They make Gorgonzola cheese. Gorgonzola is an Italian blue cheese. Preparation technology "Gorgonzola"

With mold. Many people are disgusted by the product by its very appearance. But real gourmets know that this is an expensive delicacy, distinguished by its special taste and aroma. Such cheese can be made exclusively in places of its traditional production. Italy is such a place. It is here that the village of the same name is located, thanks to which the product got its name several centuries ago.

The history of Gorgonzola

Gorgonzola is something that appeared completely by accident. The predecessor of this delicacy is cheese, which is called “strakinno”. Translated from Italian, the name means “tired.” The origin of Gorgonzola itself is connected with this concept.

Around the village of Gorgonzola, cows constantly grazed and came down from the mountains. The peasants derived their own benefit from this: they milked the cows, and then made cheese from the resulting milk. As the legend goes, one day a peasant was very tired and because of this he violated the order of preparing the dish. So that no one would notice, he decided to combine fresh milk with the dough. He ended up with blue cheese. The product instantly captivated Italian gourmets with its piquant taste and spicy aroma. Modern Gorgonzola is that same moldy cheese that accidentally turned out.

Useful properties of blue cheese

Gorgonzola is a nutritious cheese that has a lot of useful substances. Thus, a high-quality product is enriched with easily digestible fats, proteins, vitamins and other elements important for the human body.

This delicacy is a highly effective antioxidant, and mold increases the body’s protective functions and has a beneficial effect on the gastrointestinal tract.

Two varieties of delicacy

The photo of which can be seen in the article comes in two varieties: Cremificato (Gorgonzola Dolce) and Gorgonzola Piccante.

The first variety is a tender and young cheese with a sweetish taste. The product matures completely in just two months.

Gorgonzola Piccante matures in approximately four months. The cheese is characterized by a rich and pungent taste and dense consistency.

Both varieties have a white or cream color in cross-section with streaks of bluish-green mold. But in a mature product the number of such veins is much greater and it has a crust with an appetizing reddish tone.

Making blue cheese at home

Not everyone can afford to buy real Gorgonzola cheese (the homemade recipe is described below). After all, it is expensive. But preparing the product at home is quite possible, albeit time-consuming. For the recipe you will need 16 liters of milk, half a teaspoon each of lactic acid cultures, calcium chloride and 1/8 teaspoon of mold and a little sea salt.

Pour half of the entire portion of milk into a large saucepan and heat it in a hot water bath to 32 degrees over medium heat, constantly gently stirring the liquid. Then half of the lactic acid cultures are placed on the surface of the heated milk and left to curdle for five minutes. After this period, move from top to bottom with a slotted spoon to the bottom of the culture so that the milk itself does not agitate.

Calcium chloride is diluted with 50 milliliters of cold water and poured into milk. Again, manipulate with the same movements as when adding lactic acid cultures. Rennet starter is also diluted and added, and then the whole mixture is aged for 20 minutes. A long blade of a cheese knife is inserted into the resulting curd at a 30 degree angle. The split product should be cut into two-centimeter cubes. The resulting figures are left for five minutes to allow the whey to separate.

Then you need to stir the cottage cheese until its quantity decreases. Place whatever remains in a gauze bag and hang it over the sink overnight. The next day, you need to carry out the entire procedure described above with the remaining portion of milk. Then two rates of cottage cheese are mixed, sprinkled with mold and salt, and the resulting product is aged for three months in a special plastic container.

Best pizza in the world

Pizza with Gorgonzola and pear turns out incredibly tasty, for the preparation of which you will need semolina, flour, salt, Gorgonzola and cream cheese, cream, olive oil, pear, sugar and yeast.

First you need to prepare the dough: in a saucepan, mix dry yeast with sugar, salt and water. Then add flour and semolina and knead the dough. Cover the baking sheet with parchment. While the dough is “rising”, you need to peel the pears and cut them into slices. Roll out the “grown” dough and place it on a baking sheet. We grease this base with cream cheese and cream sauce, put pears and Gorgonzola on top. Sprinkle raw pizza with sugar and bake for 40 minutes. The finished dish is sprinkled with olive oil.

Delicate sauce

In addition to pizza with Gorgonzola, you can prepare a wonderful creamy sauce that will provide new flavors to vegetables, escalope, pasta or boiled potatoes.

Required ingredients:

Gorgonzola - 200 grams.
Cream 20% fat - one hundred milliliters.
Lemon juice - two tablespoons.
Ground black pepper and nutmeg.

Heat the cream over low heat, add cheese, mashed with a fork, then increase the heat and simmer the mixture at medium level for eight minutes, stirring regularly.

After eight minutes, remove the mixture from the stove and, continuing to stir, add spices and juice. Now an excellent dressing for main dishes is ready.

Gorgonzola (Gorgonzola, Gorgonzola, Italian. Gorgonzola) is one of the most famous Italian blue dessert cheeses, characterized by a characteristic sharp taste.

Its smell can be called rather rough, nutty, but not bright. Gorgonzola has a creamy, soft, paste-like texture and a distinctly sweet flavor.

The name comes from the small settlement of Gorgonzola near Milan. And the birthplace of cheese is Lombardy; the main production of cheese is concentrated in the vicinity of Milan, Novara, Como, Pavia. Gorgonzola cheese has been known since the Middle Ages.

The history of the appearance of this cheese is random. The predecessor of Gorgonzola was stracchino cheese (translated from Italian as “tired”). Herds that came down from the mountains grazed in the vicinity of the village, and local residents made soft, fatty cheese from the milk of cows tired from the long journey.

According to one legend, a certain cheese maker once violated the technology and, in order to hide his mistake, combined cheese dough that had not undergone the necessary processing with fresh milk.

As a result, cheese with mold inclusions was ripened, immediately captivating connoisseurs with its spicy aroma and unique taste.

The cheese is made from cow's milk, which, after curdling, is placed in cylindrical molds lined with cloth.

For better drainage of the whey, the formed heads are periodically turned over.

After 10-14 days, they are taken out, rubbed with salt and injected with long needles, introducing spores of the noble mold Penicillium roqueforti. This way the fungal spores are evenly distributed, and the gorgonzola has characteristic green stripes on the cut.

"Penicillum roqueforti" is a species of noble mold that creates greenish veins in cheese, subspecies "glaucum" and "weidemannii", related to the more famous species "Penicillum notatum" and "chrysogenum", from which penicillin is made.

During the ripening of the cheese, metal rods remain inserted into it, which provide air access for fungal activity. The cheese ripening period is 2-4 months.

The cheese heads are wrapped in foil in order, on the one hand, to retain moisture, and on the other, to prevent the flow of oxygen to avoid excessive mold growth.

After the shell is opened and the cheese comes into contact with air, the fungus begins to grow, but this is a normal phenomenon that does not affect the quality of the product.

The method of preparing Italian Gorgonzola is also used in the production of German Cambozola cheese.

Description and use

There are two varieties of Gorgonzola: Gorgonzola Dolce or Cremificato (young, unripe, sweetish cheese) - ripens for 2 months, and denser and more mature Gorgonzola Piccante (more dense, aromatic, with a sharp, deep taste) - 4 months.

In cross-section, both varieties are white or cream in color with inclusions of green-blue mold, of which there is much more in Gorgonzola Piccante. The cheese has a dense, light red rind.

BJU gorgonzola:

Proteins - 19 g
Fat - 26 g
Carbohydrates - 0 g

The sharp, piquant taste of Gorgonzola stimulates the appetite, so it is usually offered as a light snack before lunch or dinner, choosing a wine that matches the type of cheese. Red dense wines are considered the best complement to Gorgonzola, but other combinations are often allowed.

Gorgonzola is usually used as an indispensable ingredient and is often used in cooking (in the preparation of soups, salads, pasta sauces, risotto, polenta, etc.).

The taste of the cheese is perfectly revealed in combination with fruits, honey, many vegetables, chocolate, but the classic combination is with walnuts and mascarpone cheese.

How to select and store

1. Always check the indicated expiration date - it usually does not exceed 60 days from the date of manufacture. There are cheeses that last longer, but they can no longer be called completely natural: emulsifying salts (E452, E341, E339) and preservative E202 are added to the composition.

2. The cheese “dough” should under no circumstances be crumbly - this indicates that the shelf life has been exceeded. At low temperatures, the moisture in the cheese freezes, after which the dough becomes crumbly and the taste is not expressed. Mold should not be the main part of the cheese - if this is not the case, then the cheese is not very fresh at best. If these signs occur, you should refuse to purchase the delicacy.

3. The danger of “over-ripening” blue cheese remains even when storing it at home. Firstly, it is undesirable to keep it in the refrigerator - there are too many foreign odors that can affect the taste of the delicacy. It is better to store the product in a cool, dark place, wrapped in a cloth moistened with salt water. The period for hard cheeses is 7 days, for soft cheeses – no more than 3.

One of the oldest blue cheeses, revered by chefs around the world for its exquisite marbled appearance and spicy taste. A noble product born by chance. A favorite not only of gourmets, but also of healthy eating enthusiasts. An ingredient in salads, sauces and even desserts. Those who have managed to sense the subtle facets of its taste and aroma remain forever devoted to this Italian cheese.

What is Gorgonzola cheese

The history of the appearance of cheese is shrouded in myths and legends, but the indisputable fact is that they learned to make it more than 1000 years ago in the village of the same name near Milan. According to the generally accepted version, Italian blue cheese was born by accident. In those days, local cheese makers made a special cheese called stracchino. One of the legends says that the cheese maker violated technology and, in order to hide traces of his mistake, combined fresh milk with thermally untreated cheese preparation. As a result, the ripened cheese was dotted with patches of mold, and its taste captivated the most discerning gourmets.

According to the classification, Gorgonzola is a product classified as a blue cheese due to inclusions of blue-green veins of noble mold, which is responsible for the taste and determines the quality of the cheese. You can find variations of the name such as gorgonzola or gorgonzola - any of them is acceptable. This cheese is often chosen as an alternative to French Roquefort.

Composition and properties

The nutritional value and usefulness of gorgonzola is due to the properties of the substances included in its composition:

During cheese ripening, proteins break down into amino acids that are easily digestible by the body, which are involved in the synthesis of human proteins. For this reason, this cheese is included in the diet of athletes.
With constant consumption of gorgonzola in small quantities, the condition of the intestinal microflora improves.
Peptides participate in the activation of the immune system, regulate the activity of the gastrointestinal tract, and have an antithrombotic effect, which normalizes blood pressure.
The calcium contained in Gorgonzola is easily absorbed by the human body.
100 g of cheese will provide the body’s daily need for the most important amino acids: retinol, B vitamins, nicotinic acid.
Properly prepared gorgonzola can be consumed by people with lactose intolerance.
Mold promotes the formation of lauric, palmitic, stearic, and oleic acids, which suppress the activity of pathogenic microorganisms and increase the shelf life of the product.

Manufacturing technology

In industrial conditions, Gorgonzola is produced in stages:

Cow's milk is pasteurized for 20 seconds at 75 degrees.
It is cooled to 35 degrees, a starter containing live lactic acid bacteria and injections of penicillin are introduced into it to evenly distribute fungal spores.
Rennet is added and the milk is curdled.
The thickened mass is crushed, cooled and placed in molds for a day to get rid of excess moisture;
The forms are stored in conditions of 90% humidity at a temperature of 5 degrees above zero.
After 20 days, the cheese is rubbed with salt, punctures are made with brass needles for better air flow, this gives mold the opportunity to grow and spread.
After 20 days, the molds are turned over again and pierced. The marbling of Gorgonzola depends on the number of such punctures.
Gorgonzola ripens for 2-3 months.
The finished heads are cylindrical in shape and weigh from 6 to 13 kilograms.
Gorgonzola is wrapped in foil packaging to retain moisture and minimize air ingress during transport and sale.
After opening the package, the process of mold growth continues, but this does not affect the quality of the product.

Varieties

There are two subspecies of Gorgonzola. This:

Gorgonzola Dolce is a delicate young cheese, with rare veins of mold, has a sweetish creamy taste with a subtle nutty aftertaste. For preparation, milk of one yield is used, the ripening period is 60-80 days;
Gorgonzola picante is a traditional ripened cheese, it has a denser crumbly structure with dark stripes of mold, a characteristic aroma, spicy, pungent taste. It is prepared from milk of two different milk yields, the aging period is from 80 to 150 days.

How is Gorgonzola used?

Since the spiciness of gorgonzola awakens the appetite, it is often made into snacks and served before the main meal. Dolce, due to its pasty consistency, is often used for sandwiches. Picante is an integral part of both simple and complex recipes. Italians prefer to put it in risotto, polenta, salads, and prepare sauces. The flavors of Gorgonzola are revealed when combined with figs, pears, apples, kiwi, strawberries, honey, and chocolate. Serving blue cheese with walnuts and mascarpone is considered a classic.

How to select and store Gorgonzola

Proper storage is one of the important aspects on which taste and nutritional properties depend:

Too yellow a color indicates stale gorgonzola.
After pressing on the cheese, a dent should remain, this indicates the freshness of the product.
When choosing Gorgonzola at the market, try it; the older the cheese, the more piquant the taste.
The shelf life of the product is limited, ranging from 20 to 30 days, taking into account transportation time, so Gorgonzola is sold cut into small portions, packed in foil.
It is preferable to store the product in a cool place, wrapped in a cloth soaked in an aqueous solution of sea salt.
The hard variety is stored for 7 days, soft - 3 days.

Recipes with Gorgonzola

Italian cheese with a spicy taste is combined with dessert red fortified wine or dry white, which will emphasize the peculiarity of the cheese aftertaste. Or you can discover new ways to use this dairy product by preparing some unusual dishes with it, follow the example of the Italians by adding Gorgonzola to risotto, pasta and even pizza.

Time: 25 minutes.
Number of servings: 4 persons.
Calorie content of the dish: 398 kcal.
Cuisine: Italian.
Difficulty: easy.

Spending no more than 20 minutes, you will prepare a dish for gourmets and connoisseurs of taste. It is better to choose Italian spaghetti or farfalle (bows) as a base, and take a softer gorgonzola. The Dolce variety is perfect for this purpose. The nuts should not be chopped too finely; they should be felt well. If you don't have blue cheese on hand, you can use Parmesan or ricotta, but the taste will be completely different.

Ingredients:

paste - 300 g;
gorgonzola - 70 g;
walnut - 3 pcs.;
butter - 50 g;
salt - to taste.

Cooking method:

Place spaghetti in boiling salted water and cook as directed on package.
Chop the nuts with a knife. Set aside some for decoration.
Melt butter in a frying pan and add gorgonzola.
Take a couple of tablespoons of spaghetti water and add to the cheese mixture.
Once the gorgonzola has completely dissolved, add the chopped nuts and stir.
Transfer the pasta to the sauce. Stir, heat for a couple of minutes, remove from heat.
Place on plates and sprinkle with remaining nuts.

Time: 50 minutes.
Number of servings: 4 persons.
Calorie content of the dish: 173 kcal.
Purpose: for lunch, for dinner.
Cuisine: Italian.
Difficulty: medium.

Risotto, unlike porridge, has a loose structure, but the rice is not hard. The secret of cooking lies in the correct ratio of water and cereal, and the broth is not added to the dish immediately, but as it cooks. Stewed rice goes well with vegetables and spicy cheese, but you can diversify and make it more satisfying by adding fried chicken breast.

Ingredients:

arborio rice - 300 g;
beets - 250 g;
onion - 100 g;
vegetable broth - 250 ml;
dry white wine - 150 ml;
walnuts - 40 g;
butter - 50 g;
gorgonzola ‒ 120 g.

Cooking method:

Melt the butter in a high-sided frying pan and fry the finely chopped onion in it until translucent.
Add rice to the onion, fry for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly.
Boil the beets for 30 minutes. Cool and puree in a blender.
Bring the broth to a boil.
Pour in wine and half a glass of broth, cook for 20-30 minutes, adding broth as the liquid evaporates.
Add grated beets and gorgonzola to the rice, mix well, wait until the cheese melts, remove from heat.

Pizza

Time: 150 minutes.
Number of servings: 4 persons.
Calorie content of the dish: 313 kcal.
Purpose: for lunch, for dinner.
Cuisine: Italian.
Difficulty: easy.

Each ingredient in this pizza is self-sufficient, but together they create the perfect combination of flavors. It is preferable to use flour from good quality soft wheat varieties. The amount of flour indicated in the recipe will yield dough for 4 pizzas with a diameter of 20 cm, or you can roll out one large one. Do not use ketchup or tomato sauce, as this will distort the delicate savory taste of the dish.

Ingredients:

flour - 500 g;
fresh yeast - 15 g;
olive oil - 2 tbsp. l.;
mozzarella - 250 g;
gorgonzola - 150 g;
ham - 100 g;
salt - 0.5 tsp.

Cooking method:

Dissolve the yeast in a glass of well-warm, but not hot water, add salt, butter and flour. Knead the dough and leave for 2 hours to rise.
Cut Gorgonzola into cubes, ham into strips.
Roll out the dough, brush with oil, add mozzarella, gorgonzola, then ham.
Bake for 15 minutes at 220°C.
Make portion cuts and serve hot.

Sauce

Time: 25 minutes.
Number of servings: 4 persons.
Calorie content of the dish: 256 kcal.
Purpose: for lunch, for dinner.
Cuisine: Italian.
Difficulty: easy.

A sauce based on 20% cream and blue cheese is combined with pasta, vegetables, boiled potatoes or beef steak. Serve warm, pour into a gravy boat or pour over the dish immediately. An alternative to cream is milk, which will make the sauce less fatty. You can diversify the dish by adding fried pieces of champignons or finely chopped walnuts.

Ingredients:

gorgonzola - 200 g;
cream 20% - 100 ml;
lemon juice - 2 tbsp. l.;
pepper, nutmeg - to taste.

Cooking method:

Heat the cream without bringing it to a boil.
Cut and mash the cheese, add to the cream. Keep on the lowest heat for 8 minutes, stirring constantly. Gorgonzola should be completely dissolved.
Remove from heat, without ceasing to stir, add lemon juice, pepper, and nutmeg.

Sandwich

Time: 10 minutes.
Number of servings: 2 persons.
Calorie content of the dish: 353 kcal/piece.
Purpose: for lunch, for dinner.
Cuisine: Italian.
Difficulty: easy.

In Italy, bruschetta with gorgonzola is the most popular appetizer, which is served in all restaurants and cafes, and is also prepared at home. Fresh, lightly toasted white or rye bread is used as a base. To create a crust, use a toaster, grill pan, or dry it in the oven. The main thing is not to overcook the bread so that it remains soft inside. To add piquancy, the edge of the bread can be rubbed with garlic.

Ingredients:

white bread - 100 g;
gorgonzola - 60 g;
cherry tomatoes - 4 pcs.;
lettuce leaves - 4 pcs.

Cooking method:

Cut the bread into slices and fry until golden brown.
Place sliced gorgonzola on each hot slice, washed lettuce leaves and cherry tomatoes on top.
Do not add salt, otherwise the tomato will give juice and the bread will become soggy. Serve to the table.

Crostini with pear and cheese

Time: 20 minutes.
Number of servings: 2 persons.
Calorie content of the dish: 183 kcal.
Purpose: for dessert.
Cuisine: Italian.
Difficulty: easy.

Crostini is a type of thin Italian sandwich made from a toasted baguette. Gorgonzola goes well with different fruits, but is at its best when combined with pear. The simultaneous combination of sweetness, savory, spicy aroma and crunchiness will surprise your home tasters. Every blue cheese fan should try this dish.

Ingredients:

baguette - 100 g;
pear - 1 pc.;
gorgonzola - 60 g;
cream cheese - 80 g;
dry wine - 250 ml;
honey - 1 tbsp. l.;
rosemary - to taste.

Cooking method:

Peel and core the pear and cut into slices 1.5 cm thick.
Boil wine, add honey, pears, simmer for 7 minutes. Remove the pears and let dry.
Fry each baguette slice on both sides until golden brown.
Spread with cream cheese, place a slice of gorgonzola and a piece of cooled pear on top.
Garnish with rosemary sprigs.

Video

Gorgonzola - the creation of an absent-minded cheesemaker

History and geography of the product

Famous European cheeses - no other product is associated with so many legends and traditions as with them. Gorgonzola is no exception, the appearance of which is still shrouded in mystery. It is only clear that this cheese was known to people back in the 10th or 12th centuries.

It is from this time that the stories still told in Italy date back. According to one of them, the world owes the appearance of Gorgonzola to an absent-minded cheese maker who left a linen bag with a cheese curd in the barn. When the worker discovered the knot a few days later, fearing punishment, he mixed the stale cottage cheese with new one and, putting it in molds, left it to ripen. Imagine the cheesemaker’s amazement when, cautiously lifting the canvas, he saw green patterns of mold on the young cheese. The type of cheese was very unusual, but the taste of the broken piece exceeded all expectations. The cheese amazingly combined the sweetness of milk and the pungency of mold.

The story is very plausible. But there is also a second legend. His hero was a cunning peasant who decided to make money from merchants passing through the village. Deciding that guests from afar would never return to him again, the deceiver added several stale circles with traces of mold to the batch of fresh stracchino cheese. How frightened the cunning man was when, two weeks later, the same merchants appeared on his doorstep again.

Having prepared for the blows, the peasant suddenly heard that the guests wanted to buy more of the same strange but aromatic cheese. It turned out that during the journey, mold had spread throughout the cheese, penetrating the white circles and giving them a unique taste.

But this is just Italian folklore. But in real life, until the end of the 19th century, the recipe for Gorgonzola was unknown, and in different provinces the cheese was made in accordance with their experience and traditions.

Cheesemakers were lucky enough to receive a complete recipe for Gorgonzola only in 1881, when the will of the Archbishop of Milan, Ansperto da Biassono, was read out.

Italians are extremely sensitive to Gorgonzola. The cheese is made from pasteurized cow's milk and fermented with rennet. As soon as the cheese curds are sent for ripening, mold is introduced into the mass, which explains the even longitudinal stripes of mold on the section of the circle.

To ensure high quality of the cheese, in 1970 the country's leading cheese makers decided to create the Gorgonzola Consortium, whose CG mark marks each head of this delicious cheese. This was a good protection for Gorgonzola from counterfeits, as was the decision that cheese with this name, according to the DOC protected place of origin mark, can only be produced in Italy.

Types and varieties

Today's gourmets can try two types of Gorgonzola.
Gorgonzola Dolce, sometimes called cream cheese, Cremificato is a delicate cheese with a sweet flavor and nutty notes that matures in just two months. This type of Gorgonzola is made from “a una pasta,” a single batch of cottage cheese.

Gorgonzola Piccante has a completely different character. This cheese is tangy and dense, the result of aging for four months. Cheesemakers refer to this Gorgonzola as “a duo paste,” a cheese made from two batches of cottage cheese. This is exactly the kind of gorgonzola that the forgetful cheese maker from Italian legend once made.

The cheese ripening takes place in a completely dry but cool cellar. Humidity and heat can destroy tender Gorgonzola. When the period required for aging passes, white or barely yellow cheese with a fat content of up to 48%, with green veins of mold and a golden-brown crust, appears on the shelves.

Beneficial features

Gorgonzola, like all dairy products, contains a sufficient amount of B vitamins, as well as A, D, E and PP. Cheese contains a lot of calcium and phosphorus in an easily digestible form, iron and potassium. Calcium is essential for the skeleton, nails and teeth, and phosphorus is essential for vision and the nervous system. The presence of vitamin D in gorgonzola and the high fat content of the product helps the absorption of calcium, which is extremely important in childhood and adulthood. Iron improves blood composition, and potassium promotes the timely removal of fluid from the body and helps regulate salt metabolism. Magnesium and potassium are important for the functioning of the heart and vascular system.

Cheese is rich in protein and essential amino acids, which activate metabolic processes. Unsaturated fatty acids cleanse blood vessels of excess cholesterol, acting as a preventative against hypertension, the risk of developing atherosclerosis and other problems with the heart and blood vessels.

Like all blue cheeses, once in the intestinal tract and stomach, Italian Gorgonzola acts as a mild natural antibiotic. On the one hand, this is a significant plus of cheese, which can improve flora by destroying pathogenic bacteria. But an excess amount of mold fungi can cause an imbalance, so cheese is not recommended for women expecting a child or breastfeeding.

Taste qualities

Gorgonzola is a wonderful prelude to a meal. A slice of spicy mature cheese is enough to whet your appetite. This Gorgonzola brings pleasure not only with its taste, the aroma of the cheese is also rich, thick and piquant. Cheese with a dense consistency becomes so as it ripens. The young product is more delicate, creamy and nutty, even sweetish.

By four months of aging, the mold culture has spread throughout the entire head, but its growth does not end. When air is exposed, the fungus begins to grow rapidly, which is allowed by the standards, but can lead to a predominance of penicillin notes in the aroma and taste.

The naturally dense crust of the cheese has a red-orange tint; it does not affect the taste of Gorgonzola and is completely edible.

Use in cooking

Italians typically eat gorgonzola with light, fresh ciabatta, sweet onion slices, acacia honey, and even tomato jam. But these are not all the ways to evaluate the taste of cheese.

Ripe Gorgonzola will add piquant notes and heat to sauces, salads and hot dishes. A classic snack with Gorgonzola is potato croquettes. Slices of cheese are placed in mashed cakes, and the formed balls are breaded and deep-fried. In Lombardy, corn polenta with this spicy cheese is very popular, and the inhabitants of Piedmont consider roast veal with a sauce of Gorgonzola, cream and herbs to be their signature dish.

Without Gorgonzola, the famous Italian “Four Cheese” pizza will lose its originality. It is impossible to imagine Apennine cuisine without a spicy cheese sauce. It is considered traditional to add gorgonzola to neutral pasta dishes. Lasagna, pene, classic spaghetti - a slice of cheese, a drop of olive oil and a handful of herbs are enough to turn a simple dish into haute cuisine.

Cheese will enrich the taste of game and charcoal-roasted meat. It may seem impossible, but cheese with a bright tangy flavor can also be useful in desserts. Gourmets should try ice cream, soufflé or gratin with Gorgonzola.

Young Gorgonzola is served with white Muscat wines, while rich, sweet wines, such as Tokaji Aszu, are more suitable for mature cheese. Sparkling Asti Spumante, sherry or Spanish Madeira will help to reveal the taste of the cheese. An excellent addition to wine and cheese would be dried apricots, dried pears and roasted almonds.

One of the most popular Italian cheeses, which has been known since the Middle Ages. Produced in the vicinity of Milan, Novara, Como and Pavia - Gorgonzola's homeland is Lombardy.
According to legend, a young cheese maker, without finishing making the cheese, left to meet his beloved, and in the morning, covering up the traces of the crime, he mixed the curd mass with fresh milk. That's how, a few weeks later, Gorgonzola appeared.

This blue cheese comes in two types: young - dolce (Italian: Gorgonzola Dolce) and mature - picante (Italian: Gorgonzola Piccante).
Certified by DOC (Italian Denominazione di Origine Controllata) since 1995, and PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) since 1996.

The delicate creamy body of Gorgonzola, permeated with thin veins of blue mold, exudes a barely perceptible nutty aroma and gives a soft creamy taste.
Served with risotto, pasta and polento, it also goes well with nuts, fruits, soufflé and vegetables.
The taste of young cheese can be emphasized by dessert and fortified wines, while the taste of aged cheese can be emphasized by dense and rich ones.

Ingredients

9 l milk
1/8 tsp mesophilic starter 1
1/16 tsp Penicillium roqueforti mold
1 l cream 10-20% fat
100 ml natural yogurt 2
2 ml 10% solution 3 calcium chloride
2.7 ml liquid rennet
4 tsp salt

1 0.9 g Danisco Choozit MM 101, you can also use MEZO-2/MEZO-3 starter 3/4 tsp. (1.5 g) or Chr. Hansen Flora Danica 1/8 tsp. (0.9 g). 2 You can make yoghurt or buy it at the store. 3 Dilute 10 grams of dry calcium chloride in 100 ml of boiled water.
Store the solution in a household refrigerator.
Best before sediment forms.

Equipment

Preparation

You pasteurized 4 milk And cream, cool the mixture until 32°C, and add the starter. Leave for 3 minutes to rehydrate the powder, then stir slowly with a slotted spoon.
Take 50 ml of warm water in 2 containers: in one you will add a solution of calcium chloride (not granules!), in the second - a coagulant (rennet / vegetarian chymosin), then add these mixtures to the pan, stir again, and leave for 90 minutes, to form a clot.
After this time, you will see a cheese curd - a gel, under a layer of translucent whey. It needs to be checked for a “clean break”: to do this, you need to take a knife and make a shallow cut “at an angle”, and lift this part of the clot; if its edges are smooth, the incision site is filled with serum - this means it’s time to move on to the next stage; if this does not happen, wait another 10-15 minutes.
Cut the curd into cubes with the side 2 cm, And knead mass during 30 minutes, during this time the grain will become denser and “rounded”.
Rearrange clot in drainage bag and hang, for the outflow of serum, on 60 minutes.
At this stage it is important prevent sticking grains, to do this, alternately lift the corners of the drainage bag, “rolling” the clot.
Set aside 1/3 part of the cheese grains into a separate container.
In a drainage bag left 2/3 future Gorgonzola - she must remain there, yet 60 minutes.
After this time, shift drainage bag in a colander, cover with a lid/plate and place a weight on top equal to 2 kg, And press 1 hour.
The mold must be divided into 2 or 3 parts.
The pressing time has come to an end. Taking out cheese mass from a drainage bag, crumble her on large pieces, and enter mold in portions good every time stirring.
Take what you put aside earlier corn, pressing tightly, post it his along the walls and bottom form as if you were making an open pie with filling, and leave a little for the “lid” of cheese.
Instead of filling pour the mixture loosely mixed with mold, And cover up her "clean" cheesy test.
Self-pressing. We recommend turning the head over along with the mold.
During first hour, turn over cheese 4 times– every 15 minutes.
Leave the head on 2 hours, after which again turn over, and wait some more 2 hours.
It's time for pickling.
We recommend Gorgonzola, like other blue cheeses rub dry salt, but the Italian beauty requires salting in 4 stages:
Remove the cheese from the mold and spread 1 teaspoon of dry salt over the surface, place it in the mold and in a chamber that maintains t=10-13°C.
Repeat the manipulation 3 more times, so you will be pickling for 4 days.
Can take out gorgonzola from the form, but that’s not all.
Wrap head drainage mesh, and commit the last one. Leave for 7 days at t=10-13°C And humidity 93-95%.
Blue mold appeared (???) - time pierce the cheese. Do this using a wooden sushi stick.
Distance between holes must be no less 2 cm.
That's all - all that's left is excerpt which will take place 90 days, at t=10-13°C And humidity 93-95%.

4 It is important to remember that cheese cannot be made from store-bought packaged milk - in dairies, pasteurization is carried out at high temperatures, as a result of which the protein denatures and a curd simply does not form. You can purchase raw farm milk and pasteurize it yourself by heating it to t=72-75°C, holding it for 20 seconds, and then cooling it as soon as possible. Also, this operation can be carried out at t=65-68°C, but it will take longer - 20 minutes, the process cannot be accelerated, because not all pathogenic bacteria will die. Care during maturation:
Wipe the container and turn the cheeses daily. We recommend placing them at the bottom of the container, under a drainage mat - they will absorb excess moisture in the first days, when there is less condensation, they can be removed. It is important to monitor the humidity in the container while the gorgonzola is ripening - if it is too high, the crust will quickly begin to soften and deteriorate. The optimal humidity level is 93-95%.
Humidity is regulated by the tightness of the container lid. Storage: up to 2 months, at t = ???°С.