CHEESE CATEGORIES

Soft and Fresh

Chevre (Goat) | Cream Cheese | Feta | Mascarpone | Ricotta

Chevre (Goat)

Chevre, French for “goat,” is a generic term for goat’s cheese. Chevre encompasses cheeses of various sizes, ages, textures, flavors and types. Generally they are soft and smooth with a mild tangy flavor. The French use the term chevre to label cheeses that are made entirely with goat’s milk. Mi-chevre cheeses, on the other hand, contain at least 50% goat’s milk as well as cow’s milk. A large amount of goat cheese is produced in France on farms and in small workshops.

Fresh goat cheese log with thyme on a rustic wooden board, perfect for gourmet dishes.
Autumn Salad With Bread And Goat Cheese

Recommended Applications

  • Spread on bread or crackers.
  • Soften over pasta or pizza.
  • Make a filling for ravioli.
  • Use as the base for a smooth sauce.
  • Serve in a wrap with grilled vegetables or balsamic chicken.
  • Top an apple salad, completing it with other ingredients such as grapes, raisins, walnuts and candied pecans.
  • Crumble over steamed asparagus, grilled zucchini or a roasted vegetable mixture.

Cream Cheese

Cream cheese carries a rich, nutty and slightly sweet flavor, with a smooth and creamy texture. Regular cream cheese is a naturally cultured dairy product containing no artificial colors, flavors or preservatives.

Cream cheese is conveniently packaged for easy menu preparation. It is sold in whipped, soft and 1-ounce portion control cups.

Cream cheese comes in the following varieties:

  • Regular: 33% butterfat content, 55% moisture
  • Neufchatel: 33% less fat than regular, higher moisture content
  • Light: 50% less fat than regular
  • Fat Free: no fat
  • Spread: no set standard of identity; soft spread is spreadable at refrigerated temperatures while whipped spread is aerated for super spread-ability
Delicious fruit-topped dessert pizza with creamy filling, raspberries, and blueberries on a golden crust.
Dairy Images 7

Recommended Applications

  • Excellent substitute for butter or margarine.
  • Serve as a spread for toast, muffins and breakfast bagels.
  • Combine with a flour tortilla and use as the start for a delicious wrap.
  • Blend with smoked fish, shrimp, artichokes, roasted almonds, herbs or spices and invent a remarkable spread or dip for crackers and fresh vegetables.
  • Develop signature sauces or fillings for beef, poultry and seafood entrees.
  • Incorporate flavored syrups and chocolates for rich, creamy toppings or dessert ideas.
  • Use whipped product as a great base for signature dips and sauces.

Feta

Greek for “slice,” feta is a firm yet crumbly chalk-white cheese. Its flavor is tart, salty and tangy. Feta dates back thousands of years – Homer describes how it’s made in the “Odyssey,” and Greek shepherds produced it using the milk of their nomadic sheep herds. The cheese is made by first heating and coagulating the milk, then drying the resulting curds, submerging the curds in salt and brine, and finally aging them for one month.

Vibrant stuffed red peppers filled with feta, tomatoes, and olives for a delicious appetizer.
Spanakopita, Greek Cuisine.

Recommended Applications

  • Bake with spinach inside a turnover.
  • Stir into sauteed shrimp with dried tomato.
  • Cook inside an omelet or lasagna.
  • Top a Greek pasta salad.
  • Crumble over chopped salad, soup or cooked vegetables.

Mascarpone

Mascarpone is known as the “Italian Cream Cheese.” This high-fat cheese is produced like yogurt, by adding a culture to the cream of cow’s milk. Mascarpone has a naturally sweet taste that makes it popular in desserts. Its soft and creamy texture, comparable to a thick whipped cream, makes it easy to spread.

Elegant Pavlova topped with whipped cream, raspberries, and mint leaves on a decorative plate.
Italian Dessert Tiramisu With Mascarpone Cheese And Espresso Coffee

Recommended Applications

  • Acts as a key ingredient in tiramisu.
  • Whip mascarpone cream and bake it as a filling inside cream puffs, tartlets or almond-paste tubes.
  • Stir into tomato soup.
  • Mix with parmesan in penne.
  • Blend with yogurt, herbs, garlic and seasoning to make salad dressing.
  • Combine with eggs and sugar to make a cream sauce for fruit salad.

Ricotta

Ricotta is Italian for “recooked.” Cheese makers produce ricotta using coagulated solids, from the whey of recooked cow’s or sheep’s milk, that are left over from the production of provolone, fontal and fontina cheeses. This fresh cheese has a grainy and creamy white appearance and tastes slightly sweet. Ricotta contains around 13% fat​. Its varieties include whole milk, part-skim milk, whipped, non-whipped and Impastata.

Delicious soft lemon cookies with glossy icing and zest on a charming cake stand.
Stuffed Pasta Shells With Spinach And Ricotta Cheese

Recommended Applications

  • Sweeten pasta with a ricotta filling.
  • Incorporate a layer of ricotta into homemade lasagna.
  • Combine with mozzarella and Parmesan to make a three-cheese calzone.
  • Mix with eggs, butter, green vegetables and seasoning to make ricotta dumplings.
  • Use in desserts like cannoli cream and cheesecake.
Cheese Categories
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