Liptauer Cheese

Rediscovering Liptauer: A Luxury from the Fridge Scraps

When I was a kid, one of the real treats from our Friday night supermarket shop was a little tub of Liptauer cheese. It was never an everyday item…more of a special splurge. Spreadable, tangy, and just fancy enough to feel luxurious, we’d savour every bite on crackers, stretching it out as long as possible.

Liptauer has its roots in Hungarian and Slovakian cuisine, traditionally made from soft cheeses like sheep’s milk, goat, cottage, or cream cheese. What gives it its signature flavour is a punchy mix of ingredients: paprika, caraway seeds, spring onion, and sometimes mustard or pickles, all blended into a creamy, spiced spread.

So when I recently opened the fridge to find a collection of half-eaten, end-of-pack cheese morsels, I had a lightbulb moment: why not make my own Liptauer-style spread and put them to good use?

True to form, I didn’t follow a strict recipe. I added a few non-traditional cheeses into the mix, mashed it all together, and seasoned generously. Waste not, want not. The result? A flavour-packed spread that felt equal parts nostalgic and new.

Ideas for Using Liptauer Cheese:

• Spread thickly on warm crusty bread or crackers
• Dollop onto baked potatoes or roasted veg
• Use as a spreadable cheese for rolls and bagels
• Piled high on cucumber rounds
• Add to a grazing platter for something different

It’s a wonderful example of how a little resourcefulness (and a love of cheese) can turn leftovers into something truly delicious.

My Liptauer Cheese

Ingredients

• Brie
• Cheddar
• Edam
• 3 tsp paprika
• 4 gherkins (finely chopped)
• 4 tsp capers
• 2 green/red bell peppers/capsicum
• 125 grams cream cheese
• 4 Tbsp sour cream
• 10 x dollops of Worcestershire sauce (to taste)

Method

1. Grate the hard cheeses and finely dice up any soft cheeses. Hand mix them in a bowl. Don’t attempt to put them in a blender as they are too stodgy and will gum up the blades.
2. Add all other ingredients and mix until smooth with a wooden spoon. You will need to put some elbow grease into mixing this, but it will go smooth within a few minutes! If too thick, add more sour cream. Or, if you want to turn it into a dip, add a whole heap of sour cream.
3. Tips: grated onion and mustard seeds are also added options!

Enjoy!