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.

An Easy Vegetable Salad Recipe Using Sliced Parmesan Cheese

Another Great Recipe using Parmigiano-Reggiano

(Parmesan) Cheese

This is a colorful salad that is light and refreshing. It is easy to prepare and is nice to serve during the summer as a salad course or a midday treat with a nice Italian wine.

Prep time 30 min. Serves 6

Ingredients

1 lb of cleaned beets without the tops

3 oranges peeled and separated or sliced

12 leaves from hearts of Romaine lettuce

1/3 cup of cleaned walnuts

3 Tbsp. of orange juice

1 tsp. of lemon juice

1/4 tsp. of salt or to taste

3 Tbsp. of walnut oil or extra virgin olive oil

2-3oz of Parmigiano-Reggiano (Parmesan) cheese slivered as thin as possible (use a vegetable peeler)

Cheese Cutting Board Set  at Amazon

Prep and Cooking

1) Boil or steam the beets until they are tender, let cool and then pat dry and slice thin

2) Place 2 leaves of Romaine lettuce on each plate

3) Arrange the beet slices and the orange sections in an overlapping pattern over the lettuce
4) Place the walnuts in the oven and toast until slightly golden brown (about 10 min.)
5) When ready finely chop the walnuts and sprinkle over the beets and oranges

6) Whisk the orange and lemon juices with the salt. Then add the walnut or olive oil while continuing to whisk the mixture.

7) Pour the dressing over each salad

8) Arrange the cheese slivers in a circle around the outside of the salad

9) Season with fresh ground black pepper

Italian Cheese Sampler  at Amazon

This wonderful salad is complimented by a glass of wine like Chianti Riserva, Barolo or Barbaresco