This vegan coconut yogurt labneh is a dairy free alternative to the thickened yogurt "cheese", labneh, a Middle Eastern staple. Eaten sweet or savoury, labneh is a wonderful addition to just about any meal and makes a great vegan cream cheese, too.
Course Side Dish
Cuisine Vegan
Prep Time 5 minutesminutes
Resting Time 1 dayday
Servings 1cup labneh
Ingredients
125gramsfull-fat coconut yogurt*one container
½teaspoonsea salt
Juice of one lemon
Instructions
Line a bowl with a double layer of cheesecloth or a finely woven tea towel.
Stir together the yogurt, salt and lemon juice. Pour the yogurt into the cheesecloth-lined bowl and wrap the cloth tightly around it, twisting at the top, and tie it firmly with a piece of string. Hang the yogurt over the bowl, or place the bundle into a sieve. Make sure there is enough room at the base of the bowl for any liquid that will collect there. You can give it a gentle squeeze at this point to remove some water, but stop if yogurt starts to come out the sides of the fabric.
Place the bundle, suspended over the bowl, into the refrigerator for 24-36 hours. The yogurt will lose excess water during the rest period. You can gently squeeze it a few more times to remove any remaining water during that time. Once the labneh is finished, it will have lost much of its liquid and will feel quite dry to the touch.
Place the finished labneh into a bowl, and mix it with a spoon to make it evenly creamy and smooth. Top it with the zest of a lemon, some raw honey, and bee pollen (or another liquid sweetener like maple syrup). Serve as is or keep it to make cream cheese frosting.
Notes
* Try to find a brand that doesn't have more than 3-4 ingredients - coconut milk, a thickener (look for starches, not gums), and the culture. Some brands might add vanilla, but avoid sweetened varieties.