Lunch with Siggi

A few weeks ago, I was invited to a lunch event with Siggi’s Dairy. Lunch events can be hard to pull off during the week, but as soon as I heard that Siggi Hilmarsson himself would be attending, I knew I had to make it work. Turns out, I made the right call because this was my favorite event that I’ve been to in a LONG time. They didn’t even sponsor this post… I brought my camera to maybe get a fun shot for instagram, but left with beautiful photos of the entire meal and a HUGE smile on my face. The food, the lighting, the ambiance, the hands on experience… all of it was pretty much perfect. So obviously I had to share it with you guys!

I don’t eat a ton of dairy, but when I do buy yogurt, I’ve been reaching for Siggi’s because (as their tagline says), they use simple ingredients and not a lot of sugar. So many yogurt brands pile so much sugar into their products that you lose all the nutrition – and then why even eat yogurt?!

Since I’m not a ‘yogurt every morning’ kind of gal, I was curious to see how Siggi uses it in other dishes, especially savory ones. I now have 5 new recipes that uses yogurt in ways I never would have thought of on my own. Huge win.

We each got assigned to a station, and when I saw that my station would be making a Roasted Root Vegetable Salad, I knew I was in for a treat. Then I realized my cooking partners consisted of Chickpea in the City, Nutrition Happens and Erin’s Inside Job. Umm, yes that sounds lovely, ok great, let’s get started.

This salad reminded me SO much of one that I’ve had at True Food Kitchen (opening in Chicago this fall!). I love that the ingredients are so simple because it really lets the veggies shine. We served this with a tarragon yogurt dipping sauce (aka healthy ranch!). So good.

The station next to us made this Warm Wild Mushroom Salad with Arugula that I’m still thinking about. I’m a huge fan of mushrooms, but I’ve never eaten them quite like this.

The real show stopper was the Pan-seared Salmon with Lemon and Chive Infused Yogurt. Not only did a chef butcher the huge fish fresh for us, but the presentation with berries and flowers was breathtaking in real life. Why haven’t I ever thought of pairing salmon and berries before?! Genius!

Once the food was prepared, we all sat down around a big beautiful table and ate, family style. It felt like the healthiest/best Thanksgiving meal ever.

I mean… that is one DREAMY plate 🙂

We ended the meal on a sweet note with these apples cooked down with cardamom, and topped with vanilla siggi’s and shaved dark chocolate. Fun fact: this was inspired by Siggi’s mother! So clever and so delicious.

What do you guys think? You want some of these recipes?! Let me know in the comments below – I’ve been meaning to recreate a few, so I’d be happy to show you how it’s done!

Have a great day!

2 butternut squash, cut into 2 inch cubes

8-10 large parsnips, peeled, trimmed and cut diagonally into 1 inch thick pieces

1.5 lbs brussels sprouts, ends trimmed and cut in half

2 celery root, trimmed, cut in half and sliced lengthwise (1/2 inch thick)

2 medium onions, trimmed, peeled, halved and cut each half into quarters

6-8 rutabagas, peeled and cut into 2 inch cubes

1/4 cup olive oil

salt and pepper

1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Combine all of the cut vegetables in a large bowl and toss with olive oil. In a large baking dish, spread the vegetables on the bottom trying to leave a little space so they can roast and not steam. You may need more than one baking sheet. Place in the preheated oven and roast for 45 minutes. Using a spatula, scrape the vegetables every 15 minutes to evenly roast and caramelize. Once the veggies are soft (pierce with a knife or fork), remove from the oven, top with the toasted almonds, and serve with the yogurt sauce!

1 cup siggi’s plain skyr (0% or 4% whole milk)

1 tbsp fresh tarragon, chopped

2 tbsp fresh dill, chopped

1 tbsp red wine vinegar

sea salt and fresh cracked pepper

In a mixing bowl, combine the skyr, tarragon, dill and red wine vinegar. Whisk together and season with salt and pepper to taste.