Foodie blogroll + Yogurt cheese

So I just joined the foodie blog roll. Have you joined yet? Well if not, I would. Why you might ask? Well, Its a really cool blog roll just for us foodies! It also might get you a bunch of new readers, and you might just stumble upon a couple of new blogs yourself! There are three conditions, first is that your blog has to be at least a month old with 5 posts. Second is that your blog must be 80% food. Third is that you have to put the blog roll somewhere on your sight where people can see it! So if you want to join this awesome blog roll, click here.. . .
What does baking Blondie do at 12 at night? Well, she makes yogurt cheese of course. I mean, what else is there to do when your bored and just had lots of caffeine? lol : ) I saw this recipe on Elle's New England Kitchen, and was then inspired to try it. It just sounded really cool. So at the grocery store I had to pick up some yogurt without gelatin. So I had trouble finding low fat yogurt without gelatin. All either had gelatin, or pectin. So the only one that I could find was Activia. Now you too can regulate your system in 2 weeks! Lol. So that night I decided to give it a try. I wanted to use basil in it.You are supposed to use a cheese cloth so that the water will drain out wile it sits in a colander, but I didn't have one. So I used multiple coffee filters instead. Hehe. Let me tell you, it was not pretty. So, Elle tells you that you can be really creative in this recipe, I decided that I might as well stick to the recipe, instead of making drastic changes.I got the basil from Svens basil plant.So you add flavorings, then as I said, put it in a cheese cloth(or a coffee filter, if your stupid like me) in a colander in a bowl, so that it can drain, turning into a cheese of sorts. Caffeine starting to wear off, I tucked my future cheese in the fridge with care.You wait overnight, and Poof! Instant Yogurt cheese! How cool!This had a really fresh taste to it, and was really creamy. I especially like how it was sort of fun to make. It was almost like an experiment to me. I was like. . .is it going to work? How will it be? I'm not going to lie, I was excited. I really need to lay off the caffeine lol.


Lizzie's Yogurt Cheese (savory version)
Elle's New England Kitchen

32 ounces (2 lbs) Lowfat plain yogurt

Herbs of your choice (I typically use oregano and basil, but a mix of your favorites, or even a blend like herbes de provence or a cajun or italian spice mix would work, about 1 tablespoon of each)

Minced garlic (optional, to taste - I like about 4 - 6 cloves)

Sea or kosher salt (about 1 teaspoon)

Fresh ground black pepper, to taste

Chopped sundried tomatoes (optional)

Chopped kalamata (or your choice) olives (optional)

In a large bowl, mix together yogurt, salt, pepper, herbs, and whatever optional ingredients you want. You can also do the mixing right in the yogurt container.

Prepare a large strainer over a pot to catch the water from the yogurt. Line the strainer with cheesecloth, making sure that it overlaps the strainer and can be pulled up.

Drape the excess cheese cloth over bowl.

Let sit over night in the fridge.