How do I use up my cream cheese?

[maplekitty]

I accidently bought Philedelphia brand No-Fat cream cheese (instead of Kraft regular) - I totally wasnt paying attention. I didnt relaize it until I stuck my knife into it to put on my bagel :( For the record, I HATE Philly brand cream cheese, and doubly hate the no-fat version. It has a weird grainy texture and the taste is inedible.

Now I'm stuck with it, so I need something to do with it???

[mlfallis]

I search the Kraft website and got this

http://www.kraftfoods.com/cream-cheese-recipes/

Depending on how much you have, I bet you could find something on here you like.

[Asha]

you can make a dessert pizza. add a bit of vanilla and powdered sugar to the cream cheese. stir it up. then spread over home made, thin crust precooked pizza crust. top with fresh fruit like strawberries and bluberries or top with chocoloate chips.

[bookworm]

Toss it. It's icky, and you'll just "contaminate" whatever you put with it to try to mask the taste.

[tenofcups]

I'd also just trash it. If you don't like the taste or the texture, that's going to affect anything you try to do with it.

I can think of a couple of recipes I use cream cheese in -- scrambled eggs with lox and cream cheese; a baked egg dish with cream cheese, shrimp, chives, old bay and other seasonings; and a crab dip. But again, I wouldn't use any cream cheese in those recipes that I didn't like plain because I think the taste will bleed through (fwiw, I only eat Philly cream cheese, but I won't touch no-fat anything).

[jimmysgirl424]

Yuck, yuck, yuck!!! That no-fat crap is so gross. I have to agree, there is nothing you could use it in recipe-wise where it wouldn't ruin it! At first I was thinking about that cream cheese salsa dip that some of the ladies here have posted in other threads, but I think you would still get that grainy texture that makes it so nasty. Toss it.....otherwise you'll waste more money on the foods you try to combine with it to make it edible, KWIM?

[chefker]

Spackle? ;)

Sadly, I'd probably toss it too. I can deal with the reduced fat, but the no-fat stuff is just icky to me.

[Rose]

I'd toss it instead of wasting the calories if you don't like it.

If you do use it you could make stuffed mushrooms. There are a lot of recipes with cream cheese.

[bluhimmy]

Don't like the fat-free version either.

But if you really want to use it up, you can add it to mash potatoes.

[Janey]

I put reduced fat cream chese, FF sour cream, and smoked salmon into my food processor along with some dill weed and a package of Knorr Onion & Chive Dip Mix to make a veggie dip/cracker spread. It's a huge hit. Not sure how it would be with the No-fat cream chese, but perhaps some of the fat/texture from the sour cream will help it out?

[jennylou]

Cheesecake?

By the time you add sugar and topping (I recommend strawberries or cherries and then some whipped cream) I doubt you'd notice at all. :)

[mgrace]

If you don't like it, I'd probably toss it. Otherwise, mix it with a jar of marshmallow fluff and add a bit of vanilla and you have fruit dip!

[KarenS]

I'd toss it myself. I love Philly Cream Cheese myself, but I totally agree with you about the no-fat version. It's disgusting - flavorless and sort of gelatin like. Bleah.

I'd just get rid of it ... becuase anything you make with it, you're going to *think* it tastes funny, even if it doesn't. :)

K.

[kindermom]

Another person for tossing it. It was what, $1.29? No matter what you do with it, it will end up tasting weird/grainy/gross. The money is not worth it.

[mrstim]

Only thing I can think of is one of our "quickie" meals -

1 can shredded chicken drained
1 block of cream cheese, softened
1 c. ranch dressing
1/2 c. hot sauce
1 cup shredded cheese

Mix it all together and bake at 350 until bubbly - serve with crackers or tortilla chips!

Otherwise - I'd toss it!

[Sare79]

What about the WW alfredo sauce? Melt it with some skim milk, a bit of cooked chicken or seafood, some chopped garlic, and spices to make a light alfredo?

:)Brenda gave me that recipe!:)

[Bubbas]

How about Smashed Potatoes? Rachel Ray has a bunch of recipes for this. You just boil up some potatoes, add in some milk, the cream cheese and a fresh herb and smash away.

[Hello Kitty]

I have a FF cheesecake recipe, but I think it requires more than one brick. I would probably just toss it too. The only time I can handle FF cream cheese is if it's baked, as it seems to help by cooking all the food starch in it.

[coquelicot]

If you like Italian food, you could make manicotti with it. It just mixes in with ricotta cheese and either ground beef or Italian sausage for the filling that you stick in the shells. I use FF cream cheese in it all the time, and I honestly can't taste it.

If you want the recipe, let me know; I can type it up from my recipe card.

[Renrel]

If tossing it irks you, and you don't want to risk ruining other food with it and you work - buy some bagels, some ff cheese and bring it all in as a treat for your work mates. Gain you some points in the office. Or do the same with daycare if you have a kid who goes.

[jenjunum]

I would use it in a recipe (like cheesecake) that calls for at least 2 bricks of cream cheese and then mix it with the full-fat kind. Then you'll just have reduced fat and you probably won't notice the grainy texture as much.