Dairy Category

Varieties: skim milk = nonfat milk (0.5% fat), low-fat milk (2% fat), and whole milk (3.5% fat). You can buy it fresh, or as powdered milk, canned evaporated milk, or UHT milk packed in aseptic containers. Fresh is best for drinking and delicate desserts, the other kinds pick up an unpleasant caramelized flavor when they're heated for packaging. Acidophilus milk tastes much the same as ordinary milk, but it includes the beneficial acidophilus bacteria that are destroyed during pasteurization.

Visit the Illinois Cooperative Extension Service's Sweetened Condensed Milk--Homemade page.

This is easier to find in Great Britain than in the United States.

This French cow's milk cheese is similar to Parmesan cheese, only it's a brilliant orange.

Don't confuse this salty grating cheese with fresh Mizithra, which is similar to feta. This cheese is dry, crumbly, and very salty. This can be made from sheep’s milk, goat’s milk or both.

Don't confuse this with aged Mizithra, which is a hard grating cheese. This can be made from sheep’s milk, goat’s milk or both.

This French cow's milk cheese is a mild blue cheese that's soft and creamy like a Brie. It's coated with ash.

This creamy and mild cow's milk cheese has a dark stripe running up the middle, a reference to earlier times when a layer of ash was added to the cheese to protect it from insects. Morbier has a rich, earthy flavor. It's a good melting cheese, but you might want to cook with a cheaper cheese like Lappi or Havarti.

Mozzarella is a soft, white Italian cheese. The most common type is low-moisture mozzarella, which is often sold in bricks or firm balls, or is shredded and sold in bags. Don't confuse it with fresh mozzarella = high-moisture mozzarella, which is a fresh cheese used for salads and appetizers, and is often sold in tubs of water. Low-moisture mozzarella is one of the few cheeses that doesn't turn rubbery or ooze oil if cooked too long or too hot, so it's a key ingredient in pizzas and casseroles. It's also stretchy--the long white strings that you often see draped over the sides of pizza boxes are usually mozzarella. It can also be frozen and thawed without too much damage to its texture. Buffalo milk has a much higher fat content than cow's milk, so buffalo milk mozzarella, or mozzarella di bufalo, is creamier and also more expensive than cow's-milk mozzarella = fior di latte.

When produced in Europe, Muenster is a mild-mannered member of the normally stinky washed-rind Cow's milk cheese family, though it becomes more pungent as it ages. It's delicious with dark breads and beer or Gewurztraminer wine. American muensters are much milder.

This a sweet whey cheese that is made with cow's milk and often some goat's milk.

Neufchâtel is very similar in taste and appearance to cream cheese, but it's made from cow's milk instead of cream so it contains less fat and more moisture. Cheesecakes made with it cook more quickly and are more prone to cracking. Use it within a few days after purchasing, and throw it out if mold appears. For best results, serve chilled.

This Norwegian cow's milk cheese is seasoned with caraway seeds, cumin, and cloves.

This Canadian semi-soft cow's milk cheese has a mild, nutty flavor and melts nicely.

This little-known Basque cheese is made from raw sheep's milk, and it's creamy, nutty, and mellow.

This soft Italian cow's milk cheese resembles Brie and Camembert. Use it within a few days after purchasing. For best flavor, serve at room temperature.

Indians like to serve this bland fresh cow or buffalo milk cheese with spinach or peas. Use within a few days.

This firm cow's milk cheese is pungent, nutty, and salty, and it's terrific grated on salads, pasta, or pizzas, or served simply with figs, pears, or crusty bread. The best parmesan is the Northern Italian Parmigiano-Reggiano, but less pricy domestic parmesans are also well regarded. Aging increases the price and flavor.

These cheeses are stretched and pulled like taffy before being molded, which gives them a springy, elastic consistency. It is made from cow or buffalo milk. Unlike many cheeses, they stand up well to cooking. This category includes mozzarella, Provolone, Scamorza, string cheese, and Caciocavallo.

Look for this in deli counters and in holiday gift packs. This cheese is a blend of fresh and aged cheeses, and it's pasteurized to stop the ripening process. This improves shelf life but impairs flavor. Nuts, fruits, and other seasoning are often added.

This cheese is similar to pasteurized process cheese, but it contains more milk solids and water. Velveeta is a popular brand.

This cheese is similar to pasteurized process cheese, but it's moister. Cheez Whiz is a popular brand.

This is a firm and salty Italian sheep's milk cheese that's a close substitute for parmesan. There are three main varieties: Pecorino Romano, which is the best choice for grating onto a pasta dish or salad, Pecorino Toscana = Pecorino Tuscano, which is made in Tuscany, and Pecorino Sardo = fiore sardo, which is produced in Sardinia. Don't confuse Pecorino Romano with other firm Romano cheeses, which usually aren't as well regarded.

This a version of jack cheese with spicy peppers mixed in. It is made from cow's milk.

You can buy small six-packs of this rich fresh cow's milk cheese all over France, but they're hard to find in the U.S. Gervais is a popular brand.

This excellent Spanish blue cheese comes wrapped in maple leaves. It's moist, crumbly, and pungent. It is a mixture of cow's, sheep's and goat's milk.

This ancient and well-regarded French cow's milk cheese isn't as stinky as other washed rind cheeses. It's best not to eat the rind.

Port Salut is a mild French semi-soft cow's milk cheese. Don't confuse with Danish Port Salut, which is also called Esrom cheese.

This cow's milk cheese is similar to cottage cheese or farmer's cheese.

Look for this in stores that sell cake decorating supplies. Just Whites is a popular brand. For information on how to make meringues safely using raw egg whites, visit the Other Safety Factors section of the American Egg Board web site.

To reconstitute, combine one part milk powder with three parts water.

pressed cheese Notes: These are cheeses which are pressed to remove moisture during their production, and then soaked in a salt bath and aged. This broad category includes most semi-firm and firm cheeses. During the production of some pressed cheeses, the curds are cooked to expel even more moisture. These firmer cheeses usually have hard rinds, which are sometimes coated with wax. Cooked pressed cheeses include Gruyère, Emmental, Gouda, and Parmesan. Uncooked pressed cheeses aren't as firm. They're often sweet and fruity when young, and they develop a more earthy and grassy flavor as they age. Examples include Cantal, Tommes de Savoie, and Morbier.

These products combine cheese with gums and stabilizers that improve shelf life but compromise flavor and texture.

Postokvasha is a thick sour milk popular in Russia. It is similar to yogurt or kefir.

This Italian cow's milk cheese is like mozzarella, only firmer and more flavorful. It's often used in sandwiches and on on pizza. Provolone dolce is aged for up to three months. Provolone Valpadana is aged longer, and has a sharper flavor.

This versatile fresh cow's milk cheese resembles soft cream cheese. Germans (who call is quark) and Austrians (who call it topfen) use it to make everything from cheesecake to gravy.

This popular Hispanic fresh cheese is often added to casserole or bean dishes, since it holds its shape well when when heated. It is usually made with cow’s milk or a combination of cow and goat’s milk. It's a good cheese for frying or grilling, though queso para freir is a better choice if you can find it.

This is a soft mild white cow's milk cheese.

This is a hard Mexican grating cheese that's coated with red chile paste. It is usually made with cow’s milk or a combination of cow and goat’s milk.

Mexican cooks like to crumble this mild grainy cheese onto soups, salads, casseroles, and bean dishes. It is usually made with cow’s milk or a combination of cow and goat’s milk. It softens but doesn't melt when heated.

This popular Mexican cow's milk cheese is mild and crumbly, and it doesn't lose its shape when heated. It's often mixed into bean dishes or casserole fillings or crumbled over salads and tacos. It can be fried, though queso para freir or queso blanco hold their shapes better. Queso panela is sometimes served with tropical fruit as a snack or appetizer.

This fresh Hispanic cow's milk cheese is salty and crumbly. It's terrific for making the Caribbean specialty queso frito (fried cheese) since it holds its shape when when heated.

Reconstituted dry qurut is an acceptable substitute for fresh. Where to find it: Middle Eastern markets.

People often melt this Swiss cow's milk cheese and dip new potatoes into it.

A few decades ago, the cream in milk would rise to the top and a glass of milk sitting on the counter would gradually turn sour. No more. Most commercial milk today is homogenized so that the fat is broken into small particles which remain suspended in the milk, and pasteurized to kill bacteria, including the friendly varieties that gave milk a sour tang. Raw milk isn't pasteurized; producers instead keep their cows and dairies clean in order to reduce the risk of bacterial contamination. Some people insist raw milk is more healthful than commercial milk since it contains active enzymes that help with digestion and absorption of nutrients. Many cheesemakers prefer it since pasteurization diminishes the cheese's flavor potential and homogenization gives it a waxy texture. Unfortunately, it's illegal to sell raw milk in many states.

This rich and creamy French cow's milk cheese is quite mild for a washed rind cheese, but it's complex enough to be popular with gourmets. The rind is edible, but too pungent for many people.

These can be gummy and insipid, and they usually have a shorter shelf life than their fattier counterparts. Reduced-fat cheeses become rubbery if they're allowed to dry out during cooking, so keep the cheese moist by adding extra liquid or by sealing in the dish's moisture with a pot lid or aluminum foil.

This fresh Hispanic cow's milk cheese resembles ricotta cheese, and is used to make dips and desserts.

This Italian fresh cheese is made from the watery whey that's drained off in the production of mozzarella, provolone, and other cheeses. It's similar to cottage cheese, though it's smoother, less salty, and richer in calcium. Don't confuse ricotta cheese with ricotta salata, which is a drier, firmer cheese used in salads and pasta dishes. You can eat fresh ricotta straight from the tub with fresh fruit, but it's more commonly used as an ingredient in pasta dishes and desserts. Italian ricotta cheeses are made exclusively with whey, while American versions add milk as a stretcher. Low-fat versions are available, and they work quite well in cheesecakes. Use the cheese within a few days after purchasing, and throw it out if mold appears or if it tastes too acidic. It can be made from cow, sheep or goat milk.