Labneh: The secret to breakfast like a boss

Not to sound like a dinosaur, but I miss the good old days when Ramazan would roll around in the cool, crisp winter and we’d wake in the middle of the night shivering, the tips of our noses frozen numb. Those were simpler times of racing my brother and sister to the lounge, hoping to claim the toastiest spot in front of the enormous gas heater.

Those were the magical years of sitting down, still sleepy-eyed, on a colorfuldastarkhwan laid out with a sehri-time feast.

Of course, now, thanks to record-breaking heat, I have no such notions. I mean, is it just me or is consuming anything more than a dry piece of toast and gallons of water at a pre-dawn meal actually a very real struggle? Plus, with the holy month coming to a close soon and temperatures still soaring, I’m guessing the prospect of breakfast isn’t going to inspire much enthusiasm either.

Thank God, my grandmother taught me well and I’ve finally got a fix for all those early morning woes.

See, on those chilly nights, while we all sat cross-legged on the floor, crowding around bal-wala parathas, and spicy desi-style scrambled eggs studded with soft tomatoes, sweet onions, cumin, and plenty of green chilis, and leftover saalan and daal, and sticky-sweet french toast, Nano’s pre-Roza ritual defied all the norms of stuffing oneself silly.

She would quietly spend a few minutes pretending to nibble on the stodgy fare and then, sure as the rising sun, she’d abandon ship for her standard bowl of fresh unsweetened yogurt.

I found her minimalist choice earth-shatteringly boring!

Why would you eat a bowl of bland white goo when ghee-shakkar andmakhni roti were up for grabs? Really, why?

Well, now that I’m older and smarter and have serious acid reflux issues, I’ll tell you why.

Yogurt is cool, healthy, refreshing, and it’s packed with good-for- you bacteria that helps soothe that gross bubbly feeling you get in your gut when you’ve gone empty-stomached for too long. And in the sweltering summer, it’s a wonderfully light, low-calorie, belly-soothing sehri option that will keep you full and your tummy in check through an endless day of fasting.

I’m still against the bowl of blah, though.

My solution? Labneh!

An incredibly versatile middle-eastern cheese, labneh is made by straining yogurt to remove the whey or liquid. What’s left behind is a tangy, creamy ball of soft, spreadable goodness that’s so delicious and simple to make, you’ll wonder why you haven’t been doing this all your life.

It’s become my favorite sehri super-food and I definitely plan to make it a breakfast table staple too.

There’s no such thing as too much cheese, right?

Bonus for the health-conscious: labneh contains less fat and clocks in at almost half the calories of regular cream cheese! Awwwyyyiiiisss!

On its own, the cheese is soft, smooth, and has a salty, palate-pleasing tang, but if you’re looking for something with a little more pizzaz, try throwing in some fresh or dried herbs, garlic, or whatever else strikes your fancy. I prefer to leaving it plain, serving condiments, herbs, sliced veggies, fresh fruit and berries, jams, honey, olive oil, and some nice, crusty bread on the side. That way everyone can customize to their hearts content.

Labneh smeared thick on lightly toasted multi-grain bread, topped with fresh greens, flaky sea salt, freshly cracked pepper, a squeeze of lemon juice, a pinch or two of sumac, and a drizzle of olive oil. Now that’s my idea of a super-powered sehri!

Serving Tip: If you ride the french-toast- train and can’t live without a sugar-hit at sehri, try topping your cheese with honey or your favorite jam or compote. Or go the extra mile with fresh sliced fruit. Berries and stone fruits such as peaches, plums, and nectarines work beautifully.

Recipe

Labneh: Strained Yogurt Cheese (makes about 1.5 cups)

Ingredients

4 cups unsweetened yogurt (I highly recommend Anhaar brand yogurt)

1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions

1) Line a large sieve with two layers of muslin and place over a large bowl. Make sure the base of the sieve does not touch the bottom of the bowl or the yogurt will not strain properly. To avoid this kind of water contact, I place my muslin-lined sieve over a large saucepan instead of a bowl simply because the depth of the pan allows the whey to drain completely.

2) Stir the salt into the yogurt. I highly recommend Anhaar Unsweetened Yogurt for this particular recipe. I’ve tried several other commercial brands for comparison and this one consistently produces light, creamy, flavorful cheese with just the right hint of the yogurt’s signature sour note, but feel free to substitute with your favorite brand.

3) Pour the salted yogurt into the muslin. Gather the ends of the muslin and tie the top to create a pouch for the yogurt. Gently squeeze out as much of the whey as possible.

4) Place the yogurt in the refrigerator to drain for 12-48 hours. The longer the yogurt is strained, the firmer the resulting labneh will be. I find 24 hours makes the perfect cheese.

Storage Tip: To maximize the life of your labneh, roll into 3/4 inch balls, place in a jar (or any other spill-proof container), pour in enough olive to cover the cheese, cap on the lid and refrigerate. Stored like this, your labneh should last for up to 2 weeks.

After 15 years, British Council Library to reopen next month

KARACHI: The British Council Library back in the 1990s was a catalyst that invariably shaped the minds of thousands of creative voices and instincts, providing them a haven for self-expression.

Its closing down around 15 years ago was a blow the city never recovered from and unfortunately, no other organisation or institution, private or state-owned, took up the mantle to fill this gaping hole.

The British Council on Tuesday, in an attempt to right these wrongs, announced the reopening of its library in August.

The guided tour of the library, with Rabeea Arif, manager of libraries, at the helm, was an effort to emphasise using, reusing, and adapting spaces for a range of cultural activities and bringing about a semblance of normality to an otherwise disrupted narrative.

“There have been a lot of changes in Pakistan in the last 15 years. We now see the need for convening spaces in the city but they are hardly any," said Arif.

The theme of the new British Council Library is simple: take the fundamentals of a conventional library, merge it with technology, with a mix of culture, incorporating a creative symphony of entertainment and food, and you have yourself a winner. Electronic checkouts for borrowed books; around 10,000 volumes from varied genres to choose from; access to digital books as well as online academic sources and articles; subscriptions to newspapers and magazines from around the world; the British Council Library is a one-stop portal.

On entering the premises there appears to be a lack of theme to the physical elements of the library, but as you continue browsing, the flexibility afforded to the space seems to be a deliberate attempt to push the boundaries of what a library can offer.

The space is built so that it can be repurposed to provide a safe space for dialogue; an auditorium is also built with modern technological facilities and is aptly named after the visionary Ismat Chughtai. The courtyard outside can host events of a different variety, and a fully stocked organic cafe adjoins it.

Graphic novels catch one’s attention while walking into the library. Self-help books catered for teenagers and adolescents are available at the other end; lifestyle and fashion given its due, while travelogues and travel guides are placed strategically to provide vagabonds and wanderers guidelines to the world outside. Autobiographies are aplenty, alongside a wide range of non-fiction titles. The novels at hand incorporate classics as well as contemporary and modern fiction. There is much being offered and also much to build up on; the library is still a work in progress.

The book collection would benefit greatly if alternative genres are also incorporated and titles lesser known, not available at bookstores around the country, are made part of the offering. According to Ms Arif, books in Urdu and other regional languages will be part of the fold soon enough.

Maarya Rehman, director of libraries at the British Council, spoke about how security concerns had resulted in the shutting down of the library. This is, however, changing as “Pakistan’s security concerns have diminished. The council has a very proud history of opening libraries in places such as Burma, and Eastern Europe during the Cold War, which became beacons of information and freedom of exchange of ideas. So why not have one in Pakistan where there is a constriction of availability of safe cultural spaces?” she said.

However, a glaring impediment to the success of the library is its current location. Constructed on the premises of the British High Commission, the library can be accessed only after stringent security checks which can pose to be a deterrent for book enthusiasts. For Ms Arif, this is a matter which was discussed at length and various improvements made to the systemic induction of members with the aim to reduce the problems faced by book lovers wanting to frequent the library. Online databases will be maintained with personal contact information, and members thoroughly vetted before being given admittance.

Of course, there exists the debate of the library being located in an area which is not frequented by people from all walks of life. Would this, one wonders, affect the overall impact of the library, especially considering that the original set-up was in a place with much greater accessibility? Only time will tell.