Milk turns to yogurt, yogurt turns to labneh. It’s the way of bacteria. As cow or goat or sheep’s milk thickens from fresh to fermented, it gets creamier, tangier and long-lastier. The glass of milk is downed with a single cookie. The ball of labneh, rolled in herbs and packed in oil, can cure for months.

Give it a whirl: Line a strainer with cheesecloth, and set it over a deep bowl. Stir 1⁄2 teaspoon salt into a 2-pound tub of plain whole yogurt; pour into the lined strainer. Slide this setup into the fridge, and let it drip. In two hours, you’ll have strained yogurt — “Greek” to the grocery store. In eight hours, you’ll have soft labneh, lush as sour cream. In 12 hours, you’ll have firm labneh, smooth as cream cheese. (You’ll also have a bowl of watery whey — bane of the yogurt industry.)

Spoon up labneh with fruit, spread it on a sandwich or swirl it into a bright green dip. It offers a creamy, tangy, lingering taste of lovely.