If using Greek yogurt in cooking, basically you can use it anywhere that sour cream is used.

We spoon up so much yogurt at breakfast, lunch and dinner that we spent $7.3 billion on the tart stuff last year.

Its creamy texture and good-for-your-gut benefits are draws. So are the varieties: full fat, nonfat and low fat; organic and conventional; honey sweetened or plain, fruit on the bottom or swirled throughout.

Among these cultured denizens of the dairy case, it's Greek yogurt that's getting lots of attention.

Retail sales in the U.S. of this thicker-than-regular yogurt increased more than 50 percent in 2012 to reach $1.6 billion, according to Packaged Facts, a Rockville, Md., market researcher. Such numbers, they say, have pretzel, salad dressing and cereal-makers jumping on the Greek yogurt bandwagon.

Greek yogurt's appeal is easy to understand. It's deliciously thick and creamy, it plays well in recipes, its ingredient list is simple (milk plus live cultures) and its tartness dovetails with our fondness for fermented foods (pickles, beer, etc.).

“There's been a lot of marketing with the Greek yogurts. And people like the thick texture of the Greek variety,” says registered dietitian Sarah Krieger, an Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics spokesperson. “If you're using Greek yogurt in cooking, basically you can use it anywhere that sour cream is used.”

Subbing Greek yogurt for sour cream in many recipes cuts calories and sodium, while delivering more protein. “If you're making a cold soup that uses sour cream, I would swap it out for nonfat Greek yogurt,” she says. “You're getting more nutrition with the Greek yogurt.”

Its acidity also works well as a marinade for meats and poultry. “It's great for baked fish or chicken. If you're using it instead of mayonnaise, you're actually using less fat and you're adding a little bit of protein and a little bit of calcium,” says Krieger, a St. Petersburg, Fla., mom. She spreads yogurt on whitefish, then mixes dried herbs with breadcrumbs or panko to sprinkle atop before baking.

“With yogurt, almost anything goes, the possibilities of cooking with it are infinite,” wrote Arto Der Haroutunian in “The Yogurt Cookbook: Recipes From Around the World” (Interlink Books, $35). The late author, restaurateur and artist suggested using it in place of cream, milk, buttermilk and sour cream.

“It makes an excellent marinade and goes well with vegetables, eggs, meat, poultry, cheese and grains,” writes Der Haroutunian, whose book boasts 200-plus recipes, including a garlic sauce (yogurt mixed with a crushed garlic clove, finely chopped green onion, a bit of salt and dried mint) for serving atop fried - we like grilled - slices of zucchini or eggplant.

Greek yogurt, like regular yogurt, can be temperamental in the presence of heat. If you're using it in cooking, it will curdle if you cook it over high heat, says Krieger, who suggests using low heat or stirring Greek yogurt into sauces at the end of cooking for texture and creaminess.

Nutritional differences between Greek and regular yogurts are due in part to the number of times each is strained. Regular yogurt is strained twice to remove liquid (called whey); Greek yogurt is strained three times, which makes it thicker and sometimes tarter.

“Regular yogurt has more whey, that is more of the liquid where most of the lactose — also known as the carbohydrate — is found,” says Krieger. “So when the whey is removed, you're left with a higher concentration of protein. That's why you'll see more protein in nonfat Greek yogurt than of the same amount of regular nonfat.”

Yet another reason to give tart, thick, creamy Greek yogurt a role to play in your culinary creations.

<B>Prep: 1 hour, 15 minutesCook: 30-40 minutesServings: 4Note: Adapted from “The Yogurt Cookbook” by Arto Der Haroutunian (Interlink Books, $35), this dish has a firm texture, not unlike cheesecake. The egg yolks help stabilize the yogurt. We used 2 percent Greek yogurt in testing.4 ounces dried apricots, soaked overnight in cold water2 cups plain Greek yogurt2 egg yolks1 tablespoon brown sugar2 tablespoons chopped pistachios </B>Heat oven to 325 degrees.Drain softened apricots; cut them into small pieces. Place in a 4-cup baking dish.Beat yogurt and yolks together in a bowl; pour over apricots.Place baking dish in a baking pan. Pour enough cold water into the pan to come halfway up the outside of the baking dish.Bake until set, 30-40 minutes. Allow to cool. To serve, mix brown sugar with pistachios. Sprinkle over top.

Servings: 6<B>1 tablespoon sugar for coating ramekins¾ cup granulated sugar, divided into ½ cup for yolks and ¼ cup for whites1/3 cup all-purpose flour¼ teaspoon kosher salt2 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled3 eggs, separatedZest of one large lemon, finely chopped5 tablespoons lemon juice1 cup plain non-fat Greek yogurt, room temperature </B>Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray six ramekins (small glass or ceramic bowls) with cooking spray. Tap about 1 tablespoon of sugar into the first ramekin, turning to coat the dish. Shake sugar from ramekin to ramekin until all are coated.Combine ½ cup sugar with flour and salt; mix in butter and egg yolks until smooth. Add lemon zest, juice and yogurt and stir until uniform texture.In a separate bowl, beat whites with a whisk or hand mixer and gradually add remaining ¼ cup sugar; continue whipping until soft peaks form. Add about one-third of this meringue to the lemon mixture and whisk to lighten before folding in remainder (continue folding until color is consistent). Divide evenly among ramekins.Heat 1 cup of water to boiling. Place ramekins in a 9 x 13 inch pan; place pan in oven and pull rack out a few inches to add hot water to pan. Water should reach ½ way up the sides of the ramekins. Carefully push rack back into oven and bake ramekins for 24 to 28 minutes or until tops of cakes have puffed and begun to brown.Remove dishes from hot water with tongs, cool slightly; dust with powdered sugar and leave plain or top with a few berries. Cake will collapse a bit as it continues to cool.Variations:Puree fruit and add a couple tablespoons on top of each cake, or gently swirl in the puree and drop a few whole berries in each ramekin.Make it chocolate. Skip the lemon and lemon juice. Heat a tablespoon or a tablespoon-and-a half of cocoa powder with the equivalent of milk and a teaspoon of vanilla extract. Drop chopped up chocolate or chocolate chips into each ramekin. Dust on malted milk powder after it bakes.<I>Courtesy of Western Dairy Association, Thornton, Colo.</I>