Why We Love Cottage Cheese
You might write off cottage cheese as “diet food,” but it’s a true protein powerhouse and a great secret ingredient. Here are the many reasons to love it and some new ways to try it.
What Is Cottage Cheese?
Cottage cheese is cheese curd (or “lumps” for lack of a better word) made from cow’s milk that has been washed to remove some of the natural acidity. Washing the curds leaves this cheese with a mild flavor to go along with its chunky and creamy texture. Since it has a pretty plain taste, it pairs well with both sweet and savory foods.
Cottage cheese is available in small, medium or large curd — small curd is the most common. The flavor of the three types are very similar but their consistencies vary; it’s really up to your preference. Cottage cheese is also available in non-fat, low-fat and full-fat varieties. Low fat is my top pick because it’s more creamy than non-fat but still has a minimal amount of fat and calories (see more nutrition info below).
Farmer’s cheese is actually another form of cottage cheese. It’s what happens when more liquid is removed from cottage cheese (by straining) and the cheese becomes firm and solid.
Nutrition Facts
Here’s where cottage cheese gets impressive. One half cup of low-fat cottage cheese contains 90 calories, 1 gram of fat and 16 grams of protein — that’s as much as two ounces of cooked chicken and more than double what you’ll find in a equal portion of low-fat plain yogurt. All that protein means a small serving will keep you feeling full because protein takes longer to digest. That’s why cottage cheese made our list of 5 Snacks to Fight Off Hunger.
When it comes to sodium, some varieties are saltier than others — a typical half-cup serving has about 360 milligrams (about 15% of the daily recommendation). Many markets carry low-sodium brands if you need to keep an eye on your salt intake or just prefer a differ flavor.
What To Do With Cottage Cheese
You can enjoy cottage cheese similar to yogurt. From the basic: Top it with fresh fruit and maybe a small amount of granola, nuts, or flax seeds for a light breakfast or snack. To more advanced: Use it to replace some or all of the higher=calorie ingredients in pancakes, biscuits or baked pasta dishes such as noodle kugel or baked ziti. You can even use cottage cheese to lighten up your favorite cheesecake recipe. When blended in a food processor or blender, cottage cheese becomes smooth for velvety dips and salad dressings. I like to mix some with sautéed spinach and caramelized onions, spices and egg, then wrap it up in phyllo dough and bake it — that’s my lower-calorie version of spanakopita.
- Recipes to try:
- Quick Cottage Cheese
- Mini Spinach and Cottage Cheese Pies (shown above)
- Cottage Cheese Biscuits
- Cottage Cheese Veggie Dip
- Chocolate Truffle Cheesecake
- Creamy Dill Ranch Dressing
- Mexican Cottage Cheese Dip
- Cottage Cheese Pancakes
[Photo: ~Jen~ / Recipezaar ]
TELL US: How do you enjoy cottage cheese?
With chopped fresh tomatoes, pepper, and hot sauce. Eat it once or twice a week for breakfast.
I've started using it to replace ricotta or other cheeses in Italian dishes. It freezes well, so I can make two big pans of stuffed shells at one time, freezing one.
I also love to have a baked potato with warm cottage cheese in lieu of higher-calorie, lower-protein cheeses.
chickpeas, spinach, strawberries, mustard, onion,honey and THE cottage, ummmm sounds weird but it is lovely
Thanks so much for this post – I thoroughly enjoyed it! I almost didn’t read it and the picture of those mini pies drew me in.
I can over dose on cottage cheese I love the stuff so much.
I've been blending mine w/ vanilla protein powder, or blending it with pumpkin puree/cinnamon/stevia, adding it to pasta/pizza sauce, and protein pancakes.
I'm with shantel–a little splenda, a sprinkle of cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice with apple slices on the side. I make this my meal for dinner sometimes. deeeeelicious!
Your explanation takes the fear out of cottage cheese. Looking at the sample recipe, Mini Spinach and Cottage Cheese Pies, I see why it is the lead recommendation. It is so simple to prepare. Truly Mexican – pepper as spice.
Hello
I like cottage cheese very much.Its just yummy.You have given nice information and recipes of it.I like it.Thank you very much for sharing this information with us.
I enjoy cottage cheese with tomato wedges, but I also use it in dishes calling for other chesses. When combined with other chesses in mac & cheese or Italian dishes, it cuts down on the fat content without sacrificing flavor.
Every morning around 10am … cottage cheese, blueberries (thawed from frozen), walnuts. YUM!
'Why we love Cottage Cheese' – try rinsing large curd cottage cheese and use it to top a salad instead of grated cheese. Especially good with a Spinach and Strawberry salad.
It’s been awhile since I had cottage cheese, bought some this morning and had some in my salad for lunch,it makes my salad creamy without using a heavy dressing…Your article reminded me of how much protein is actually in it. And I like Julie's idea of using it on a baked potato.. will try that. Thanks.
I eat it different ways:
Plain with lots of black pepper.
Topped with some canned fruit.
Topped with sunflower or pumpkin seeds.
I eat it with crackers, sliced tomatoes, pepper strips and cucumbers.
My favorite is I use it to make crockpot lasagna.
A friend makes a Jello salad with it.-little bits of Jello and cottage cheese.
I'm addicted to low-fat cottage with peaches and pecans. So refreshing.
a packet of splenda and a sprinkle of cinnamon