Greek Yogurt Dessert Parfait

This cool and refreshing Greek yogurt dessert parfait is built with perfect red, white, and blue layers for a festive summer treat that comes together with little effort.

I’ve always had a sweet tooth, but I often crave fresher, lighter desserts in the summer. When berries are in season, it’s hard to not want them on everything – even desserts! So when they’re on a buy 2, get 1 free deal at the grocery store, we pick up some blueberries and strawberries and make this delicious dessert parfait.

The best part about this recipe is that it’s actually quite healthy! It feels indulgent and decadent, yet it’s simply layers of Greek yogurt and fruit. Sure, there’s a bit of sugar mixed in, but everything in moderation, right?

It’s also quite pretty, so it’s great for parties and summer cookouts. We’ll be making these for a festive 4th of July dessert!

What This Recipe Entails

To make a layered Greek yogurt parfait, you’ll need to prepare the 3 components – yogurt, blueberry compote, and strawberries – and then carefully layer them in glass jars.

It doesn’t take too much time to put these together. The total time will greatly depend on how many jars you’re making and how pretty you want them to look!

• Prep time: 15 to 20 minutes

Note: You’ll need to let the blueberry compote cool in the fridge before you use it, so make sure to prep this in advance. We like to make it a day ahead of time so that we know it’ll be cool.

Ingredients

• Plain Greek yogurt – Our favorite Greek yogurt brand is Fage. It’s super smooth, thick, and creamy, which makes it perfect for a dessert parfait! We like to use the 5% milkfat option. Make sure to get plain, since you’ll be flavoring it for this recipe.
• Lemon zest and salt – Mixing these two ingredients into plain Greek yogurt adds a subtle zing that perfectly complements the blueberry and strawberry. We recently learned this trick from a recipe in our Ottolenghi Simple cookbook and we’ve been using it for everything!
• Blueberry compote – We’re not experts at making compote, so we always turn to this blueberry compote recipe from Love and Lemons. We like to increase the vanilla extract to 1 teaspoon (we love the flavor of vanilla and tend to put extra in everything!) and it turns out perfectly delicious every time. We recommend using Jeanine’s recipe, or sticking with your favorite blueberry compote recipe if you already have one. Note that you’ll need to make this ahead of time to let it cool before adding it to the parfaits.
• Fresh strawberries and sugar – We like to toss sliced strawberries in a bit of granulated sugar before adding them to a dessert, since it tones down some of the sourness and brings out the sweeter flavor of strawberries.

How To Make A Greek Yogurt Layered Dessert

1. Prep the yogurt and strawberries. Mix the lemon zest and salt into the Greek yogurt until it’s fully incorporated. In a small bowl, combine the sliced strawberries and sugar and toss to coat the strawberries.
2. Layer in jars. In 8 ounce glass jars, layer the ingredients in this order: blueberry compote, yogurt, strawberries. Repeat with another tier in the same order.
3. Serve or store. Serve immediately, or secure the jars with lids and store in the fridge until needed. (See more notes on this in the Make Ahead section below.)

We like to use small Mason jars for nice, even layers, but you can experiment with serving these in other glass vessels! Martini glasses or stemless wine glasses are fun options for displaying the red white and blue layers in this dessert.

Make Ahead Notes

If you plan to make this dessert for a party, here are a few make ahead tips to make your life a little easier!

• Make the blueberry compote a day or two ahead of time. Let it cool a bit at room temperature, then store it in the fridge. This way, it will definitely be cold by the time you assemble the parfaits.
• Mix the yogurt a day or two ahead of time. You can add the lemon zest and salt right to the yogurt container, mix it up, and store it in the fridge for a few days until needed.
• Build the parfaits a few hours in advance. This is also a great option if it works best for your schedule! You can build the parfaits, lid the jars, and store them in the fridge until you’re ready to serve them or bring them to a party later that day.

Serving Suggestions

• Memorial Day or 4th of July dessert – The red, white, and blue layers in this parfait make it a festive option for summer cookouts!
• Beach treat – Make a few jars ahead of time and pack them in a cooler to bring to the beach or pool. The Greek yogurt and fruit combo is such a refreshing treat for a day in the sun!
• Weekend brunch – Add these Instagram-worthy parfaits to your brunch spread for an impressive side dish everyone will love. We call this a dessert, but honestly it’s an anytime of day recipe (we’ve eaten them for breakfast!).

Love this recipe? You may enjoy these other summer cookout recipes, too:

• Blueberry Lemon Whipped Brie Dip
• Roasted Tomato and Garlic Bruschetta with Balsamic
• Easy Mexican Street Corn Dip (Crockpot Recipe)