Whether you have been experiencing a cream cheese shortage, or you would just simply like to increase your protein intake (while also lowering your fat intake), you can now learn how to easily substitute Greek Yogurt for Cream Cheese in all of your favorite recipes. This simple tutorial will have your recipes protein-packed in no time at all.
Whether you like to use cream cheese in your cooking just for the holidays, or you use it in your everyday life, you are sure to love this handy fat-blasting tip!
Cream cheese and butter seem to be the main ingredient in most “heavenly” food dishes, you just can’t seem to escape it.
So, showing you how to replace cream cheese for the Greek yogurt version of cream cheese that I make, will not only help by reducing the fat content to zero, but it will give everything you make with it a huge punch of protein.
Not to mention that it tastes much better than some of the alternatives and always seems to have the perfect texture.
Don’t get me wrong, I am well aware that there are lots of good cream cheese options out there, but none of them are both fat-free AND super high in protein.
None that I have been able to find anyway.
- To see all of my high-protein recipes, go here.
Can I use greek yogurt instead of cream cheese?
Yes, you sure can, if you know how to do it right! Yep, there is a little bit of technique involved.
The most important part to having your Greek style cream cheese taste as good as possible is to make sure that you buy the type of plain Greek yogurt that does not have a sharp taste to it.
Some brands of Greek Yogurt are kinda tangy and to me, that is a turn-off, to me anyway… I’d rather eat the fattening stuff then to get that yucky zing taste in my mouth.
There are two brands of Greek yogurt that I personally think have minimal sharp taste and those are Chobani and the Costco generic by Kirkland Signature.
That is just my opinion, no one has paid me to tell you that, by the way…
Also, to get the best results possible, make sure that there are no funky smells going on in your fridge (if that’s a problem make sure to read my post “How To Permanently De-stink Your Fridge”), and use air-tight containers for those left-overs or your “cream cheese” will take on whatever smell/taste you’ve got going on in there.
Here is what this cream cheese substitute looks like:
Notice how it is super thick and not runny at all? That is exactly what we are aiming for by using this easy method.
What to use in place of cream cheese?
Don’t forget that this can easily just be a simple solution to the cream cheese shortage…you can always go right back to your old ways of using regular cream cheese.
That is, when you are able to find it in stores/on the shelves.
Now that you know those two things, we can begin the tutorial for How to make cream cheese from greek yogurt :
Here is a little video of the process… and down below there is also a free printable “how-to/recipe card” so you can always remember to do this method.
How To Make Cream Cheese Substitute from greek yogurt
Learn how to substitute greek yogurt for cream cheese in all of your favorite recipes. Make “cream cheese” from greek yogurt with this simple tutorial.
Materials
- medium glass bowl
- large spoon
- mesh strainer
- greek yogurt
- coffee filter or cheese cloth
- refrigerator
- tupperware type container (airtight)
Instructions
- Make sure that your refrigerator is free of any funky smells before you begin as the greek yogurt will absorb those smells to develop a funky taste, if you do not take this step. If unsure how to do that, try using my fridge deodorizing tutorial, found here.
- Allow approximately twelve hours between when you make your "greek yogurt" and when you actually need it.
- Prepare an empty space in your refrigerator that is large enough for a medium-sized glass bowl.
- Using a medium sized glass bowl, add a mesh strainer to the top of the bowl. Make sure that it allows 2 to 4 inches of clearance between the bottom of the strainer and the bottom of the bowl.
- Place a coffee filter or cheese cloth in the bottom of the strainer.
- Scoop your greek yogurt into the coffee filter/cheese cloth inside the mesh strainer.
- Cover greek yogurt with a coffee filter or cheese cloth (to prevent drying and texture issues).
- Place inside refrigerator for approximately 12 hours allowing the excess whey to drop into the bottom of the bowl, below the mesh strainer.
- When the yogurt has become a "cream cheese" texture, you are ready to remove it from the refrigerator.
- Scoop the remaining "cream cheese" into sealed rubbermaid type containers and refrigerate until ready for use.
- This thickened yogurt can now replace cream cheese in almost any recipe.
Notes
If you are cooking something that will need you to add the yogurt to a hot dish, make sure that you use the yogurt "cream cheese" at room temperature, which will reduce clotting and give the best results with texture.
Any remaining whey can be added to other recipes to add a bit of protein, or could be composted.
Please Note: Approximately 2/3rd's of a 32 oz container of yogurt will fit into a single standard sized coffee filter.
Also, one 32 oz container of plain greek yogurt makes about 2.5 cups "cream cheese".
If you are needing to make several cream cheese dishes in the morning, just do this the night before. It takes just a couple of minutes of prep and you’ll be good to go.
If you need to use it right away, that’s great. It’s ready to use and should swap out cup for cup in your cream cheese recipes.
Those of you that have worked with dairy products are probably thinking “yeah, this is common sense”, but for those of you that don’t have any experience working with cheese cloth for its intended purpose, you are probably thinking “Wow, that’s pretty handy. There are so many recipes that this information would be useful for”…
Yes I’m putting words in your mouth but hey… I think it’s been pretty handy to know.
I figured out how to do this years ago when I posted my Mom’s Favorite Cheeseball, Now Made With Greek Yogurt recipe.
It’s a must for your holiday celebrations by the way, and decided that this method of “cream cheese” prep needed a tutorial all on its own.
If you are trying to trick your family into eating this instead of regular cream cheese, you could always use a box from regular cream cheese and put some plastic wrap inside and then mold the greek yogurt stuff into it then cover and chill…lol.
I’m always sneaking healthier ingredients into my family’s diet so that is what I would do if they were being super picky about it.
Hee hee…just ask my dad, I made him a meal recently and waited until he was on his seconds to ask him if he could tell that it was brown rice pasta instead of regular pasta and he couldn’t tell a difference.
A great use for this, that you may not have thought of, is to mix a little with some of your favorite flavored jelly to make a delicious protein packed schmear for that morning bagel.
It’s also the perfect texture for most dip recipes too, and I have even had success swapping it out in my baking/cooking recipes too.
What do you think? Did you try it? Did you like it? Any money saving suggestions on how to make it even more frugally? I would love to hear!
Thanks so much for stopping by my blog! Please make share this post with any of your Greek Yogurt loving friends, family, and coworkers via social media, or even send them the direct link via email. Hoping you have some happy and healthier parties in your future! ~Sarah
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Appetizers/sides to try
*Reposts: Please note that this idea/post was originally posted to this website on 10/14/2016, however it was in great need of a refresh so it now is more user friendly/shareable.