Remember the little TV birdie from the 1950’s? “I got six seconds to say…’Buy Kraft Cottage Cheese… you’ll love it love it… buy Kraft (BEEP) Cottage Cheese’”.
Yesterday I learned that cottage cheese is making a comeback from the ‘90’s. Really? What do these infants know? Let’s go back to past eons for some real history. The story emerges from some 5000 years ago. A Mesopotamian desert traveler discovered it accidentally after filling his sheep stomach saddlebags with milk and setting out on a journey. (In those days, they threw nothing away. Aren’t you ashamed of your drawer full of Ziploc bags? We could do so much better if we would only save and recycle our animal byproducts.)
But I digress. As the desert sun beat down, the sloshing of the milk in the rennet from the sheep stomach formed those lovely curds. At journey’s end, that brave camel driver gave the lumps a taste, and strangely enough, found them pleasing. Or maybe he was just too near starvation to be fussy. Who knows?
Forward to the 1960’s, when people did weird things with cottage cheese. Some used it in lasagna as a substitute for ricotta – not recommended. It also found itself landing in various dips, Jello salads, even thick fruity cakes. Sometimes it worked out well and other times we wished we hadn’t bothered. Still, in our day we need to keep an open mind on the subject. Those who turn up their noses at the sight of cottage cheese may be ignorant of the Three P’s that transform it – pineapple, pears and peaches. Pairing those curds and whey with one of these fruits turns it into something special. Who can forget the shiny canned peach half or pineapple ring heaped with a scoop of wholesome, protein packed cottage cheese?
We all know that Little Miss Muffet enjoyed her “curds and whey” until the spider freaked her out. So why shouldn’t we? Find yourself a tuffet and settle in for a few bites. Enjoy your curds and whey. Just keep on the lookout for spiders.