Make Yogurt Cheese - No cooking required

I had some down time in a mall last week and spent about 45 minutes browsing a beautiful gourmet food and cooking store - Lagaat B'ochel. One thing I saw was a "Yogurt Cheese Maker."  The instructions seemed so easy - just pour yogurt into the mesh insert in the plastic container and put it in the fridge for a few hours.  I thought, "I can do that, and I don't need to buy this "uni-tasker" to do it!"

1. You will need a clean, thin piece of cloth, cheese cloth, or extra fine mesh.  I used an old fashion flat cloth diaper or "mussy." Note, if you use cloth you may not have usable whey, just a very wet cloth.
2. Lay the cloth in a container so it is not touching the bottom. Secure it with a rubber band.
3. Add any yogurt. I used a small individual serving container to try this out and got enough cheese to spread generously on four pieces of bread.
4. Set the cover or a plate over the container and wrap any extra cloth over the top.
5. Leave in the refrigerator overnight.
6. Unwrap and enjoy! Stored in a regular container or bag, the cheese will stay firm and keep for some time.

This is an easy, healthy alternative to cream cheese.  I was particularly drawn to this cheese-making technique because it doesn't require any cooking, and in my kosher kitchen, I don't have dairy pots or pans.  My two-year old, who barely eats anything, really liked the very mild cheese that resulted from the natural yogurt I used.  My husband actually thought it tasted better than cream cheese!

The last couple times I made yogurt cheese, I used goat yogurt with chopped olives and all my kids liked it!  I also want to try adding extra probiotics, for health or chopped chives. I plan to sweet yogurt next.  Maybe I'll try to make a sun dried tomato and pesto cheese. I think I'd also like to involve my kids next time.