If you’re trying to move away from highly processed convenience foods toward simple, real food you can feel good about, these homemade yogurt cups are a great place to start.
No fancy ingredients, no complicated steps, and endless ways to customize flavors with whatever fruit is in season (or stashed in your freezer or pantry).
Homemade Yogurt Cups: A Simple Breakfast Swap for Store-Bought Convenience
Lately, I’ve been trying to cut processed breakfast foods (like cereal!) from our diet, but having quick, easy breakfasts the kids can get or make themselves have been difficult to find.
One thing they really like is sweetened, flavored yogurt.
So, I decided to make my own with good quality Greek yogurt and homegrown strawberries that we had frozen from last year.
This way, I can feel good about the ingredients and where they came from.
These homemade fruit yogurt cups are just sweet enough, easy to switch up, and a breeze to batch prep for the week.
This is one of those small swaps that makes a big difference.
Why Make Your Own Yogurt Cups
There are plenty of great reasons to make your own yogurt cups.
- Reduce plastic waste from single-serve containers
- Less sugar, no artificial dyes or flavors
- Use seasonal, homegrown fruit or homemade preserves
- Can be made with homemade yogurt, too
- Customize to your family’s tastes and dietary needs
- Still convenient—just made at home
- It’s delicious!
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What You’ll Need
You’ll need a few things to make this recipe.
- 5 cups plain Greek yogurt
- 2 cups fresh or frozen fruit, loosely packed
- Honey, sugar, or maple syrup for sweetening
- 5 Half-pint (8 oz) glass jars with lids
- Saucepan
- Mixing bowl
- Immersion blender
- Canning funnel (optional)
How to Make Fruit Yogurt Cups
Step 1: Make the fruit base
Clean and prep your fruit by cutting off stems and leaves, removing pits and seeds, and slicing into small chunks.
Today I’m using strawberries since they are in season.
Make a quick fruit sauce by heating the chopped fruit with a spoonful or two of sugar, honey, or maple syrup.
Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally until the fruit is soft and the sugar is dissolved.
Lower the heat to medium and allow the fruit sauce to simmer until 1/3 to 1/2 of the liquid has reduced. This will take about 5 to 10 minutes.
Simmering the fruit sauce will help to concentrate that fresh fruit flavor and also keeps the yogurt from becoming too runny after mixing the two ingredients together.
Once the liquid has reduced, remove the pan from heat and blend with an immersion blender. I wanted a smooth consistency with minimal chunks, but if you like having fruit chunks, feel free to skip this step or blend lightly.
Allow the sauce to cool to room temperature before moving on to the next step.
Step 2: Mix the yogurt
After the fruit sauce has cooled, mix it with 5 cups of thick Greek yogurt.
Alternatively, you could layer the fruit and yogurt. I like how it looks, but when I’m going for fast, easy, convenience, I prefer mixing everything together and dumping it into the cups!
Taste the yogurt to see if it’s sweet enough. If it’s too sweet, mix in more plain yogurt until it’s just right. Drizzle in more sweetener if the yogurt isn’t sweet enough.
Evenly distribute the yogurt mixture among the jars.
If you want to get really fancy, you could weigh out the yogurt! I just eyeball it.
Leave room in jar for toppings to add later.
Step 3: Store and serve
Seal the yogurt jars with a lid and store in the refrigerator until you’re ready to eat.
Add granola, fruit, or other toppings if you wish, just before eating.
These yogurt cups will keep in the fridge for a week.
Tips and FAQ
Can I use regular yogurt instead of Greek?
Yes! Greek yogurt is thicker and more protein-rich, but regular yogurt works just as well. I find that adding compote or jam to a runny yogurt just makes it more runny. In that case, it would be easier to drink the yogurt rather than eat it with a spoon… which isn’t always a bad thing if you’re on the go!
What fruits can I use?
Spring: strawberries, rhubarb, raspberries
Summer: blueberries, blackberries, peaches, nectarines, apricots, cherries
Fall/Winter: apples, pears, cranberries
Do I have to make fruit sauce?
Nope! Jam, preserves, fruit curd, or fruit butter work fine, too. I personally prefer some sort of cooked fruit over fresh because it just blends a little more smoothly with the yogurt.
How long do these last in the fridge?
About 7 days. Keep them refrigerated until ready to eat.
Can I freeze this?
I don’t recommend freezing these jars of yogurt.
What size jar should I use?
Most single serve yogurt cups are about 5.3 oz. which is a bit larger than the small quarter-pint mason jars. I opted to use the larger 8 oz. half-pint jars and just chose not to fill them to the very top. Use whichever size you prefer.
Try This Real-Food Swap Today
It’s a simple idea—portioning out pre-sweetened yogurt into small glass jars. I almost didn’t write this post today because I thought it was just too simple to write about.
However, that’s the beauty of it. It’s easy to do once a week and doesn’t take much time if you have all the ingredients ready.
But you end up with a healthy, homemade breakfast with all the convenience of store-bought, pre-portioned yogurts.
Not to mention reducing the plastic waste of all those little yogurt cups.
Whether you’re layering in spring berries or fresh summer peaches, these jars are a little reminder that homemade can be just as convenient as store-bought and a whole lot more satisfying.
Fruit Yogurt Cups
Equipment
- 5 Half-pint (8 oz) glass jars with lids
- saucepan
- Mixing bowl
- Immersion blender
- Canning funnel (optional)
Ingredients
- 5 cups plain Greek yogurt
- 2 cups fresh or frozen fruit loosely packed
- 1-2 tbsp sweetener like honey, sugar, or maple syrup
Instructions
- Clean and prep your fruit by cutting off stems and leaves, removing pits and seeds, and slicing into small chunks.
- Combine the chopped fruit with a spoonful or two of sweetener in a saucepan.
- Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally until the fruit is soft and the sugar is dissolved.
- Lower the heat to medium and allow the fruit sauce to simmer until 1/3 to 1/2 of the liquid has reduced. This will take about 5 to 10 minutes.
- Once the liquid has reduced, remove the pan from heat and blend with an immersion blender to your preferred consistency. Allow sauce to cool.
- After the fruit sauce has cooled, mix it with the Greek yogurt.
- Taste the yogurt to see if it’s sweet enough. If it’s too sweet, mix in more plain yogurt until it’s just right. Drizzle in more sweetener if the yogurt isn’t sweet enough.
- Evenly distribute the yogurt mixture among the jars.
- Seal the yogurt jars with lids and store in the refrigerator until you're ready to eat.
- Add granola, fruit, or other toppings if you wish, just before eating.