Good Luck to Those Who Add Cheese to Their Smoothies

Smoothies can be a delicious way to drink your food, and there are plenty of ways to flavor your own. You can add any combination of fruits, vegetables, dairy, or powders to make a smoothie that suits you and your goals. While this is all well and good, there are few dairy products that are overlooked in drinks. Next time you make a smoothie, leave room for the cheese.

Cheese for beginners

Adding cheese to smoothies is a great way to incorporate texture-enhancing silky fats ( similar to half and half ) and the often contrasting taste of salt, which can make your libation more complex and interesting. This works for smoothies too. I recommend starting with soft cheeses such as cream cheese, mascarpone, cottage cheese, goat cheese, or brie, as they blend more easily into the mixture than hard, aged cheeses. Cream cheese and even cottage cheese will give you a malty touch to the cheesecake. If you’re thinking, “Sounds like it would be good with strawberries,” you’re right, and you can find my recipe at the bottom of this post. Strawberry Cheesecake Smoothie is creamy, tangy, and a great start to your drinking cheese journey.

A combination of flavors

I understand cheese can be fun. While there’s nothing wrong with bringing in funk, it can be problematic at first. Always choose the cheese you like first. Now is not the time to “get used” to cheese. If you hate blue cheese, don’t try adding it to your smoothie. When you have cheese on your mind, think about what kind of fruit you usually enjoy it with and what are your main flavors. If you like brie and green apple, pick them up. Try blue cheese and roasted pears or apricots. Cottage cheese and cream cheese are mostly neutral and can pair well with a variety of fruits.

How to make a cheese smoothie

Adding cheese to a smoothie is as easy as adding other ingredients: unceremoniously drop it in and stir. The more cheese you add, the thicker the consistency will be, so adjust the amount of water or other liquid accordingly. Depending on the mixing tool you are using, it may be best to add the cheese somewhere in the “middle” of your ingredients. I use an immersion blender and prefer to pour the water first, then the yogurt and cheese and fruit to the top so that nothing sticky like cream cheese is left on the bottom of the cup or on the blade.

Keep in mind that you usually only need a couple of ounces to enjoy the pleasant texture and flavor of the cheese. While cottage cheese does contain some protein, you need to make your high cheese smoothie to gain significant amounts, and you may be asking for too much cottage cheese . For cheese smoothie lovers who want a little whimsical pairing, try adding salted Parmesan and figs or dried apricots (assuming you have a powerful blender that can reduce the grit to a manageable size) or a peanut butter cheddar cheese smoothie. Or you can make it easier with this Strawberry Cheesecake Smoothie.

Smoothie with strawberry cheesecake

Ingredients:

• 1 cup cold water (subtract 1/4 cup water for a thicker smoothie)
• ½ cup frozen chopped strawberries
• 3 tablespoons cream cheese
• 1 tablespoon Greek yogurt
• ½ large banana

Add all ingredients to blender in order. Blend until smooth.