Yogurt Cheese

What is yogurt cheese?  It is very straight forward! It is cheese made from yogurt.

What do you do with it?  You can use it as a spread, dip, or blended with fruit for a chilled no bake pie or cheesecake.  Think of cream cheese but without all the BS they add to cream cheese.

How much yogurt does it take to make yogurt cheese?  The yield of the yogurt to cheese ratio is about HALF perhaps a little less than.  So whatever amount of yogurt you start out with yor yield of cheese will be about half that. Since making the cheese removes the water from yogurt and yogurt is a large part water.

You start with a whole milk yogurt.  The variety I use is Pavel's which is a Russian whole milk yogurt.  It is around 3.50 - 4.50 for a 2 lb container.  Greek yogurts are thicker already and have less water in them but tend to be far more expensive.  There may be even cheaper whole milk yogurts available.  This cheese ends up being around 3-5 dollars per pound versus purchasing it at anywhere from 8-23 dollars a pound.  Cream cheese being cheaper but it is loaded with crap OTHER than milk. And you are the artisan cheese maker!

You empty your yogurt into a clean towel.  I like ones that are smooth with small weave and not terry cloth which is made of little loops and those loops can get messy so a bread/dough towel is best.  Cheese cloth varies so wildly in the available spacing of the weave that recommending it could result in unknown and variable results.  If you think the weave is tight enough to hold the loose yogurt but expel only water then perfect!

I use a bowl under the towel as I pour in the yogurt to hold the water and allow it to drain into the bowl while I adjust it for tethering.

Then gather up the towels corners and any openings and tie it shut with a rubberband or twine to hang like a hobo's bindle from a string on a hook or nail above the sink.

It needs to drain for at the very least 4 hours.  It is best with light squeezing early on to rid some of the most eager water.  Then it can cut the time down.  But best of all is tying it up before you go to work and taking it down when you get home.  There isn't much "danger zone" issues with leaving yogurt hanging unless your house has a big mildew, or mold problem then perhaps.*

You can check on the cheese progression,  it will be thick and a spreadable consistency when done.
If the center is still very liquidy you can stir it a little and then hang it again for a bit more. Or stir what little wetness there is back into it when you go to store your cheese in the fridge.

What can I do with the cheese once it is done?  Raw fruit pies! Like the Cherimoya pie with strawberries.  Or a Cheesecake with blueberry sauce. A cheese dip with spinach and greens or roasted red pepper or sun dried tomatoes.  A toast spread with olive oil, herbs and pepper flakes. 

*Did you watch the danger zone videos in health class?  I'm referring to food contamination fear.  The biggest food contaminates are from LARGE industrial farms and not in your home.  In your home it is raw meat that contaminates most surfaces.  Leaving food out is a unique to the house kind of rule.  So if you're against it, this style may not be for you.