Vanilla Cinnamon Yogurt Fruit Dip

This fruit dip is plain nonfat yogurt with vanilla, cinnamon and a teaspoon of brown sugar across the whole bowl. Two tablespoons come to about 17 calories and 1.3 g of protein, so a fruit platter stops being just fruit without turning into the sugar-and-cream-cheese version.

One teaspoon of brown sugar in a cup of yogurt is barely sweet on its own — the vanilla and cinnamon are doing most of the work. Stir it properly until no grains are left, then taste against an actual apple slice rather than off the spoon, because the fruit carries plenty of its own sugar.

It takes five minutes and keeps four days, so it is the easiest thing to bring to a holiday table. Set it in the middle of a platter of apple and pear slices, clementine segments and grapes, and toss the cut apples in lemon juice so they stay pale for the evening.