brad@kontron.UUCP (02/25/86)
A friend told me how to make a sort of cheese by wrapping yogurt in
several layers of cheesecloth (just enough to keep the solids from
sliding through, while still allowing the water to drain off). This
is shaped into a ball and hung in the refrigerator with a bowl under
it to catch the drained water (whey?). The draining process takes
two or three days, and can be helped along by an occasional gentle
squeeze.
The resulting product resembles something between cream cheese and
cottage cheese curd. It has a mildly tart flavor that gets sourer
if you let it hang longer. The results vary considerably depending
on which brand of yogurt you start with.
A couple of years ago, I tried making a sort of cheesecake with this
stuff, with fair results. I wish I had the time to refine this into
a reliable recipe.
Has anyone else experimented with yogurt cheese and things to do
with it?
Brad Yearwood
Kontron Electronics {voder, pyramid, loral}!kontron!brad
Mountain View, CAmacrakis@harvard.UUCP (Stavros Macrakis) (02/27/86)
brad@kontron.UUCP (Brad Yearwood) asks: <535@kontron.UUCP> > ... a sort of cheese by wrapping yogurt in several layers of > cheesecloth ... Has anyone else experimented with yogurt cheese and > things to do with it? Drained yoghurt has long been used in the Middle East and other yoghurt-eating areas. In Greek, it is called `sakkoulissio yiaourti' (bag yoghurt). My Indian cookbooks suggest using it instead of ordinary yoghurt in cooking, as it curdles less easily and gives a better texture. You don't need to let it drain for several days for most purposes; an hour or so suffices. I just put a kitchen towel (rinsed) in a colander or sieve, put the yoghurt in, and let it sit for an hour. You could equally well use a rinsed heavy-duty paper towel. You can also buy it commercially; Columbo and others sell it in New England (mostly in specialty stores) under the name of Lebany Spread or just Lebany. (One Arabic word for yoghurt is laban.) The simplest recipe using it is tzatziki (Greek) / jajuk (Turkish: the u is actually more like the `a' in `annul'). This is something like an Indian raita (which are often better made with drained yoghurt). -s TZATZIKI 1 Qt of yoghurt, drained 1 cucumber 3-6 cloves garlic salt 2-3 Tbsp olive oil a few drops lemon juice or vinegar (optional) paprika, olives, ... (garnish) Peel and seed the cucumber. Cut into little pieces. Salt heavily, and let sit for an hour in the fridge. Rinse, drain, and towel dry. Mash the garlic thoroughly, and mix it and the cucumber into the drained yoghurt. Add half the oil and the lemon, vinegar, and salt to taste. Put into the serving dish and draw a knife across the surface to make wave-like lines. Garnish with olives, paprika, .... Pour the remaining oil on top or around the edges. Serve as an appetizer with fresh bread (regular loaf or flat); ideally, with several other appetizers (meze) and ouzo. The only hard thing about this recipe is getting good fresh bread. This, however, is almost impossible in this country. Does anyone know why there are so many fewer bakeries in this country than in any European country, and why their product is usually sweet, soft, and bland? The French, hippie (or should I say `new age'?), and ethnic bakeries are often nearly as bad: the baguettes are soft on the outside and textureless on the inside; the whole-wheat breads are drenched in sugar (considered somehow better because it's from honey); some ethnic bakeries produce excellent products (around here, the Armenian bakeries in Watertown), others the same sweet, soft stuff (namely the Italians and the Portuguese).
seb@mtgzy.UUCP (s.e.badian) (03/06/86)
The Frugal Gourmet dedicated part of a show to yogurt cheese. He said use it like cream cheese for spreads and dips. Some of the stuff he made looked great. I think he has a book and maybe he has some recipes in there. Sharon Badian ihnp4!mtgzy!seb
mikey@pathfinder.UUCP (Mike Fields) (03/11/86)
> > The Frugal Gourmet dedicated part of a show to yogurt cheese. > He said use it like cream cheese for spreads and dips. Some of the > stuff he made looked great. I think he has a book and maybe he has > some recipes in there. > > Sharon Badian > ihnp4!mtgzy!seb Yes he does have a book out called surprisingly enough "The Frugal Gourmet" by Jeff Smith. It is a good book and lists all kinds of neat things by which show it was on. It is available for between $9 and $16 depending on which book store you shop in. In the Seattle area, crown books has it for $9+. Good book for the price. -- Thanks Mikey (yes "he likes it!") My job is so secret even I don't know what I'm doing =============================================================================== email: real person: Life: ssc-vax!fields (206) 251-4638 [work] Mike Fields ssc-vax!pathfinder!mikey (206) 821-3492 [home] 12022 N.E. 138th Pl. Kirkland, Wa. 98034 ===============================================================================
avinash@ubvax.UUCP (Avinash Marathe) (03/11/86)
In article <535@kontron.UUCP> brad@kontron.UUCP (Brad Yearwood) writes: >A friend told me how to make a sort of cheese by wrapping yogurt in >several layers of cheesecloth (just enough to keep the solids from >sliding through, while still allowing the water to drain off). This >is shaped into a ball and hung in the refrigerator with a bowl under >it to catch the drained water (whey?). The draining process takes >two or three days, and can be helped along by an occasional gentle >squeeze. > >The resulting product resembles something between cream cheese and >cottage cheese curd. It has a mildly tart flavor that gets sourer >if you let it hang longer. The results vary considerably depending >on which brand of yogurt you start with. > >Has anyone else experimented with yogurt cheese and things to do >with it? > >Brad Yearwood >Kontron Electronics {voder, pyramid, loral}!kontron!brad >Mountain View, CA You can make a traditional Indian sweet dish called "Shrikhand" by mixing the cheese with saffron, cardamom powder and sugar. Roast the saffron lightly till it's dry. Then grind it into a powder in a mortar and pestle and then mix it with a small amount (1-2 Tbsp) of hot milk. The milk will turn a bright orange after some time. Mix this with the cheese along with the sugar and cardamom. I don't have the exact quantities for these things but you can start with a small amount and keep on adding till it tastes good. Traditionally this is eaten with "Purees" (a puffed deep fried Indian bread), but it may taste good even with whole wheat tortillas or chapatis. Enjoy! Avinash Marathe {ihnp4,allegra,decwrl}!amd!ubvax!avinash