Have you had labneh before?! Labneh is a soft, creamy, tangy Middle Eastern cheese made from strained yogurt. Straining whole fat yogurt with salt and lemon juice removes most of its whey, giving you an insanely thick consistency, while still preserving that tart flavor of yogurt. It makes for an amazing dip for bread or crudités, and is also great smeared under roasted vegetable or proteins. It’s better than cream cheese.

Lemony Labneh

gather //

+ about 50oz whole milk Greek yogurt (I use Chobani)
+ 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
+ 1 tablespoon kosher salt
+ toppings of choice (harissa, za’atar, + sesame seeds seen in mine!)

create //

In a large bowl, mix together the yogurt, lemon juice, and salt. Fold a large cheesecloth in half, creating two layers, and pour the yogurt mixture onto the center of the cloth. Tightly pull up all four sides of the cloth into a bundle at the top, and fasten with a rubber band. Place a colander over the large bowl you mixed in, and put the cheesecloth ball in it. Refrigerate for 24-36 hours, making sure the bowl is fully catching the colander — the yogurt will give off a lot of liquid! After refrigerating, serve labneh in a bowl and top with harissa, hot sauce, za’atar, everything bagel seasoning, or sesame seeds.