Why Cottage Cheese Is The Healthy Cheese

Would you believe that in France, alone, there are over 400 types of cheese that can be found? But when the word ‘cheese’ is mentioned and someone would ask what types of cheese he would be able to name, for sure, cottage cheese will be one of them.

Cottage cheese derived its name from ‘cottages’ where the cheeses are made, literally. It is prepared atop stoves homes found in the rural areas. People who originally manufactured the ‘real thing’ let nature take its course by leaving the milk to coagulate and turn sour.

Cottage cheese is a product of cheese curd but unlike most cheese, which is dehydrated and has color, this type of cheese retains its whey content because it is only drained, not pressed dry. The cottage cheese, unlike its relatives, does not undergo aging (maturation process) and it is also washed to give it its different taste–sweet and mildly flavored.

When cottage cheese is hard pressed, the end products are farmer cheese, hoop cheese, pot cheese or Queso blanco (blanco meaning ‘white’). In Sweden, cottage cheese is commonly called ‘Keso’.

A naturally manufactured cottage cheese is made from fresh milk, rennet and mesophilic starter culture (this would help grow ‘good bacteria’ which is needed in giving the cheese its flavor and aids in coagulation). It is very rare to find natural cottage cheese nowadays. Commercialization of this product has made it easier to make at a shorter period of time.

The commercially prepared cottage cheese, however, are made from curds that were prepared using skim milk or other milk products that are low in fat. This usually alters the original flavor of the cheese. So if one were used to the commercial cottage cheeses that flood the supermarkets, then they would be astonished to find out that these cheeses have deviated from the original ‘tanginess’ of the natural cheese.

If one is curious in tasting the genuine cottage cheese, the closest one could get to the flavor is the manufactured cottage cheese, which is low in fat, cultured and named Nancy’s. The Springfield Creamery over at Eugene, Ore, prepares this.

What nutrients can one get from eating cottage cheese? Again, as compared to all other cheeses, this type of cheese has low fat (5 grams where 3 grams are saturated fat), low carbohydrates (3 grams) and high in protein content (14 grams).

If you are aiming for a sculpted body that is full of muscles and well toned, then cottage cheese diet is the right diet for you. Most people overlook the low carbohydrate content of this cheese. But looking at it, this low-carb food, which is high in protein, feeds the body of its needed nutrients during a strict diet.

This cheese also has sodium (500 milligrams), 120 calories and 20 milligrams of cholesterol. These values are computed against a 113-gram serving.

Some very interesting trivia about cottage cheese:

1. President Nixon loved to eat it together with catsup or black pepper (or both).

2. To make 15 pounds of cottage cheese, one needs to use 100 pounds of milk.

If one is bored with eating cottage cheese alone, there are several ways that it can be served. One good way is to follow President Nixon’s recipe, which is to put a dash of pepper before plopping it into your mouth. Cottage cheese can be eaten like a ‘tapioca pudding’ (just add ½ teaspoon of vanilla flavor and a packet of artificial sweetener for every ½ cup of cottage cheese).

Cottage cheese is best eaten with fruits such as blueberry, strawberry, peaches, banana or pineapple. If one is concerned with the fructose content, however, a flavored drink mix could be used as a substitute for the fruits.

Speaking of ‘yumminess’, here are a few more of those recipes that use cottage cheese. You could research these recipes online:

1. Chocolate Mousse

2. Lemon Cherry Cheesecake Pie

3. Broccoli bread with Onion and Cottage Cheese

4. Cheesy Mashed Potatoes

5. All Day Macaroni and Cheese (Crockpot)

Cottage cheese is all good. When you’re aiming for good health, then this should be a part of your diet. It’s tasty and nutritious, so what is there to lose?