I’m a fan of greek-style non-fat yogurt. It’s plain. It’s creamy. It’s all natural. It tastes great with fresh fruit or a drizzle of honey. The downside: It’s twice the price of the typical store-brand flavored yogurts.
Somewhere on the Internet, I stumbled across the explanation that greek-style yogurt is simply plain yogurt with less water in it. The article had do-it-yourself instructions for converting regular yogurt into greek yogurt. The results are in — gravity works, and it works fabulously!
I started with a family-size tub of plain, all-natural, no-artificial-anything non-fat yogurt. I lined a large mesh strainer with a paper towel and placed it over a bowl large enough to support the strainer and deep enough to leave a couple inches of clearance where the water would collect.
I drained the existing water (about 1/4 cup) from the yogurt container and placed the yogurt itself into the paper-lined strainer, covered it with plastic wrap, and left it in the fridge overnight. This morning, I found 2 cups(!) of water in the bowl, leaving thicker, creamier yogurt in the strainer. Less volume, but more yum. I had some with fresh strawberries and honey for breakfast. Double yum.
skyflame
July 9, 2009 at 5:19pmGraham Kerr (the former “Galloping Gourmet”) calls this “yogurt cheese”. It’s a staple in his new methodology of cooking.
allisonstein
July 9, 2009 at 6:21pmInteresting. I had heard Kerr had converted to an insanely healthy diet due to serious health issues. I should dig a little deeper to see what other yummy things he does…
skyflame
July 9, 2009 at 6:30pmIt wasn’t his heath issues, but rather his wife’s. She’s had something like two heart attacks and a stroke, and that caused him to completely revamp his cooking.
mcchambers
July 10, 2009 at 3:45amI used to do this and use the result as a substitute for cream cheese in baking, back when I used to bake. It makes a good topping for cakes, when mixed with cocoa and confectioner’s sugar. But I don’t eat cakes much anymore. Metabolism is too slow.
allisonstein
July 10, 2009 at 3:55amI’m thinking about slathering some on a waffle and topping it with banana slices for breakfast tomorrow. (How is it that I eat healthy stuff but still weight too much? Must be the meds. Sigh.)