Create Your Own Creole Cream Cheese: A Timeless Recipe Revealed
Take a culinary adventure with Creole cream cheese, a tantalizing taste of New Orleans! Discover how to make this rare delicacy like a local pro. Ready to indulge in unique flavors? Here's your easy guide.
August in the Crescent City can be steamy, so the Farmers Market cleverly lures shoppers with ingenious strategies. One such strategy was the Learned Festival of Heat in the '90s, drawing record crowds to learn the art of Creole cream cheese making.
Commercial enterprises had all but abandoned the original local cheese production, leaving this classic delicacy threatened. In the scorching August heat of 1999, I stood under a palmetto hat, teaching market patrons the secrets of this mouthwatering treat.
Making Creole cream cheese, with its long room-temperature fermentation, showcases just how distinct Southern tastes can be. Keep in mind that you'll need 8 cheese molds or DIY molds for this recipe.
Yield: 8 pints
Ingredients
- 1 gallon skim milk
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 6 to 8 drops liquid vegetable rennet
- A pinch of salt
Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix skim milk, buttermilk, rennet, and salt. Cover lightly and leave out at room temp for 18 to 24 hours, until a large cheese curd forms. Use a slotted spoon to fill molds, discard the whey.
- Place molds on a rack in a pan, cover lightly, and chill for 6 to 8 hours. Remove from molds and store in a tightly closed container for up to two weeks.
For a taste of Creole flavor, try this homemade adaptation:
Flavored Creole Cream Cheese Recipe
Ingredients:
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 cup buttermilk or plain yogurt
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp Creole seasoning blend (or mix of paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper)
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (optional, adjust to taste)
- 1 tsp dried parsley
Steps:
- Heat ingredients over medium heat until about 86°F (30°C). Remove from heat and let cool.
- Mix-in spices, cover, and refrigerate overnight or for 8 hours. Strain, whip, add parsley, and serve chilled.
These recipe adaptations capture the Creole essence without the traditional fermentation process. Enjoy!
- Despite the '90s Learned Festival of Heat in New Orleans attracting crowds for Creole cream cheese making, the original local cheese production had largely been abandoned by commercial enterprises.
- The Flavored Creole Cream Cheese Recipe, which does not require the traditional fermentation process, offers a modern adaptation for those who wish to taste the Creole essence without the lengthy room-temperature fermentation.
- Interestingly, August in the Crescent City can be quite warm, and the Farmers Market cleverly attracts shoppers with unique strategies such as the Learned Festival of Heat.
- For the base recipe, eight cheese molds or DIY molds are necessary to produce eight pints of Creole cream cheese, a tantalizing taste of New Orleans' cuisine.
