How to Make the Most of Cream, Yogurt and Cheese

Dairy products represent a product category that’s often treated as an afterthought. But with interest in meatless options and healthy sources of protein on the upswing, it pays to pay attention to cheese, yogurt, milk/cream, and other dairy products.

The Signature Power of Cheese

With hundreds of kinds of cheese available in the world, milk’s leap to immortality is also capable of helping a recipe make the leap from generic to signature. Cheese can stand on its own in specialties like grilled cheese sandwiches or fondue, and it can add value to foods as varied as omelets, vegetable dishes, and burgers. A recent Wendy's LTO (limited-time offering) featuring Gouda and Gruyére in the form of the Gouda Bacon Cheeseburger and Bacon Fondue Fries, respectively, are proof that distinctive cheeses have captured mainstream appeal.

In fact, calling out a cheese by name is a great strategy for setting a menu item apart—and supporting premium pricing—whether it’s a Wedge Salad with Gorgonzola Dressing or Greek Shrimp with Tomatoes and Feta.

There’s also global appeal to be captured by promoting menu items made with such cheeses as Asiago (Italian), Camembert (French), or Manchego (Spanish).

Get Started: Customize ever-popular macaroni and cheese with the addition of a specialty cheese; it’s easy when you start with Stouffer’s® Traditional Macaroni and Cheese or Macaroni and Cheese made with Whole Grains.

Because most vegetarians enjoy cheese, it’s easy to menu vegetarian entrées by adding cheese (and protein) to vegetables, pasta, or grain dishes. This can be done with ready-to-menu products such as Stouffer’s Broccoli Cheese Rice Casserole or Stouffer’s Potatoes Au Gratin, or by elevating almost any kind of meatless recipe with a flavorful cheese sauce or topping.

Did You Know? Nestlé Professional has many cheese sauces and other cheese-based products, including Chef-mate® and Trio® cheese sauces, as well as Stouffer's Alfredo Sauce and Alfredo Parmigiana.

Yo, It’s Yogurt!

Once equated with ethnic cooking and hippie diets, yogurt has hit the big time. According to research from NPD, many consumers have turned to yogurt as a non-meat source of protein. This is especially true of tangy Greek yogurt, which has become increasingly popular here in the United States in recent years.

Whether you use Greek or traditional yogurt, this creamy treat can be used in a variety of interesting ways:

As a substitute for sour cream in dressings, dips, and marinades
In a sauce such as yogurt dill sauce for salmon
As a condiment on sandwiches, instead of mayonnaise
In baked goods such as zucchini bread or coffee cake
In popsicles and other frozen desserts
As a garnish for hot and cold foods, including popular items like nachos
Instead of cream in stews, soups, and pan sauces
To lighten ground meat mixtures
In chicken and tuna salad
Layered with granola and fruit for breakfast
In shakes and smoothies

Cream Sauces and Soups

Rich, creamy sauces and soups represent the essence of comfort food.

Cream or “white” sauces such as béchamel and velouté are some of the most versatile sauces in the kitchen. They bind foods in mixtures and envelop them in moisture when used as a sauce. They are also extremely versatile, with a rich but neutral flavor that works as-is with all kinds of foods, including fish, chicken, pasta, and vegetables. And they can be turned into more flavorful products with the addition of ingredients such as wine or cognac, sautéed mushrooms or onions, lemon or another citrus, chopped fresh herbs, tomato, cheese, garlic, mustard, horseradish, wasabi, and much, much more.

Get Started: Trio White Sauce Mix has been completely reformulated, and is better than ever as a base for delicious, signature-making cream sauces and other recipes.

There are also rustic cream gravies based on meat drippings, which are easy to reproduce using Chef-mate Country Sausage Gravy and Trio Southern Country Gravy Mix—great for chicken fried steak and other homey specialties.

Cream soups are another extremely versatile menu specialty, adding an elegant dimension to the category in such recipes as cream of chicken or this Roasted Cauliflower Soup. Many operators who feature soups prominently on their menu rotation include a cream soup whenever possible. And if you master one recipe for cream soup, such as potato, it’s easy to swap in another ingredient, such as mushrooms or broccoli.