Cottage Cheese
Cottage cheese is a fresh, lumpy-curd cheese made by draining soured milk curds and typically folding in a bit of cream, valued today as a mild, high-protein pantry staple.
How to buy
Choose tubs with a sell-by date well in the future. Curd size varies between small, medium, and large, and fat content ranges from fat-free to full milkfat; pick based on preferred richness. The liquid in the tub should be minimal rather than pooled and separated.
How to store
Refrigerate tightly sealed and use within about a week of opening, since its high moisture content makes it spoil faster than firmer cheeses. It doesn't freeze well for eating plain, as it turns watery and grainy once thawed.
Culinary profile
- Flavor
- Mild, fresh, and slightly tangy, with a clean lactic taste that takes well to both sweet pairings like fruit and honey and savory ones like herbs and black pepper.
- Texture
- Distinctively lumpy and curdy, suspended in a thin creamy liquid; it can be blended smooth for baking or dips.
- Aroma
- A mild, fresh, faintly sour dairy smell.
How to prepare
- Eaten plain — Served straight from the tub with fruit, honey, or a sprinkle of pepper.
- Blended smooth — Pureed to a creamy consistency for pancake batters, dips, or baked goods.
- Baked — Used in place of ricotta in lasagna or baked into protein-rich bars and cheesecakes.
- Spread — Whipped and seasoned with herbs for a protein-rich sandwich or toast topping.
Classic dishes
American
- Cottage cheese with fruit — A simple plate of cottage cheese paired with sliced fruit, a classic light meal.
- Cottage cheese pancakes — Pancakes made extra protein-rich and moist by blending cottage cheese into the batter.
- Spinach and cottage cheese dip — A blended dip using cottage cheese for a lighter, protein-boosted base.
- No-bake cottage cheese cheesecake — A chilled cheesecake relying on blended cottage cheese for a lighter texture than cream cheese versions.
- Cottage cheese protein smoothie bowl — Blended cottage cheese used as a thick, protein-dense smoothie or bowl base.
- Cottage cheese toast — A trendy open sandwich of toasted bread topped with whipped cottage cheese and seasonings.
- Cottage cheese ranch dip — Blended cottage cheese seasoned with herbs for a lighter alternative to sour cream dip.
- Cottage cheese protein pancakes — A high-protein breakfast pancake built on blended cottage cheese and oats.
- Cottage cheese and herb spread — Whipped cottage cheese mixed with fresh herbs as a sandwich or cracker spread.
- Cottage cheese fruit parfait — Layers of cottage cheese, fruit, and granola served in a glass.
Italian
- Cottage cheese lasagna — A home-style lasagna using cottage cheese as a lighter stand-in for ricotta.
- Cottage cheese-stuffed shells — Pasta shells filled with a seasoned cottage cheese mixture and baked in tomato sauce.
German
- Cheese blintzes — Thin crepes rolled around a sweetened cottage cheese filling, pan-fried until golden.
- Käsekuchen — A German cheesecake traditionally made with quark but often adapted with cottage cheese.
British & Irish
- Jacket potato with cottage cheese — A baked potato topped with cottage cheese in place of butter or sour cream.
Substitutions
- Ricotta Cheese — Smoother and less lumpy; blend cottage cheese first to get closer to ricotta's consistency in baking.
- Queso Fresco — Firmer and saltier; crumble rather than blend for a similar role as a topping.