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)

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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

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

Hirtenkase A Great German Mountain Style Cheese

I took a Rhine river cruise in Germany with my family and enjoyed it immensely. While on board ship the topic of Oktoberfest was brought up several times by our fellow shipmates. German beer was the focal point of most of these conversations but I was surprised to hear several people rave about German cheeses. Now being a cheese monger I am always looking for new and exciting cheeses to sample and hopefully to import back into the US. Our host and guide, after hearing our cheese conversation provided us with a truly great cheese named Hirtenkase which translates loosely as shepherd cheese.

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Details: Hirtenkase is produced during the summer months in the Allgau Mountains of Germany. The dairy farmers in this region allow their cows to eat only fresh mountain grass during the summer and hay during the winter, no silage, therefore they produce a very high grade of milk. This system of pure grazing and cheese production is similar to the one employed by Swiss dairy farmers. Hirtenkase can truly be considered a great mountain style cheese and can proudly stand next to Gruyere, Emmentaler and Fontina Val D'Aosta. 

Flavor: When aged it has a hard outer rind and the interior paste is hard and flinty with an orange tint. It has a slight citrus/ apple aroma and nutty and butterscotch flavor that lingers on the palate, I personally think that it has a much deeper flavor than French Comte 

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The Hirtenkase cheese that is produced in the summer starts arriving in small quantities beginning in late September and its availability ebbs during late March, so now would be a great time to search it out. Hirtenkase is a great table cheese and can be served with grapes , figs, dates and nuts. Also try shaving it over a salad for a nice appetizer, melted over vegetables or for fondue. Check out this link for a great Hirtenkase recipe .

As for wine pairings serve it with a good Merlot or any big red German wine . It also goes well with good hearty German beers during Oktoberfest.