Kitchen Tested

On a recent grocery shopping trip, I spotted a new product and knew I had to put it to use in my kitchen.  I love to find any excuse to put Philadelphia cream cheese in my recipes, but the new Philadelphia Cooking Crème makes cooking with cream cheese even easier.  Philadelphia Cooking Crème comes in a variety of flavors Original, Italian Herb, Santa Fe and Savory Garlic. 

I grabbed the Savory Garlic flavor, because I wasn’t sure what I wanted to try it with, but I assumed that garlic would be the most versatile flavor.  Tonight I decided to replace ricotta cheese mixture in the traditional lasagna recipe with the Cooking Crème…and wow, I was not disappointed.

I layered Bolognese sauce to start, then lasagna noodles and then spread the Cooking Crème over the noodles.  I continued this layering process and then topped with mozzarella and parmesan cheese. I had pre-cooked the noodles, so I only had to bake the dish at 375 degrees for about 25-30 minutes or until golden brown on top. 

This may go against traditional Italian recipes, but I loved the creamy texture that the Cooking Crème added to the dish.  Sometimes ricotta can leave a dry texture to lasagna and the Cooking Crème created a smooth and rich flavor that I had been missing.  I think I have found my perfect lasagna recipe and I don’t think I will go back to ricotta in this dish ever again. 

After doing some research, I discovered that Philadelphia and Kraft foods are planning a large scale marketing campaign around Cooking Crème.  I am curious to see how they will promote the product and to experiment with the variety of flavors in other dishes.  I think this might become a staple in my fridge, just like Philadelphia Cream Cheese.  Keep an eye out in your local grocery store for this product, I found it with the refrigerated pasta section.