Mascarpone vs. Cream Cheese

Mascarpone, also known as Italian cream cheese, is a rich, spreadable cow’s milk cheese with an especially high percentage of butterfat. Mascarpone is made by adding a tartaric acid or citric acid like lemon juice to full-fat heavy cream. Mascarpone is a Renaissance-era invention from the Lombardy region of Northern Italy and a staple ingredient in Italian desserts like tiramisu.

Cream cheese is a soft cow’s milk cheese that contains a high percentage of milk fat. It was invented around 1873 by William A. Lawrence, a dairyman living in upstate New York. He was trying to recreate Neufchâtel cheese and added cream to the cheesemaking process, creating cream cheese. Cream cheese is a popular spread for bagels and is a key ingredient in cheesecake.

Mascarpone cheese and cream cheese are both white, soft cheeses with a mild taste, but there are differences between them.

• Taste: Mascarpone cheese has a mildly sweet, almost nutty flavor with a fresh buttery character. Mascarpone is less tangy than comparable cheeses like ricotta and American cream cheese. American-style cream cheese is both firmer and brighter-tasting than its Italian counterpart.
• Texture: Cream cheese has a smooth texture that’s soft and easily spreadable. Mascarpone has a looser, velvety texture, and rich mouthfeel, similar to a double-crème brie.
• Fat content: Cream cheese, made with heavy cream and whole milk, has a fat content of fifty-five percent. Mascarpone is made of butterfat and has a higher fat content of seventy-five percent fat.

Many recipes call for a combination of both cream cheese and mascarpone, so depending on the application, cream cheese may be a good substitute, especially in baked goods. You can also add a spoonful of sour cream or whipping cream to mimic mascarpone’s airy, meltaway consistency in dishes like risotto or soup.

To use mascarpone instead of cream cheese in a cheesecake, add some lemon juice to give the cheesecake its characteristic acidity. Using mascarpone can yield a more decadent cheesecake. You can also make a mascarpone substitute by mixing cream cheese with heavy whipping cream and sour cream.

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