Cottage Cheese Ideas

[shel]

When I was a kid, my mom used to make a noodles and cheese dish that I still, although rarely, make. It was very simple - wide egg noodles (Usually Goodman's - don't know if they are available here) cooked appropriately and drained, add butter, and then mix in some cottage cheese. I'd sometimes add ground pepper to the dish. That's all - very simple.

Recently I discovered Trader Joe's cottage cheese and found it very much to my liking, so I'll be making this noodle dish soon - as soon as I can find wide egg noodles.

So, this preamble is an introduction to my question: besides adding some fruit, what other things can be added to cottage cheese to make a tasty snack or adjunct to a meal? I'm drawing a blank here. Maybe use it as a vegetable dip?

Thanks for any help to get my brain in gear this morning.
Shel

[Austin_]

I like to use my cottage cheese in things like beignets, and its also a great base instead of cream cheese and sour cream for cakes and such. I know this is kind of obvious, but my babysitter from long ago made a really delicious lasagna with a homemade marinara sauce, basil, Parmigianno Reggiano, tons of garlic, and of course lots of cottage (or ricotta) cheese. Alton Brown also likes to put pomegranate seeds on cottage cheese, although that kind of scares me a bit. (Mainly because it reminds him of candy caviar, which pretty much makes me puke). Cottage cheese is also great stuffed inside chicken breasts, you can blend certain types of vegetables like sun-dried tomatoes, roasted red peppers, roasted garlic, etc- to make a really nice dip as well or a delicious stuffing for the chicken breasts. As far as the chicken goes, you can jut rub it with some lemon zest, juice, herbs, garlic, and olive oil, and wrap it with bacon or proschuttio. Bake it in the oven until chicken is done and bacon begins to crisp, and makes a nice addition to garlic bread. For next day, you can chop up the leftover chicken and combine it with some fettichini alfredo for a nice leftover main course. Sprinkle over some chopped parlsey and some crushed red pepper flakes for garnish and maybe stir in a few tablespoons of pesto in the sauce if you wanted to.

[Suzanne]

In addition to "broad noodles with cottage cheese," I grew up eating scrambled eggs with cottage cheese mixed in. There were two versions: one in which the cc was added to the butter in the frying pan and allowed to soften, then the beaten eggs were poured in and stirred together. In the other version, the eggs and cc were beaten together until blended and then poured into the pan. In both cases the whey tends to leach out, but it's a big jolt of protein, and tasty, too.

I also like cottage cheese alongside matzo brei (sweet or savory both).

[shel]

Originally Posted by Suzanne

I also like cottage cheese alongside matzo brei (sweet or savory both).

Hmmm - I vaguely recall Grandpa jack making Matzo Brie and using cottage cheese in some way. I'll have to look into that further as I just found a great source for good, inexpensive matzoh. TJ's has matzo imported from Israel for about 1/3 the price of Streits or Manishevitz.

Thanks!

Shel

[shel]

Originally Posted by Austin_

I like to use my cottage cheese in things like beignets, and its also a great base instead of cream cheese and sour cream for cakes and such. I know this is kind of obvious, but my babysitter from long ago made a really delicious lasagna with a homemade marinara sauce, basil, Parmigianno Reggiano, tons of garlic, and of course lots of cottage (or ricotta) cheese. Alton Brown also likes to put pomegranate seeds on cottage cheese, although that kind of scares me a bit. (Mainly because it reminds him of candy caviar, which pretty much makes me puke). Cottage cheese is also great stuffed inside chicken breasts, you can blend certain types of vegetables like sun-dried tomatoes, roasted red peppers, roasted garlic, etc- to make a really nice dip as well or a delicious stuffing for the chicken breasts. As far as the chicken goes, you can jut rub it with some lemon zest, juice, herbs, garlic, and olive oil, and wrap it with bacon or proschuttio. Bake it in the oven until chicken is done and bacon begins to crisp, and makes a nice addition to garlic bread. For next day, you can chop up the leftover chicken and combine it with some fettichini alfredo for a nice leftover main course. Sprinkle over some chopped parlsey and some crushed red pepper flakes for garnish and maybe stir in a few tablespoons of pesto in the sauce if you wanted to.

Forgive the long quote - your message deserves to be repeated again It amazes me that you have such diverse and, for me, anyway, complicated uses for cottage cheese.

[BettyR]

My very favorite way to eat cottage cheese is in what we call a summer salad.

In the summer when our garden starts to produce large amounts of tomatoes, cucumbers, bell peppers and green onions, we chop up a bowl full of the fresh veggies and serve with a large dollop of cottage cheese on top.

We eat so much of it in the summer until I think I never want to see another bowl of it in my life; then summer’s gone and by the time summer rolls around the next year I’m craving this salad so badly I think there is no way that I will ever be able to eat enough of it to kill this craving.
Betty

[Jayme]

I often use cottage cheese as a replacement for ricotta (less fat and cost). Drain the cottage cheese- great in lasagne, manacotti, stuffed shells, etc....

[Ishbel]

Toast slices of bread on both sides (one side, the 'top' less well brown). Spread with a little butter and a smear of Marmite. Pile on some cottage cheese. Stick back under the grill (US calls it a broiler?) until heated through. Wonderful light snack!

[shel]

Originally Posted by Ishbel

Toast slices of bread on both sides (one side, the 'top' less well brown). Spread with a little butter and a smear of Marmite. Pile on some cottage cheese. Stick back under the grill (US calls it a broiler?) until heated through. Wonderful light snack!

I'm one of those people who can't stand marmite ....

Shel

[Ishbel]

Your loss!!!!

[shel]

Originally Posted by Ishbel

Your loss!!!!

I think not - I tried it, didn't like it, and it shall never pass through my lips again.

Shel

[Mezzaluna]

I like it mixed with cinnamon/sugar and warmed. Don't ask me why, but I do. Cottage cheese makes a serviceable blintz filling as well.

Betty's summer salad is another way I like cottage cheese: over tomato chunks with several grinds of black pepper. When I was a kid one of the local dairies had a flavored cottage cheese they called "Alpine Cottage Cheese". It had caraway seeds mixed in and was quite delicious. I used to sprinkle a product called "Aunt Jane's Crazy Salt" on it for the crunch of the coarse-grained salt it contained.

Shel, I know people who mix it into noodle kugel, too.

[siduri]

I often need to quickly prepare something to take for lunch and one of my favorites is cottage cheese, raisins, and sunflower seeds. Sounds really health foody or something, but it's very good.
Not, of course, haute cuisine!

[apryll6203]

1 15oz can of Enchilada Sauce (any kind you like)
2 lbs ground beef or turkey or chicken (whatever you like)
12 oz small curd cottage cheese
1 small bag of tortilla chips
8oz pkg of shredded colby jack cheese
9x13 casserole dish.

Brown the meat and add the enchilada sauce when browned, set aside. In the casserole dish place 1/3 of the chips on the bottom, spread 1/3 of the cottage cheese, 1/3 of the meat, 1/3 of the shredded cheese. Repeat process one or 2 more times. Top with the shredded cheese, cover and bake in a 350* oven for 30 minutes, remove the cover and cook an additional 5 minutes, or until cheese is bubbly. Serve to family.


This is a quick and easy recipe and fun for the kids too. Once you have done it a couple of times you cann add chilies or corn or whatever you think can spice up your cooking! Enjoy!

[pgr555]

Shel, I think we are form the same background... same split pea and same cc & noodles. Please leave out the fruit in that 1! I love fruit & cc, but the comfort & memories make me not want it in that

Toast with warm cc - add cinnamon - maybe cin/sugar

Mock blintzes from gram as a kid - cc mixed with egg, cin., maybe nutmeg. Stuff Btw 2 ritz, cook in fry pa in butter on both side - haven't had in years, but it was a kid fave.

Love cc w/ fruit/nuts

cc & sour cream w/ or w/out fruit - best with just bananna
ok I am done for now

Oh wait - lukshen kugel - yummmmmmmmm

What was the original question???
lol
pgr