Pimento Cheese | Print |
- 4 oz sharp cheddar, shredded
- 4 oz reduced fat mild cheddar, shredded
- 1 chive, minced
- 3 oz ⅓ less fat cream cheese
- ¼ cup plain fat free Greek yogurt
- 4 oz jar pimentos, drained
- ½ tsp lemon juice
- ½ tsp Worcestershire sauce
- Salt & Pepper to taste
- Combine all ingredients into a bowl and store into the refrigerator.
(one serving is about 1/3 cup)
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