Tuesday, February 19, 2008

A Quarky Cheese

About three years ago, I had something made by Kurt Gutenbrunner using Quark. I kept meaning to look up exactly what Quark was. I knew it was some kind of cheese, but that was the extent of my knowledge.

Long overdue, I can finally cross off this Central European cheese from my to-do list. The cheese in question is a soft, un-aged cheese with the texture and flavor of sour cream or fromage frais in France. The traditional way of making it does not include using rennet, but to make it firmer, a little is sometimes added. American versions—when you can find them—are not as firm as the European versions, but both are about 11% fat. The name Quark comes from the Slavic word for “curd,” which, when translated to German, sounds like quark.

It often comes flavored with herbs and spices. Try substituting Quark for sour cream on baked potatoes or in sour cream pancakes to taste the subtle differences.

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