A few years ago, a restaurant opened in my neighborhood selling what was reported to be superior hummus. (And with a name like Mimi's Hummus, it had better be, right?). But when I finally sat down to try it for myself, the dish that really caught my attention was the labneh—a creamy, tangy Middle Eastern yogurt strained until extra thick. At Mimi's, it was served drizzled with olive oil, dusted with za'atar spice, and served with warm, grilled triangles of fresh pita. The mix of lush, almost cream-cheese-y yogurt, garnished with rich oil, fragrant spice, and crusty bread, was It.
Before then, I hadn't heard of labneh. Luckily, Mimi's sold it by the pint so that I could take some home with me to devour all too quickly. Made by straining yogurt past the point of even Greek yogurt, labneh (aka labane, lebni, labne, or lebnah) is thick and spreadable, and sometimes appropriately called "yogurt cheese." Most often made from cow's milk, the texture is usually somewhere between mascarpone (or cream cheese) and fresh chevre, although you can also strain the labneh even more, roll it into balls, and preserve it in olive oil for snacking on at will.
Here's where this story turns tragic. More recently, Mimi's ceased their retail offerings, so if I wanted a quick labneh fix, I had to dine in. The bright spot is that American grocers seem to have caught on to the beauty that is labneh, since it's appearing on more and more store shelves. Take a look at your grocer's dairy case on your next shopping trip, and hopefully you'll be able to pick up some for yourself.
Rolled into delicious balls of creamy goodness, this labneh will keep for up to 2 weeks.
If you don't see it yet, just pick up some really good, full-fat Greek yogurt and make labneh at home. Simply strain the yogurt in cheesecloth-lined colander over a bowl in the fridge for a couple days. When it's reached a consistency you like, marinate as described here, or serve right away as a sandwich spread or grain-bowl topping. Blend it with roasted red peppers to turn it into a flavorful sauce to serve alongside grilled or roasted meat. Or swap it out for mascarpone or cream cheese in your favorite cheesecake recipe—the resulting cake will be tangier, which is phenomenal news if you like to pair your cheesecake with sweet, fruity toppings.
Of course you could also serve it up like they do at Mimi's, drizzled with oil and sprinkled with spice. Just make sure you have plenty of bread—crusty, chewy, or otherwise—for scooping it up, because once you discover labneh, it's hard to keep around. Because you will eat it. All of it. Seriously.
