# Cheese



## debbie24 (Sep 15, 2006)

I'm going to attempt the barefoot contessa turkey lasagna and it calls for creamy goat cheese and fresh mozzarella is this found at the deli counter or where the other cheeses are?  could i find these cheeses at target?  where do you guys get your cheeses that you find are a good price?  Thanks


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## urmaniac13 (Sep 15, 2006)

Target?  Do they sell cheeses now??  They used to be my favourite discount department stores but I never knew they handled foods, except for some snack items!!
I agree they usually offered decent values for your money, but I am somewhat dubious about fresh foods they carry, though I have never seen the quality they offer so maybe I shouldn't opine...
But while I was in the states I always bought my cheeses, any kind of cheeses from a deli counter, they are almost always of better quality and tasted better than prepackaged versions in the cheese sections, even if they weren't cheaper, for me the difference was significant enough it was worth it.


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## jennyema (Sep 15, 2006)

Fresh mozarella is usually found with the higher end cheeses or at the deli counter.  It's usually sold in water.

Creamy goat cheese is not sold at the deli counter but with the better cheeses (ie, not where the Kraft stuff is).

Never seen either at a Target that sells food, but you never know.  I'd call them and ask first.  You should be able to get both at a large supermarket.


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## carolelaine (Sep 15, 2006)

Sams or Costco have some really great cheeses in the deli counter.  I buy them all the time, and I have found the quality to be better than our grocery store, and way less expensive.  You don't have to get huge amounts either, so I don't have any waste.


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## Robo410 (Sep 15, 2006)

up scale food markets: whole Foods Wegmans Fresh FIelds etc... Fancy Safeways, large stores serving diverse populations (ethnic variet) helps ensure great variety


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## debbie24 (Sep 15, 2006)

oh yes there is super target where its like walmart, food on 1 side and everything else on the other.  super target always has really good veggies and fruits.  do you ever find that walmart fruits are always going bad and there is mold on it and nasty looking (just had to get that in).  i did see these cheeses at sams but they dont have a deli counter its just in a section and its very big quantities.  our supermarkets here are Target, walmart, winn dixie, publix.  i am not a member of cosco and i dont have one close by.   oh another thing the mozzarella the barefoot contessa used wasnt the one in water it was round with like a brown "skin" and dry.


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## jennyema (Sep 15, 2006)

debbie24 said:
			
		

> oh another thing the mozzarella the barefoot contessa used wasnt the one in water it was round with like a brown "skin" and dry.


 
Fresh mozarella that has a brown skin and is *dry*?  That doesn't sound like _fresh_ mozarella.  Fresh mozarella won't have a skin and isn't dry.  It's kept in water or vacuum packed because it's a soft, milky cheese.

It looks like this.








*Smoked* mozarella has a brown skin and is dry, though.


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## Constance (Sep 15, 2006)

That sounds like smoked mozerella, Debbie.


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## ChefJune (Sep 15, 2006)

> Fresh mozarella that has a brown skin and is *dry*? That doesn't sound like _fresh_ mozarella.


That sounds like Scamorza, which is the proper name for smoked Mozzarella.

Fresh Mozz doesn't come in water (or it shouldn't) unless it's buffalo milk mozz...  the rest usually comes in a ball in some kind of plastic container or plastic wrap.


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## jennyema (Sep 15, 2006)

ChefJune said:
			
		

> That sounds like Scamorza, which is the proper name for smoked Mozzarella.
> 
> Fresh Mozz doesn't come in water (or it shouldn't) unless it's buffalo milk mozz... the rest usually comes in a ball in some kind of plastic container or plastic wrap.


 
According to Steven Jenkins _Cheese_ _Primer_, fresh mozarella made from either cow or buffalo milk should be immersed in water, brine or whey unless it is to be used right away. In the supermarket, it'll either be in the deli or in the self-serve olive section or in plastic tubs, but I have never seen in not in water, uless it's been vacuum packed.  

Also, the _Cheese_ _Primer_ says that Scamorza is actually differnt cheese. It's similar to mozarella but drier and can be found plain or smoked.


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## ChefJune (Sep 15, 2006)

Okay.. Then I guess the Italians who taught me about their cheeses didn't know what they were talking about!


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## jennyema (Sep 15, 2006)

Perhaps not.


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## Andy M. (Sep 15, 2006)

I just checked four references on the subject and they all describe Scamorza (available both plain or smoked) as being similar to mozzarella.  That would lead me to believe it's not the same as mozzarella..


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