Mascarpone

Mascarpone is a soft Italian dairy product made by the acid-heat coagulation of cream, technically a dairy cream rather than a cheese since it uses no rennet and undergoes no true curd formation. The traditional method dissolves tartaric acid in hot water, combines it with heavy cream heated to about 77 to 87 degrees Celsius, cooks the mixture for five minutes, then cools it before straining through cheesecloth and refrigerating for at least six hours. It originates from Lodi in Lombardy, Italy, recognized there as a traditional regional food product, with early commercial documentation from 1933 to 1934 when a Treviso dairy registered the trademark Mascherpone Valmarino. Milky white and easy to spread, it is a key ingredient in tiramisu, can substitute for or complement butter and Parmesan in risotto, appears in cheesecake, and is used on some UK pizzas with prosciutto and mushrooms.