8.3 Cheese Cookery and Varieties
Objectives
- To apply principles of cheese cookery from previous labs in preparing various cheese dishes.
- To identify the distinguishing characteristics of a variety of cheeses and cheese products.
Laboratory Problems
- Prepare various cheese dishes using mild, sharp, and process Cheddar cheeses.
- Taste a variety of cheeses.
Prepare each of the dishes according to the recipes below, using mild, sharp, and process Cheddar cheeses. Weigh cheese for each recipe.
Macaroni and Cheese
| ⅔ cup uncooked macaroni | 3 oz. shredded Cheddar cheese |
| 3 cups water | 2 tbsp dry bread crumbs |
| 1 tsp. butter | |
| White Sauce | |
| 1 tbsp butter |
1 tbsp flour |
| 1 cup milk | 1/8 tsp salt |
Cook macaroni in boiling salted water until almost tender. Drain and rinse with hot water. Prepare white sauce: Melt butter in saucepan. Blend in flour and salt; remove from heat. Add milk, stirring to blend; return to heat and stir gently while heating quickly to a full boil. Remove from heat. Wait 45 seconds, and blend cheese into sauce. Stir in macaroni. Place in 1-pint baking dish. Melt 1 tsp butter, mix with crumbs, and sprinkle over top. Set baking dish on wire rack in pan of hot water and bake uncovered at 350°F for 30 minutes.
Cheese Rarebit (Rabbit) on Melba Toast
| Melba Toast | 1½ tsp. flour |
| 1½ tsp. butter | ½ cup milk |
| ¼ tsp. dry mustard | 2 oz. shredded Cheddar cheese |
| dash cayenne |
Prepare Melba toast. Make white sauce from butter, mustard, cayenne, flour and milk. Melt butter in saucepan. Blend in flour and seasonings; remove from heat. Add milk, stirring to blend; return to heat and stir gently while heating quickly to a full boil. Remove from heat. Cool 45 seconds; blend in cheese. If necessary, heat the rarebit in a double boiler before serving. Serve immediately over Melba toast on a warmed plate.
Melba Toast
Trim crusts from two slices of bread. Cut into rectangles or triangles as desired. Place on baking sheet and bake at 300°F until a delicate brown and crisp all the way through, approximately 20-25 minutes.
Characteristics of Standard Product:
| Flavor | Texture |
|---|---|
| Distinctive cheese flavor, typical for type of cheese. |
Smooth, well-blended sauce of uniform consistency. Some graininess expected from less-ripened cheese. |
Evaluate appearance, flavor and texture of each product:
|
Cheese |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
| Product | Mild Cheddar | Extra Sharp Cheddar | Process Cheddar |
| Macaroni and Cheese | |||
| Cheese Rarebit on Melba Toast | |||
Natural Cheeses and Cheese Blends
Record Observations of Various Cheeses and Cheese Blends
Note distinguishing characteristics and compositional differences. Sample cheese with cheese crackers, if desired.
| Type | Name | % Fat*,** | % Moisture* | Distinguishing Characteristics | Sensory Qualities |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soft, unripened | Cottage | 4 | 80 | Acid coagulated (small curd) | |
| Cream | 35 | 54 | Acid coagulated | ||
| Neufchatel | 23 | 62 | Acid coagulated | ||
| Firm, unripened | Gjetost | 30 | 13 | Goats’ milk, whey cheese 44% lactose | |
| Mozzarella | 22 | 50 | Stretched curd | ||
| Soft, ripened 1-2 months | Camembert | 24 | 52 | Mold and bacteria ripened | |
| Limburger | 27 | 48 | Yeast and bacteria ripened | ||
| Semisoft, ripened 1½-4 months | Havarti | 36 | 42 | Cows’ or buffaloes’ milk, enzyme coagulated, small openings (‘eyes’) | |
| Feta | 21 | 55 | Sheep’s milk, stored in salt brine, open texture | ||
| Muenster | 30 | 42 | Yeast and bacteria ripened | ||
| Firm, ripened 1-12 months or more | Cheddar | 33 | 37 | Bacteria ripened | |
| Colby | 32 | 38 | Open texture, bacteria ripened | ||
| Edam | 28 | 42 | Bacteria ripened | ||
| Gouda | 27 | 41 | Bacteria ripened | ||
| Provolone | 27 | 41 | Stretched curd smoked | ||
| Swiss | 27 | 37 | Gas forming bacteria ripened | ||
| Ripened 5 months to 2 years | Parmesan | 26 | 29 | Very hard, granular, must be grated | |
| Romano | 27 | 31 | Very hard, granular, must be grated | ||
| Blue-vein mold-ripened 2-12 months | Blue | 29 | 42 | Blue mold cheese from cow’s or goats’ milk | |
| Roquefort | 31 | 39 | Blue mold cheese from ewes’ milk, made in Roquefort, France | ||
| Process Cheese Blends: Process Cheese is made by grinding or mixing together by heating and stirring one or more cheeses of the same or different varieties. An emulsifying agent is then blended into the mixture. Small amounts of acid, cream, water, and spices or flavorings may be added.
Analysis: £ 40% moisture, ³ 32% fat for process Cheddar cheese Example: Deluxe American Process Cheese |
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| Cheese Food is made the same way as the cheese (process or cold pack) except that milk, skim milk, cheese whey or whey albumin, or their concentrates, may be added, as well as acid, water, spices, or flavorings.
Analysis: £ 44% moisture, ³ 23% fat. Example: |
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| Process Cheese Spread is made the same way as process cheese food except that it may contain stabilizers, more moisture, and less fat, and must be spreadable at 70°F.
Analysis: £ 44-60% moisture, ³ 20% fat for process Cheddar Cheese. Example: Cheese Whiz |
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| Cheese products that do not meet any of the standards listed above may be labeled “imitation cheese” or “cheese products”.
Example: boxed Velveeta |
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* From Composition of Foods. Dairy and Egg Products; Raw, process and Prepared. agr. Handbook No. 8-=1, 1976. pp. 1-33
** Cheeses labeled “reduced fat” must, like any other food, contain at least 25% less fat than that standard for the cheese.
