Mascarpone Flavor And Uses

Mascarpone in the strictest sense is not  really a cheese since it is not made with rennet or any other starter to form curds. It's production is quite simple. The cream from cow's milk is poured into cheese cloth or muslin bags and lemon juice is poured over the cream and it is left to drain. The lemon juice contains citric acid which removes the whey in the cream. After the whey has been expelled the coagulated mass of high lactose heavy cream is left in a cool room for 2 days. The result is a milky white soft and smooth cream.

Mascarpone owes a lot of it's popularity from being the main ingredient in the ever popular dessert tiramisu. It's  production began in the Lombardy region of Northern Italy but it is such a simple "cheese" to make that it is now made almost everywhere.

Flavor and uses: Mascarpone has a buttery lactic sweet taste, and is not salty or acidic. As in it's production it has a simple almost neutral flavor that does not overpower a recipe. However mascarpone shines as an ingredient and it can be used to thicken soups or pasta sauces. It can also be blended with fresh herbs to be used as a dip, spread on croissants or crusty bread or as a simple dessert dolloped on top of sweet fruits and drizzled with honey. Mascarpone has a very short shelf life after it's container has been opened so plan on trying to use it as quickly as possible.

 Substitutes for Mascarpone that would work in similar ways are English clotted cream and crème fraiche. Clotted cream might need to be thickened to work in some recipes and crème fraiche has a slight acidic tang so be aware of that when planning on using it in recipes that tend to be sweet.

Mascarpone can be purchased in almost every supermarket or any local specialty food store. When shopping for it do not buy any that are near or past the expiration date. If you open the container and it tastes bitter discard it because it is past it's usability.