Food Shopping with Faye

Faye & I Strategizing

My friend Faye Levy is not only an award-winning food writer and cookbook author (http://www.cookstr.com/users/faye-levy/profile), but she is also the best source for the best prices on the best food products sold in our local supermarkets. On a recent shopping excursion, Faye found us 4 lb. (64 oz.) containers of grade A, low-fat, plain yogurt, with all the desirable live and probiotic cultures you'd ever want, for the ridiculously low price of $3.69!

Parfait du Jour

So with this abundance of creamy, culture-rich goodness I decided to finally try making yogurt cheese, with plenty of yogurt left over for morning parfaits du jour, etc. Now I know this isn't really "cheese" but more like a smooth, thick, spreadable Greek-style yogurt substance, though cheese-ish in its ability to accept sweet or savory embellishments whilst sitting on crackers, bagels, or other edible platforms.




Yogurt Cheese
3 cups plain yogurt

cheesecloth or coffee filters
strainer
bowl
plastic wrap

1.  Place the strainer over the bowl and line the strainer with 2 layers of cheesecloth or coffee filters.
2.  Put 3 cups of plain yogurt in the lined strainer.
3.  Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for at least 24 hours (I did mine for 48).
4.  Lift strainer from the bowl (excess liquid from the yogurt will have drained out) and put the yogurt "cheese" in a storage container to await flavors, savory or sweet, e.g., herbs, spices, marmalade, chutney.

I took some of the cheese and blended it with Melissa's Sun Dried Tomato Pesto http://www.melissas.com/Products/Products/Sun-Dried-Tomato-Pesto.aspx to make a creamy and tangy sandwich spread.  Along with some fresh arugula, on 12-grain bread, garnished with sliced almond "nails", these fun, finger sandwiches were the perfect complement to my teapot sugar cookies at a recent get together with my artsy, craftsy gal pals.

Thanks again Faye for your shopping expertise and culinary inspiration!

Faye & I Strategizing

My friend Faye Levy is not only an award-winning food writer and cookbook author (http://www.cookstr.com/users/faye-levy/profile), but she is also the best source for the best prices on the best food products sold in our local supermarkets. On a recent shopping excursion, Faye found us 4 lb. (64 oz.) containers of grade A, low-fat, plain yogurt, with all the desirable live and probiotic cultures you'd ever want, for the ridiculously low price of $3.69!

Parfait du Jour

So with this abundance of creamy, culture-rich goodness I decided to finally try making yogurt cheese, with plenty of yogurt left over for morning parfaits du jour, etc. Now I know this isn't really "cheese" but more like a smooth, thick, spreadable Greek-style yogurt substance, though cheese-ish in its ability to accept sweet or savory embellishments whilst sitting on crackers, bagels, or other edible platforms.




Yogurt Cheese
3 cups plain yogurt

cheesecloth or coffee filters
strainer
bowl
plastic wrap

1.  Place the strainer over the bowl and line the strainer with 2 layers of cheesecloth or coffee filters.
2.  Put 3 cups of plain yogurt in the lined strainer.
3.  Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for at least 24 hours (I did mine for 48).
4.  Lift strainer from the bowl (excess liquid from the yogurt will have drained out) and put the yogurt "cheese" in a storage container to await flavors, savory or sweet, e.g., herbs, spices, marmalade, chutney.

I took some of the cheese and blended it with Melissa's Sun Dried Tomato Pesto http://www.melissas.com/Products/Products/Sun-Dried-Tomato-Pesto.aspx to make a creamy and tangy sandwich spread.  Along with some fresh arugula, on 12-grain bread, garnished with sliced almond "nails", these fun, finger sandwiches were the perfect complement to my teapot sugar cookies at a recent get together with my artsy, craftsy gal pals.

Thanks again Faye for your shopping expertise and culinary inspiration!