Homemade Labneh with Carrots, Caraway & Orange Blossom
Carrots and caraway seeds are a classic combination and a perfect partner for this very easy yogurt labneh which I whipped with salty feta. I added pistachios and pumpkin seeds for crunch & colour and mint and dill for fragrance and perfume.
I love a table full of sides rather than ONE main dish, that way, I get to have lots of little tasters on my plate. This is the way I love to eat and probably why my cooking leans heavily towards Middle Eastern & Italian cuisines.
What is labneh?
Labneh, a Middle Eastern classic, is often classified as a “yogurt cheese.” It has a thick texture, similar to that of cream cheese, and a tanginess that lands somewhere between cream cheese and yogurt. Although made in the same way as yogurt, labneh is traditionally made with goat’s milk and is strained for longer, helping it achieve that thick, spreadable consistency.
I made a simple version by straining double cream yogurt from Dalewood fromage, I love their feta too.
What is orange blossom water?
In this recipe I added a dash of orange blossom water to the warmed carrots which adds a lovely florally perfume. Orange blossom water is water from the buds of bitter oranges. It has a citrus-floral aroma and adds (unsurprisingly) an orange flavour to food. It’ll perfume your dish, so use sparingly — its powerful, and like rose water, one tiny drop can take you a long way. Infuse into a sugar syrup and soak your cakes and fruit salads or fold into cream as a dessert. I love to dress simple salads or roasted veggies with it – for a bitter, fresh kick.
You can find some online or in a good deli like Olive Branch Deli in Cape Town.
Recipes with orange blossom water
- Baked feta filo parcels
- Marvellous green bean & mange tout salad with orange blossom dressing
- Roasted carrots & watercress salad with Moroccan dressing
Serving suggestions
I love this side as part of a mezze table and would include smoky baba ganoush
- quick flatbreads, mix and fry
- very easy flatbreads
Homemade Labneh with Carrots, Caraway & Orange Blossom
Ingredients
- 500 g Greek style yogurt
- 1/2 tsp fine salt like Himalayan, not table salt
- 1/2 cup good feta (or 200g soft goats cheese)
- lemon juice to taste
- 500 g organic carrots peeled/unpeeled, sliced on the angle, about 2cm thick
- 4 garlic cloves (skin left on)
- 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (more to drizzle)
- 2 tsp whole caraway seeds
- 3 tbsp pistachios
- 3 tbsp pumpkin seeds
- 2 tbsp dill finely chopped
- 2 tbsp mint finely chopped
- a few drops orange blossom water
Instructions
- To make the labneh, stir the salt into the yoghurt, then pour the yoghurt into the centre of the cheesecloth. If your kitchen is cold enough, you can drain the yoghurt outside the fridge; otherwise leave it in the fridge. The longer you leave the labneh, the firmer it will become – after 12 hours it should be the consistency of cream cheese.
- Whip the labneh with the feta until completely smooth and spreadable, season to your liking with lemon juice and salt. Keep in the fridge until you are ready to serve.
- Preheat the oven to 200c, line a roasting tray with greaseproof paper, I find this useful to pour any roasting juices over the carrots when serving. Add the carrots and garlic to a roasting tray and drizzle with the olive oil, add the caraway seeds, season generously with salt & pepper. Cover with foil or greaseproof paper and roast for 15-20 minutes or until the carrots are starting to soften.
- Remove the foil/paper and roast for another 20 minutes or until the carrots are soft and starting to caramelise. IIF the garlic is soft and starting to caramelise at this stage, remove and set aside.
- While the carrots are roasting, toast the pistachio nuts and pumpkin seeds (in the same oven) until golden, roughly chop, set aside.
- Add the roasted carrots, any roast juices and seeds to a bowl and let it cool slightly, remove the skins of the garlic, season with the herbs, reserving some for the final garnish, lemon juice and orange blossom water if using. Toss and mix well.
- To serve, add and swirl the labneh to a pretty plate, add the warm or room temp carrots and sprinkle over the toasted nuts + seeds before finally drizzling over lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil and the reserved herbs.
