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How to Make Yogurt Cheese (and Where Do I Find Whey?)

Whey is used for soaking grains, homemade ferments, and as a protein source (although it’s not a good one). I prefer homemade whey as the acidic medium for soaking my oats because I have found it least likely to impart a sour flavor to the finished oatmeal. PLUS you get gorgeous yogurt cheese, which is an amazingly frugal cream cheese substitute and makes really healthy frosting and more.

homemade yogurt cheese in bowl

What Is Whey? Can You Make It at Home?

My brother, a big weightlifter, is huge into the “whey protein powder” drinks for big muscles. Don’t get this sort of whey confused with the powdered stuff, which I’m sure has some “I-am-not-real-food!” sort of health issues. (UPDATE:  A faithful commenter tells me that powdered whey is just spray-dried regular whey.)

Regular whey is a byproduct of cheesemaking, just like Little Miss Muffet had: curds and whey. It is a nearly transparent, yellowish liquid that pours like water. You may be thinking, “Great, now I have to make cheese.”  Luckily, this is much easier than that sounds and one of the easiest ways to make whey is from yogurt.

How to Make Whey and Yogurt Cheese

What Is Yogurt Cheese? (Perfect Cream Cheese Substitute!)

I get my whey from yogurt, which I happen to make homemade, but you could use plain, unsweetened yogurt from a store with the same results (you’ll get less whey/more cheese with Greek yogurt and more whey/less cheese with regular).

Yogurt cheese has the same consistency and almost the same flavor as cream cheese, but with power-packed probiotics for good digestion and more. Plus no additives! If you use cream cheese, even if you don’t want the whey, this process is the most frugal substitute for cream cheese you’ll ever find. It costs less than 50 cents for 8 ounces of yogurt cheese if you make your own yogurt and your milk is on sale for $2 or less.

Watch this Quick Yogurt Cheese Demo!

Can’t see the video? View it here on YouTube!

How to Make EASY Yogurt Cheese and Whey

It’s almost embarrassing to post something this easy. Love it!

This recipe covers both how to separate the whey from the yogurt AND how to make yogurt cheese. You know me, I’m all about making my time in the kitchen as efficient as possible.

  1. Line a colander with a tea towel or cheesecloth.
  2. Place a large bowl or measuring cup (at least 4 cups) under the colander. Make sure the opening is wide enough to be underneath all your yogurt (see next step).
  3. Pour a container of yogurt (I do a quart at a time) into the towel.
    straining yogurt in cloth
  4. Wait. See the whey draining out? *peek*
    Straining yogurt through colander
  5. After an hour or so, rig up some way to hang the towel so that gravitational pressure gets all the whey out of the yogurt. Here’s my method:
    Straining Yogurt Cheese and Whey
  6. After approximately 4 hours, or whenever your yogurt stops dripping, that’s it! You have about 3 cups of whey in the bowl and 1 cup of yogurt cheese in the towel.

Yogurt cheese lasts 1 week (you’ll know when it goes bad) and the whey may last up to 6 months.

It looks, tastes, and behaves just like cream cheese! The only thing it doesn’t do great is melt, like in a hot food recipe.

A quickie version of yogurt cheese:

You can put a few tablespoons of yogurt onto a coffee filter on top of a jar, and in an hour or less you’ll have a smidge of yogurt cheese for your toast on top and whey to soak your oatmeal in the jar.

Straining Yogurt Cheese 1

Recipes and Uses for Whey

So what do you do with all of this whey? It’s easy to use in multiple different recipes, so it won’t go to waste!

Ready to try making more cultured dairy products and cheeses? Check out my friend Wardee’s Cultured Dairy and Simple Cheese making course .

Not sure it’s for you? Try her FREE Cultured Butter download first!

Recipes and Uses for Yogurt Cheese

  • Fruit Pizza
  • Creamy Garlic Veggie Dip (in Healthy Snacks to Go eBook)
  • Tuscan Beef and Bean Stew
  • Avocado Dip
  • Homemade Fudgesicles (now in Smart Sweets along with 30 other healthy desserts!)
  • Use in place of some or all of the ricotta in a pasta recipe
  • Yogurt Cheese and Jelly Sandwiches
  • Any dip, dessert or main dish that calls for cream cheese – this is such a frugal and quick substitute, I feel like we’ll put cream cheese brands out of business!

Need More Baby Steps?

Monday Missions Baby Steps Back to Basics

Here at Kitchen Stewardship, we’ve always been all about the baby steps. But if you’re just starting your real food and natural living journey, sifting through all that we’ve shared here over the years can be totally overwhelming.

That’s why we took the best 10 rookie “Monday Missions” that used to post once a week and got them all spruced up to send to your inbox – once a week on Mondays, so you can learn to be a kitchen steward one baby step at a time, in a doable sequence.

Sign up to get weekly challenges and teaching on key topics like meal planning, homemade foods that save the budget (and don’t take too much time), what to cut out of your pantry, and more.

Unless otherwise credited, photos are owned by the author or used with a license from Canva or Deposit Photos.

92 thoughts on “How to Make Yogurt Cheese (and Where Do I Find Whey?)”

  1. I line a pasta pan, the part where the holes are, with a pillow case and dump my yogurt in the pillowcase. To allow more drain room I use a bowl of some type to lift my pasta pan higher out of the outside pan.

  2. Muslim Mommy

    Oh no! I always make yogurt cheese and just throw the whey down the drain. I was reading all of your posts about soaking and kept asking myself “What is whey?” Thinking that it is some sort of complicated hard to get thing. I live in Tunisia and I am usually missing a lot of ingredients that would be normal in the US. That is why I also appreciated your recipes for “wheat thin like crackers” and ranch dressing etc. Some foods that I miss. But I will say living here forced me into learning how to making foods from scratch . Thanks so much for all the info.

  3. So… I had my first total flunk making yogurt yesterday – and I’ve made it probably 2 dozen times following your method with no trouble! Not sure if the new starter (from the store) I used didn’t have enough active cultures (it wasn’t plain greek like i usually used, but a yoplait flavored greek), or if I added it too soon and the milk was too hot – or if the problem was something else entirely. But after 8-10 hours of “incubating”, I took my jars out of the cooler and just had liquid/milk. I figured I’d re-heat the milk today to 180-185 and start over (with a different starter culture and being more cautious about the temp!), but one of my 2 jars completely separated when I heated it up into about 1/2 white stuff on the bottom and 1/2 yellowish liquid (presumably whey) on top – and cooling it didn’t change anything. Did I actually just make “curds and whey”? Should I pitch this, or is it likely that the result (or part of it) is something edible? I hate to waste a quart of milk, but also don’t want anyone in the house to get sick! I thought maybe someone here would have had experience with this and could share their wisdom – TIA!

    1. Justine,
      Oh, sad – been there! I hate those moments, like “what did I do wronggggggg!?” From what it sounds like, you’re not going to kill anyone if you use that weird separated stuff for baking, pancakes, throw it in smoothies, whatever. It’s probably whey and sort-of-yogurt, ultimately, but unless it makes your nose turn, it should be fine. Did the other jar just act like milk when you reheated? So odd that they were different! Unless your “oops” was stirring double into one jar and none into the next… 😉 Might have been a “distracted Mommy” moment.

      Hopefully you’ll have complete success with the next batch! I do try to get plain because I’m never sure how the sweetener and flavorings will impact the incubation process.

      🙂 Katie

      1. The “other” jar looked normal through the heating process, but then still separated out with more whey then normal once it was done incubating (I did add more starter, since I thought the heating would kill off whatever had been there). Tastes a bit different, but still edible – especially in smoothies. The jar that was 1/2 whey almost seemed to taste more normal, just really thick – as if I had strained it. It was good, so I guess I should start to strain my yogurt more often 🙂
        I too usually use plain, but my yogurt was getting runny and I thought it was from a weak starter – so I ate my starter and then forgot to buy a new one at the store! But I had gotten a flavored cup (which I still buy on sale on ocassion for my husband as dessert), which is why I ended up using that. No more, though. Only plain from now on!
        Thanks for giving me the nerve to taste the result though 🙂
        Justine

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  7. I make my own soy milk and tofu and the whey leftover from tofu is an AMAZING cleaner! You have to use it right away as the cleaning ability seems to wear off quickly (I use it that day so beyond that can’t predict how long it will last) but it was great.

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  10. What is the rule to the kind of store bought yogurt needed to make whey. Pectin, no pectin, flavor, no flavor? Does the number of live active cultures make a difference? I have read too many conflicting comments and I am confused. I am new to this journey and trying to understand. I have not made my own yogurt yet, but I want to some day. I thought i would just start with whey first. Thanks.

    1. Katie Kimball @ Kitchen Stewardship

      Krista,
      The fewer ingredients, the better! Ultimately, if it works, great! If not…eat the yogurt. 😉 Katie

  11. I made my own yogurt a few days ago (thanks for the easy instructions!) for the second time in as many years – this time with a spoonful of Greek yogurt as start. But this time I dug around your site more and came across this info re: whey. I haven’t gotten so far as yogurt cheese yet, so I didn’t have tons of whey from my 1/2 gal of yogurt, but when I went to make these yummy muffins today (http://thehappyhousewife.com/cooking/whole-wheat-banana-millet-muffins/) and realized I had no buttermilk, I had a hair-brained idea – probably stemming from your “willy nilly” comment! – that I think turned out successful. According to epicurious, you can use either plain yogurt OR whey in lieu of buttermilk – which I never have on hand and usually sub with milk/vinegar. So I used the 1/4 c whey I had, plus 3/4 c homemade yogurt and the muffins turned out great! I don’t use buttermilk much, and when I do it’s for baking, and since I plan to start making yogurt more regularly, I will save (prob freeze) the whey to use as a buttermilk sub. Have you ever tried that or have any experience that would indicate my reasoning is flawed?
    Thanks for your site!

    1. Katie Kimball @ Kitchen Stewardship

      Justine,
      So glad it worked out! I pretty much use yogurt and buttermilk interchangeably in recipes, and depending on the recipe, part or all whey or even just milk (or the trick of milk with 1 tsp. of lemon juice per cup) for buttermilk. Nice experimenting! 🙂 Katie

    2. Hi Katie,
      This is really late but do u know if the yogurt cheese can b frozen? I have milk.goats and lose my milk for about 3 months. I am trying to make a bunch of cheese and I do make yogurt and would love to b able to freeze my own “cream cheese” for winter. Thanks and hope u get this question. Have looked online but can’t.find the answer to this.

      1. Jenny,
        You know, I’ve never tried it, and I freeze just about everything! Yogurt freezes okay – it doesn’t kill the healthy bacteria which is good, but it definitely separates. Since the whey is already drained out in yogurt cheese, I have a feeling it won’t separate, but there’s a risk that it would dry out. I would freeze 1/4 cup for 2 days and see how it goes! You’ll know if you like it or not after even that short amount of time. 🙂 Katie

        1. Sally M Steffen

          It separatesm- and has the feeling of sand in your mouth – I would not recommend freezing yogurt. M ight better freeze the milk and then use in yogurt

  12. Totally novice question here regarding straining with the intent of arriving at Greek style yogurt…What do you do with the cheesecloth after straining? Do you have to use new cheesecloth each time? Do you clean it; if so how? How do you get all of the food particles out of it so there is no risk of spoilage of anything left in the fabric? I’ve seen bleached and unbleached cheesecloth, the latter would be most compatible with whole living. I’ve seen some metal or mesh yogurt cheese straining containers, but they tend to have mixed reviews (rust issues, mesh is fragile and breaks). Are there any other ways of making Greek yogurt without cheesecloth or these mesh straining tubs? Different vein of questioning…what would happen if I followed your yogurt method but only had sweetened yogurt on hand to add as my culture starter instead of plain? (I just am several days away from getting to the store for plain and wondered what would happen if I tried making yogurt with what I had on hand-it’s organic, whole milk yogurt, but sweetened or I have organic nonfat greek sweetened.) Thanks for your ideas and research!

    1. Katie Kimball @ Kitchen Stewardship

      KT,
      I just rinse with hot, hot water and air dry, and I have reused cheesecloth – although I prefer a tea towel and just rinse, then run it through the washer with other towels.

      I also just use my stainless steel colander, so any colander you have will likely do just fine.

      I am nearly positive that sweetened, flavored yogurt still does okay as a starter!

      Good luck! 🙂 Katie

    2. I have been making yogurt cheese for years using a mesh greek yogurt strainer…have had NO issues with rust or any other problems! It’s wonderfully easy and the container holds the dripping whey.
      up until now I’ve always thrown it away…except one time I used the whey in place of water for breadmaking in my bread maker…was a disaster! I am hoping this wheat soaking in whey will be a life changer for me!
      Am also going to try a fermented lemonade with whey…

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  16. So, this is this is what I got from this post, please correct me if I’m wrong . . . basically, whey is the annoying liquid I find floating in my store bought yogurt that I normally pour down the drain and Yogurt Cheese is just strained yogurt??? If so, that means I can simply strain my yogurt, keep the once dumped whey liquid to soak with my oats, and now the yogurt I strained can be used as yogurt or as cream cheese in my ham and pickle rolls?? 😉 I’ve either just learned the most beneficial “that was easy” information or completely confused myself, lol.

    1. Katie Kimball @ Kitchen Stewardship

      Lizz,
      You’re golden! (And I’m late, sorry about that.) Yes, you understand exactly! Hope you got it to work and enjoyed the new “yogurt cheese!” 🙂 Katie

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  18. I have made ricotta cheese, and then used the whey to cook my lasagna noodles; made the noodles absolutely heavenly. I’d suspect yogurt whey would do likewise.

    Sharon Anne @ sharealikecooking.blogspot.com

  19. This morning I made some yogurt cheese so I could have the whey for making lacto-fermented guacamole and lacto-fermented mayonnaise. I smeared the yogurt cheese on some english muffins with my some of my homemade hot pepper jelly. Very tasty! I’m officially now hooked on yogurt cheese. I can’t wait until later today to try my lacto-fermented guacamole and mayonnaise on something. I even made a gallon of homemade yogurt today too. (insert oohs and aahs here) I’m a bit of a newbie at this health food stuff and greatly appreciate your website. It’s made the transition to healthy, whole food cooking/eating a lot less painful than I assumed it would be. 🙂

  20. Question: I made some whey about 3 months ago. I stored it in the fridge in a glass jar and haven’t touched it since… until tonight. I opened the jar and there was some swirling misty-looking whitish sediment on the bottom of the jar, and it smelled like sourdough starter. Does that mean it’s bad? How do I know when it goes bad?

    1. Stephanie,
      The sediment is pretty normal, but I find that whey has very little smell usually. ??? I don’t know that I’ve ever had it around 3 mos. Usually when mine has a problem, I see mold on the jar.
      🙂 Katie

  21. Believe it or not we give our whey and some of our yogurt to our dog every couple of days. He used to get horrible yeast infections in his ears. Spending 400.00 for one visit to the vet to clean them and be put on antiobiotics was just not an option for us every couple of months. He itched alot too and I also took ALL wheat away from him. Anyway he no longer gets yeast infections and the itching is gone. Going on more than 2 years and btw he LOVES yogurt and whey. The minute he sees the container he is in the kitchen for his “good medicine”.

    1. Lindsey,
      you know, I’ve only made coconut yogurt once as an experiment, and I’ve never tried straining it. Worst that could happen is it doesn’t work and you just retrieve and eat the yogurt. I’d love to know if you try it!
      🙂 Katie

  22. Is there anyway to sweeten the cream cheese a little bit? Not sure if I left it out too long or what but it doesn’t taste even remotely like the cream cheese from the store (which may be the point:) ). It set up really great though. Very excited to try it in some recipes.

    1. Julie,
      Sorry I lost your comment for a while! I’m sure I’m too late for that first batch, but for future reference, you can always add a dash of any sweetener – maple syrup, honey, stevia drops, whatever. I’ve only used the “cream cheese” myself in recipes b/c I don’t like cream cheese plain, so I’m not a good person to ask about a comparison… 😉 Katie

      1. Thanks for responding, Katie, especially since you have a lot of stuff on your plate right now! Congratulations, btw!

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  24. Hello and thank you for this (and many) posts. Have you worked with Kefir grains? I got some a short time ago, and now they separate so well there is a clear liquid on the bottom of the jar. Is that the whey? Is it the same kind of whey in cheese or yogurt?

  25. OK, I ran errands today – yeah, Memorial Day and been thinking about this and it donned on me that when I eat my Stonyfield organic yogurt every morning at work, there’s always a small amount of liquid at the top – since you tell us to strain it, I’m guessing it’s the whey – sure enough it is!!! Yahoo!!! So, what I can do is just go on and eat my yogurt like normal and take the whey out of a few instead of mixing it in like I’ve been doing the last 2 months… LOL Straight from Stonyfield’s site:

    Why is liquid sometimes on the top of my yogurt when I open it?

    It’s normal for a little bit of liquid (whey) to separate from our yogurt. It occurs when there has been any type of pressure applied or when the product has undergone a temperature change. We also don’t use any artificial thickeners that might prevent this. Whey contains many of the important vitamins and nutrients in yogurt, so we recommend that you simply stir it back in.

    1. Debbie,
      Exactly! If you WANT whey for soaking purposes or whatever, just leave a dent/hole in your yogurt each time you scoop, and then you’ll have a puddle of whey next morning that you can pour off for soaking. 🙂 Katie

  26. Angela @ Purposeful Womanhood

    This is something that has really piqued my interest! After reading about home-made yoghurt, this really does seem like a logical step to follow.

    For my family of seven, we already need to buy shares on a dairy farm, and the only things I have changed in our diet is making bread, cookies etc myself (no packaged snacks – go me!!!). Getting enough milk to make our yoghurt, and cheese also would mean we’d probaby have to buy ourselves our own farm, lol.

    Jokes aside, I hope to come back to this (and your home-made yoghurt tutorial) to give you my review after making it myself… though that may be some time away, I will definitely get there!

    Warmest blessings,
    Angela

    1. Angela,
      Even if you have to buy store milk to make the yogurt, it is SO worth it! You’ll love it. Can’t wait to hear how it goes. 🙂 Katie

  27. Oh my gosh, I just made yogurt for the first time and ended up straining it this way to get it thicker. And what did I do? I threw away the whey!! I didn’t even realize thats what it was. Oh well, now I know. (yogurt turned out great by the way!)

  28. Stacey Martin

    I am new to the whey and lacto-fermentation. Can whey be added to any condiment to add more nutrients and make it last longer?

    1. Stacey,
      Yes, I believe so, but personally I turn to http://gnowfglins.com/ or http://nourishedkitchen.com/ as my lacto-fermentation experts. 🙂 Katie

  29. Could you just use plain yogurt or lemon juice instead of whey like in Nourishing Traditions? Thanks!

    1. Beth,
      I have no idea how your comment got so lost, but I just saw it here – I’m not sure what you mean, though. Are you asking about soaking grains? If so, yes, those are also options. 🙂 Katie

  30. Thanks for this post!! I just strained my yogurt the other day because I didnt like the consistency of my yogurt. Low and behold, I strained it too long and made yogurt cheese!!
    My daughter still loves taking it in her lunch with peaches and honey on top, but it is a little too thick now!! lol
    I was wondering what I could do with yogurt whey…maybe I’ll try my hand at soaking oats and making your granola bars with it!!
    Thanks so much!!

    1. Mmmm, put the yogurt cheese with peaches and honey on bread – cream cheese and fruit sandwich! 🙂 katie

    2. And if you ever strain it too long again you can add some whey back in and pop in the mixer bowl on high to whip it back together! I just had to do this and it worked out beautifully!

  31. Katie,
    Just wondering if you get the same health benefits from using store bought yogurt to make whey? I’m not ready to make my own yogurt yet, but want to try the whey. Tried making whey with raw milk and it didn’t go so great.

    Thanks!

  32. Hi Katie,

    Have you tried making whey with raw milk? I tried but wasn’t very successful… Any thougts? just seemed like all milk….

    1. Shelley,
      Do you mean letting the milk clabber and then draining? That’s one I’ve never tried, but Kelly the Kitchen Kop might be a resource. Sometimes it takes up to 2-3 days to completely separate on the countertop.
      🙂 Katie

  33. WEFA (Jesilee)

    I am not sure if you will get this this comment or not to respond, but I am curious as to if the whey must be drained in the fridge? I make homemade yogurt (from a different site) and I am starting to realize we can not afford how much cream cheese I love. I love to put it on my bagels, and in mashed potatoes and all kinds of things.
    Would this yogurt cheese be a good replacement even in my mashed ‘taters? (which I boost nutritionally by steaming and mashing with organic carrots.) When I started making yogurt I just used my thin yogurt in smoothies and I still throw the liquid from the top in, or just stir it up.

    1. Jesilee,
      I always see and respond! Welcome! 🙂

      As yogurt is a cultured food, it’s perfectly ok to drain on the countertop, then store the finished product in the fridge. I use the cream cheese/yogurt cheese in everything I would put cream cheese in, so I would think it would be great in mashed potatoes, too! It doesn’t melt quite as well as regular cream cheese, but hopefully it still adds the creaminess you’re looking for. Enjoy!
      🙂 Katie

  34. Awesome for the ricotta substitute idea! I bought mascarpone (so expensive) recently to make lasagna because I couldn’t find growth hormone-free ricotta. Now I can use my homemade organic yogurt cheese…I think you are my new best blog friend!

  35. Lenetta @ Nettacow

    Going back to my question about my whey jar molding that I tweeted to you, Sarah (heartland Ren.) told me I could’ve just decanted it into a new jar. I’m thinking she’s right, since it was just the jar and not the whey itself that molded. I also had some crunchy friends tell me that whey made from raw dairy lasts much longer.

    It sounds like freezing whey kills off the probiotic … enzymes? qualities? whatever, so that really isn’t a good way to store it, but I suppose I could soak and dehydrate a large quality of oats and freeze those.

    My real question – I used to make ricotta cheese using this recipe from Cooking Light (though now I would go for the full-fat counterparts!) and I’m wondering if the cultured buttermilk would mean that the whey left over would be good for soaking. I think yes, but wanted to know your opinion. :>)
    .-= Lenetta @ Nettacow´s last blog ..Peeling Onions =-.

    1. Lenetta,
      I freeze both my yogurt and buttermilk starters, and they always still “work”, so the bacteria isn’t killed. Enzymes, I don’t know. I think it’s the probiotics that you want in both.

      I think yes on the buttermilk whey – anything acidic is supposed to work, and cultured is even better. Homemade ricotta = fun!
      🙂 Katie

  36. Thanks so much! I just bought your healthy snacks eBook (and so did my best friend), and I’m totally jazzed.
    You’ve made me unafraid of whey. I may even be ready to make homemade yogurt soon. My MIL kinda scared me away from it, but it doesn’t look like it’ll be too bad to make. 🙂
    .-= April´s last blog ..Another Reason to Choose Local Organic Food =-.

    1. april,

      Yee hah! You’ll love homemade yogurt and never look back (even if MIL is chasing you with a wooden spoon). 😉 Katie

  37. Curious…What’s the difference between yogurt cheese & Greek-style yogurt? I’ve only had Greek yogurt a few times (largely b/c it’s significantly more expensive to buy it), but I wouldn’t say it taste like cream cheese – even though I understand it’s just yogurt with the whey drained off. I do need to brush off my Salton yogurt maker in the pantry and quit buying the quarts of yogurt, and would love to try this!

    1. Cindy,
      Greek yogurt just has *some* of the whey drained off. This yogurt cheese would totally hold it’s form on a plate and is truly exactly like cream cheese consistency. Enjoy!
      🙂 Katie

  38. I wandered over here from Tammy’s Recipes and I’ve been browsing around.
    We have NO trouble getting whey, our problem is what to DO with it, so I love these ideas. We make and strain our own yogurt (so easy to do), but had no idea what to do with the whey so we were just tipping it down the sink. I’ll have to try some of these soaks.
    I use homemade yogurt in my smoothies, so is there any added benefit to putting the whey in also?

    1. Stacy,
      I have heard of people freezing the whey in ice cubes to add to smoothies. Any place you use whey will add some protein to what you’re eating. Frozen in a smoothie would be great for consistency!
      🙂 Katie

  39. Hi Katie, here from pennywise platter. Do you have more suggestions for yogurt cheese/traditional cream cheese? I use the whey almost daily to soak oatmeal, but the trad. cream cheese has a little too much tang for my liking right now. Hate to not use it though. Some has gone into a frittata and a little into a quiche over the wekend, but I still have more than I know what to do with.
    .-= Soli´s last blog ..Let’s see =-.

    1. Soli,
      I use yogurt cheese in my fruit pizza (link above) and in many dessert recipes that call for cream cheese. My slow cooker beef stew includes it http://www.kitchenstewardship.com/2009/03/31/making-a-healthy-meal-from-packaged-recipes/ as do other beef stroganoff type recipes. My son loves cream cheese and jelly or cream cheese, fruit and honey sandwiches! This yogurt cheese garlic veggie dip is AWESOME: http://www.nourishingdays.com/?p=1055 Hope that helps! Thanks for visiting -love to see you back!
      🙂 Katie

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  41. Another great post. I especially love the idea of your quick version- I would never have thought to do a little so I could have just a bit to soak in- and now I have some right on my counter. Thanks!
    .-= Shelley´s last blog ..Holiday System Day 14 – recipe: sprouted flour butter cookies =-.

    1. Malia,
      I have read about folks freezing it in ice cube trays and adding to smoothies, in fact! I just froze some because I have trouble with mozzarella cheese whey going bad after a week, but the yogurt whey really does last quite a while.
      Great question!
      🙂 Katie

  42. “My brother, a big weightlifter, is huge into the “whey protein powder” drinks for big muscles. Don’t get this sort of whey confused with the powdered stuff, which I’m sure has some “I-am-not-real-food!” sort of health issues.”

    Katie…Katie…Katie. I’m *tisk tisk-ing* you here. Let’s not assume the negative. Whey powder is spray dried whey. In it’s simplest form (not fortified/amplified like the bodybuilder stuff) the biggest concern is probably the oxidation factor that you discussed previously.
    .-= tonya´s last blog ..rcwant2be: RT @animalag: What’s in a name? Good discussion of public perception of "farmers," "producers," and "factory farms" http://bit.ly/8K1OMj =-.

    1. Ah, Tonya,
      So we’re back to the question of oxidizing…and is anything powdered “real food”? Good to know that whey protein powder isn’t quite as far away from the source as one might assume…as I did! 😉 Katie

      1. I like to think of spray drying as dehydrating. Dehydrating isn’t necessarily bad. This oxidation factor though…I need to learn more about that.

  43. Thanks for the tips for using whey. Maybe I missed it, but does whey have the same probiotic properties as the yogurt or yogurt cheese, or does it have some additional benefits?

  44. This is totally next on my food to-do list! (Right after finishing the sourdough starter I’m working on) Thanks for showing how easy it is.

  45. Thanks for the great information.

    I’m wondering how you think yogurt cheese would sub into a cheesecake?

    1. Julie,
      Since it seemed to work really well in a dip that *sort* of had to hold its shape, I would guess absolutely great. I’d say – make some and get the feel for the consistency. The Pampered Chef guru thought it acted just like cream cheese in that it was firm cold and softened right up on the countertop. Let me know if you try it! 🙂 Katie

    2. Julie~ I’m coming to this post a little late but I’ve had a cheesecake made out of yogurt cheese – it is AWESOME! We are so spoiled with yogurt cheese that nothing tastes quite as good anymore. Let me know if you need a recipe.

      1. Thanks Elaine, I’d love to get the recipe!

        On a related note, I just recently tried to make cream cheese icing for carrot cake, but it definitely did not have the same flavour. I just used it drained.

        Maybe it was because I didn’t flavour the “cream cheese” with salt and sweetener first?

      2. i’d love your yogurt cheese-cheese cake recipe. could you e-mail it to me? sthompson236113 (at) gmail (dot) com
        Thanks 🙂

  46. Love the idea of the yogurt cheese! Thanks so much!
    .-= Dani´s last blog ..It’s okay to ask for help. =-.

  47. I love it! I’ve been reading about whey for awhile but I don’t know, it just didn’t make sense to me. The pictures help, I think. Thanks!

  48. Katie, I have a bunch of whey sitting in my fridge, just from straining my too-thin homemade yogurt. I didn’t know what to do with it until this post (thanks!), but I’m also not sure how long it keeps in the fridge. I have a feeling mine is probably past its prime by now (it’s been well over a week), but if it’s still good, I’ll have to try some of your ideas!
    .-= April´s last blog ..Moving in a new direction =-.

    1. April,
      I bet it’s still okay. Whey is a preservative, so it’s supposed to last 6 months. Realistically I’ve found it to be good over a month. You’ll know if it’s bad – the smell is awful!
      🙂 Katie

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