This Labneh with Olive Oil, Pistachio and Orange Blossom is a PCOS-friendly recipe with 185 calories, 16g protein, and 6g carbs per serving. Ready in 8 minutes. High in fiber (2g), which supports insulin sensitivity.
Nutrition per Serving
Labneh is simply yogurt with the whey strained out. Two hours in a sieve concentrates the protein and gives a texture closer to soft cheese than yogurt.
Grocery list:
- Plain Greek yogurt
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Pistachios
- Orange blossom water
- Vanilla extract
- Orange
- Flaky sea salt
Glycemic index of the key ingredients: Greek yogurt 11, olive oil 0, pistachios 15.
Ingredients
Instructions
-
To make quick labneh, set the Greek yogurt in a sieve lined with muslin over a bowl and leave it in the fridge for 2 hours. It loses water and roughly doubles in thickness.Stir the orange blossom water, vanilla, zest, salt and stevia through the strained yogurt. Go easy on the orange blossom, it turns soapy fast.Spread thickly into two shallow bowls and use the back of a spoon to make a well in each.Pool the olive oil into the wells. Do not stir it through, the separate slick is the point.Scatter the pistachios and a small pinch of flaky salt over the top.
Why this works for PCOS
Straining the yogurt is what takes protein to 16g while dropping the lactose, so this lands at 6g of carbohydrate with no added sugar. That combination is close to ideal for an evening dessert: it satisfies without producing a glucose rise before bed, and a late spike followed by a crash is an underrated cause of broken sleep.
The ingredients doing the work
- Strained yogurt: concentrated casein protein plus live cultures for the gut microbiome, increasingly implicated in PCOS androgen metabolism.
- Raw extra virgin olive oil: polyphenols that are heat sensitive and largely lost in cooking, so eating it raw is the point.
- Pistachios: the highest protein of any common nut, plus fibre.
Swaps
Skip the straining if time is short and use the yogurt as it comes, which lands nearer 8g of carbohydrate. Rosewater in place of orange blossom, used just as sparingly.
Sweet, without the swing
Strained yogurt, ricotta and labneh are the most useful dessert bases available to anyone managing insulin resistance: high in protein, almost no sugar, and neutral enough to take any flavour you put on them. Every recipe in this set sits under 200 calories with no added sugar.
PCOS Meal Planner builds your week around what you actually eat, and dessert is part of that rather than something to be talked out of.
Why this Labneh with Olive Oil, Pistachio and Orange Blossom works for PCOS
This Labneh with Olive Oil, Pistachio and Orange Blossom delivers 16g of protein per serving, which sits in the moderate range for a PCOS-friendly meal. If you find yourself hungry within 2-3 hours, pair this dish with an additional protein source (Greek yogurt, a boiled egg, or a small portion of fish) to push the meal closer to the 25-35g per-meal target most PCOS dietitians recommend.
At 6g of carbohydrates per serving, this Labneh with Olive Oil, Pistachio and Orange Blossom is on the lower-carb end, which suits women with PCOS who have confirmed insulin resistance or who notice strong post-meal energy crashes. Pair lower-carb meals like this with a generous portion of non-starchy vegetables to keep fibre intake up.
Desserts on a PCOS plan are not banned, but timing and pairing matter. Eating sweet foods immediately after a balanced meal (rather than on an empty stomach) blunts the blood sugar response, since protein and fat slow gastric emptying. This Labneh with Olive Oil, Pistachio and Orange Blossom works best as an occasional post-dinner option rather than a standalone snack.
At 150mg of sodium per serving, this Labneh with Olive Oil, Pistachio and Orange Blossom fits comfortably within the 1500-2300mg daily target most cardiology and PCOS guidance agrees on. Lower-sodium meals are useful for women with PCOS who also experience bloating or who are managing blood pressure alongside metabolic concerns.
You Have a Recipe. But Do You Have a Full Week?
One great recipe is a start. A complete PCOS meal plan is a system. Here is how to go from one meal to a full week of eating that supports your hormones.
Free. Personalized. No signup required to start.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, this Labneh with Olive Oil, Pistachio and Orange Blossom recipe is designed to be PCOS-friendly. At 185 calories per serving with 16g of protein, it supports balanced blood sugar and hormonal health. It also provides 2g of fiber, which helps with insulin sensitivity.
This recipe takes about 8 minutes total. Prep time is 8 minutes. It makes 2 servings, so you can meal prep for multiple days.
Per serving: 185 calories, 16g protein (35%), 6g carbs, 12g fat. Plus 2g fiber. PCOS meal plans typically aim for 30% protein, 35% fat, 35% carbs to support insulin sensitivity.
Yes, this recipe works well as a PCOS-friendly Dessert. At 185 calories, it fits within typical PCOS meal plan targets for Dessert. Pair it with other PCOS-friendly foods throughout the day for balanced nutrition.
This recipe can be part of a structured PCOS meal plan. It makes 2 servings, making it great for meal prep. For a complete weekly plan tailored to your PCOS type, take our free 60-second quiz at pcosmealplanner.com/pcos-quiz to get a personalized 7-day meal plan.
Cook Another PCOS-Friendly Dessert
Each recipe you add to your rotation makes PCOS management easier. Variety keeps you from getting bored and quitting.
Comments
Register or log in to add a comment