Yoghurt Cheese / Labneh / Μπαλάκια τυριού από γιαούρτι

The Greeks perfected yoghurt making and in the Middle East, they have perfected Labneh cheese. It is popular in Greece and now even available in Waitrose. This yoghurt cheese is a fabulous appetiser with no cooking involved, fun to make, and it will last for 3 months in your fridge if you can resist it! It’s creamy, tangy, thick, soft, and healthy.
Labneh is loved all over the Middle East; the yoghurt is allowed to drain for 48 hours in a cheese cloth or linen, then it can be served as a dip, topped with olive oil and sprinkled with Za’tar (a blend of sesame seeds, sumac, herbs and spices) and dried mint. It is served with pitta bread and crudities or shaped into balls and kept in olive oil to use whenever you like.
I had this yoghurt cheese many years ago in the famous Tripa Taverna in Corfu, when I was filming Simply Greek – some yoghurt balls were covered with herbs, and some with cracked mixed peppercorns. The balls can be rolled in anything you like – dried or fresh herbs, spices, chopped nuts, ground black pepper, pomegranate seeds, sesame seeds or nigella seeds.
In Greece, they also use this cheese on Ntakos/Dakos, Cretan bruschetta, crispy barley rusk, topped with fresh grated tomatoes.

Ingredients:
1 kilo thick Greek yoghurt (sheep or goat milk yoghurt is best)
1 tbsp sea-salt flakes
A large cheesecloth or muslin cloth
Light olive oil

For coating:
Olive oil
Za’tar spice
Dried mint

Method:
Mix yoghurt with sea salt. Line a colander with cheesecloth or a muslin cloth over the bowl, add the yoghurt, twist the cloth, tie with a string and hang over a bowl to collect the whey (liquid).
Place in the fridge for 48 hours – the longer you drain the yoghurt, the firmer the cheese gets, easier to shape into balls and better to hold together. Some like to make it into a dip, similar to Tzatziki; if you are going to use it as a dip, 24 hours draining is fine.
Remove the cheese from the cloth, its ready to eat or to preserve it. With oily hands, break small pieces of cheese and shape into walnut size balls. Gently place them in a clean, sterilized jar, cover them in olive oil and keep in the fridge. It will keep up to 3 months.
For the coating, spread the spices and herbs in a small bowl, drizzle the cheese balls with virgin olive oil, roll them in spice or dried mint, decorate with slices of figs or black olives and serve with pitta bread and crudités. You can store in an airtight container up to a week.