I finally got around to making some yoghurt cheese or labneh! I don’t know why it has taken me this long to do something that simple–it’s practically effortless. After reading David Lebovitz’s post on Labneh I finally did it. Now that the weather is getting warmer I’ll be looking for lighter things to eat with fresh vegetables.
After googling “labneh recipes”, I had a plethora from which to choose. Variations include some calling for full-fat plain yoghurt, some for Greek, one for adding lemon juice, and others for herbs. All called for some salt.
Labneh
For my first trial, I used full-fat plain that was lingering in the fridge since I’ve found that I really prefer skyr (even to Greek yoghurt). I added a healthy pinch of salt, then set the yoghurt to drain for 15 hours.
Tasting the labneh I discovered that it wasn’t quite as tangy as I had hoped–I’ll try adding lemon juice next time.
I suspect that this is going to become a “fixture” in my fridge instead of the usual cream cheese. I am a fan of radishes so adding those and other vegetables to labneh sounds like a great summer treat, and I’ve many other interesting recipes for using it. Some found its way into my omelette with sautéed kale as an improvised breakfast with the Always Hungry? meal plan inside the omelette, rather than as a topping, or have berries without the skyr or yoghurt.
It’s such fun to discover new foods!
a-single-serving.com 
There are a number of cheeses that you can make at home and I , too, began with labneh. Ricotta and mascarpone are among the easiest and really only involve another step or two in the process. Best of all, both taste far better than anything that you might buy. 🙂
LikeLike
After tasting labneh, I suspect that I’ll want to move on to trying ricotta and mascarpone! I like both–and the promise of better taste is motivation!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I love making labneh, so easy and so versatile – I sometimes add a little harissa or roll it into balls and roll those in herbs and spices. And I had a great dish at a veggie restaurant recently, roast aubergine, topped with a rocket salad liberally mixed with toasted pine nuts and pomegranate seeds, with a pomegranate dressing and a dollop of a fairly loose labneh on the side. Yum.
LikeLike
Thanks for those suggestions!
That eggplant dish sounds marvelous–as do the other uses of labneh. The more I use it the more things I can think of to do with it. I’m researching yogurt makers–I think it would be even better starting with my own homemade yogurt.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Great idea! More economical, too.
LikeLike