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Garlic Labneh

Cream cheese? No - something much better.

This story starts last Christmas Eve, when my pseudo-step-brother-in-law Anthony brought some mysterious Lebanese "garlic sauce" to contribute to the fondue feast. It was the consistency of cream cheese but it had so much garlic that it kind of hurt to eat it, creating this pleasantly warm burn as it went down. I loved it. We devoured the stuff and garlic emanated from our pores for about 3 days afterwards. 

A few days ago, I got a craving for this stuff. Since it came from a Lebanese deli in Portland, I was left googling recipes. I'd had a suspicion that the "sauce" was yogurt cheese, and sure enough, I found some recipes for Garlic Labneh (yogurt cheese) that fit the description. 

There are many fancy variations on this recipe on the internet. I decided to start simple: mix lots of grated garlic and a little bit of salt into some yogurt, strain it overnight, and eat. It was so good that I don't see any need to fancy it up. 

I ate it with baby carrots and bread. It's really really good with bread, but I would eat entirely too much bread and cheese in one sitting if I didn't pace myself by interspersing carrots.

I used 5 cloves of garlic. It was good, but the stuff at Christmas was stronger. I think I'll go to 7 next time. I have some purple garlic growing in my garden; I can't wait to make this recipe again once it's ready.

Delicious package of garlicky yogurt, ready to release its liquid.

24 hours later... opening the package! Like Christmas all over again.


The Recipe: 
16 oz full-fat yogurt
5+ cloves of garlic, grated
pinch of salt
  • Mix all ingredients together.
  • Put a colander into a bowl and line the colander with a piece of cheesecloth or a clean dish towel.
  • Pour your mixture into the towel and tie it at the top (I used a rubber band).
  • Let the package sit in the colander/bowl in the refrigerator for 24 hours. You can also carefully squeeze it a few times to bring even more moisture out.
  • Open, eat, and don't breathe on anyone for a couple of days.

The Verdict: 
Overall grade: A-
Overall reason: NEEDS MOAR GARLIC.
Time to prepare: 10 minutes of work, 24 hours of waiting.
Husband quote: "I don't think you need to use any more garlic than this."
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