Havarti Cheese - Cheese Guide

June 12, 2019 | By Dave Mattingly

Havarti Cheese, along with its cousin Cream Havarti Cheese, is one of Denmark's most famous cheeses. Havarti is a semi-soft cow's milk cheese originating in Denmark in the 1800s. It was created by Hanne Nielsen, a Danish woman who travelled throughout Europe to learn cheesemaking techniques. Upon her return from her travels, she created a washed-rind cheese and named it "Havarthi" after her family farm. Today's Havarti Cheese is based on her original Danish recipe.

Havarti is an interior-ripened cheese that is aged for approximately three months. Original Havarti is made from whole milk, giving the cheese a 45% butterfat content. Havarti is cream to yellow in color with small holes or "eyes" throughout its paste. Havarti has a buttery, sweet flavor, and may be mild to sharp in flavor depending on its age.

Cream Havarti is an extra creamy version of Havarti. It gets this creaminess from a technique of adding additional cream before curding. Cream Havarti, which is otherwise the same as the original recipe but enriched with cream, is a 60% butterfat cheese, or what the French would call a "double cream". Cream Havarti has a smooth melt in your mouth texture. Flavored varieties of Cream Havarti are also available with herbs and spices such as Caraway, Dill, Garlic and Herbs or Jalapeno.

Havarti and Cream Havarti are ideal table cheeses that may be sliced, grilled or melted. Havarti adds a smooth creaminess to sandwiches, fruits and vegetables. This mild, creamy Danish specialy is a particularly fine dessert cheese when paired with fruits and wine.

When searching for Havarti Cheese online, look no further than igourmet.com.

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