Italian Cheese

Italy is known for a lot of things- wonderful art, great wine, scenic views, but it is also one of the premier cheese makers in the world. Where would we be culinarily without some of the unique and delicious cheese that come out of the various regions of Italy? For use in everything from pasta to pizza, in American we rely heavily on many of the different types of artisanal cheeses that are produced and exported from Italy. The majority of us are familiar with many of the every day cheeses of Italy. But there many other varietals of Italian cheese that have great possibilities in terms of enjoyment on their own, with a glass of wine, or in any number of delicious recipes.Read on to learn more about the cheeses of this wonderful region.

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Parmagiano-Reggiano is probably the most well known of Italian cheeses.On an Italian cheese list, it will often come first. it is a very traditional, unpasteurized and hard cheese that is made from a cow's milk, skimmed of fat. It comes from the city of Parma in Italy, which is sometimes known as the Italian cheese city. 

It comes in the shape of a drum and has a hard and sticky rind that is yellow to orange. Parmigiano Reggiano weighs about 75 pounds and has to be cut with a saw. The scent is fruity and sweet, it is yellow in color and has a fruity taste, reminiscent of pineapple. Parmigiano Reggiano has an unmistakably pungent taste. It is mostly used as a cheese for grating, and is a really good topping for pastas, soups, chicken, veal or salads. In Italy, the cheese is sold in large and grainy chunks that are cut from the shiny drum that has its name written on the rind. It is worth so much money that trucks carrying it have actually been hijacked at gunpoint.

Mascarpone is fresh, soft, white italian cream cheese from the region in northern Italy called Lombardo. It is actually not a cheese at all, but instead the outcome of a culture that is added to the cream that has been skimmed off of the milk, used to produce Parmesan. It is strangely described as a curd cheese, even though it is made similarly to the way yogurt is made. To creat Mascarpone cheese tartaric acid, which is the natural vegetable acid that comes from the tamarind tree seed) is used. Once the culture is added, you gently heat the cream, and then allow it to age and get thicker. This cheese is whitish to straw yellow in color, very creamy, supple, and easy to spread. It is an ingredient in famous Italian desserts, like Tiramisu and is sometimes eaten with cognac. Commonly it is used to prepare certain Italian dishes and sauces. It only takes a few days to get ripe and is 75 percent fat.