Pan Quark Download
Maarit Hibbits
Quark or quarg is a type of fresh dairy product made from milk. The milk is soured, usually by adding lactic acid bacteria cultures, and strained once the desired curdling is achieved. It can be classified as fresh acid-set cheese. Traditional quark can be made without rennet, but in modern dairies small quantities of rennet are typically added. It is soft, white and unaged, and usually has no salt added.
Quark is similar to French fromage blanc. It is distinct from Italian ricotta because ricotta (Italian "recooked") is made from scalded whey. Quark is somewhat similar to yogurt cheeses such as the South Asian chak(k)a, the Arabic labneh, and the Central Asian suzma or kashk, but while these products are obtained by straining yogurt (milk fermented with thermophile bacteria), quark is made from soured milk fermented with mesophile bacteria.
Although quark is sometimes referred to loosely as a type of "cottage cheese", they can be distinguished by the different production aspects and textural quality, with the cottage cheese grains described as more chewy or meaty.[3]
In Israel, gevina levana denotes the creamy variety similar to the German types of quark.[1] The firmer version which was introduced to Israel during the Aliyah of the 1990s by immigrants from the former Soviet Union is differentiated as tvorog.
Manufacture of quark normally uses pasteurized skim milk as the main ingredient, but cream can be added later to adjust fat content.[23][24][3] The lactic acid bacteria are introduced in the form of mesophilic Lactococcus starter cultures.[3][25][26] In the dairy industry today, quark is mostly produced with a small quantity of rennet, added after the culture when the solution is still only slightly acidic (ph 6.1).[23][3] The solution will then continue to acidify, allowed to reach an approximate pH of 4.6.[23][3] At this point, the acidity causes the casein proteins in the milk to begin precipitating.[27]
In Germany, it is continuously stirred to prevent hardening, resulting in a thick, creamy texture.[28] According to German regulations on cheese (Käseverordnung), "fresh cheeses" (Frischkäse) such as quark or cottage cheese must contain at least 73% water in the fat-free component.[21] German quark is usually sold in plastic tubs. This type of quark has the firmness of sour cream but is slightly drier, resulting in a somewhat crumbly texture (like ricotta).[28]
Basic quark contains about 0.2% fat; this basic quark or skimmed quark (Magerquark) must under German law have less than 10% fat by dry mass.[29][30] Quark with higher fat content is made by adding cream after cooling.[23][29] It has a smooth and creamy texture, and is slightly sweet (unlike sour cream). A firmer version called Schichtkäse (layer cheese) is often used for baking. Schichtkäse is distinguished from quark by having an added layer of cream sandwiched between two layers of quark.
In the 19th century, there was no industrial production of quark (as end-product) and it was produced entirely for home use.[31] In the traditional home-made process, the milk would be allowed to let stand until it soured naturally by the presence of naturally occurring bacteria, although the hardening could be encouraged with the addition of some rennet.[22][31]
Some or most of the whey is removed to standardize the quark to the desired thickness. Traditionally, this is done by hanging the cheese in a muslin bag[23][32] or a loosely woven cotton gauze called cheesecloth and letting the whey drip off,[33] which gives quark its distinctive shape of a wedge with rounded edges. In industrial production, however, cheese is separated from whey in a centrifuge and later formed into blocks.[23]
Variations in quark preparation occur across different regions of Germany and Austria.[28] Most of the Austrian and other Central and Eastern European varieties contain less whey and are therefore drier and more solid than the German and Scandinavian ones.
In the Netherlands, many products labelled "kwark" are not based on quark as described in this article (fresh acid-set cheese), but instead a thick yogurt-like product made using yogurt bacteria (such as Streptococcus thermophilus and Lactobacillus acidophilus) in a quicker process using a centrifuge.[34][35]
While Magerquark is often used for baking or is eaten as breakfast with a side of fruit or muesli, Sahnequark also forms the basis of a large number of quark desserts (called Quarkspeise when homemade or Quarkdessert when sold in German[39]).
One common use for quark is in making cheesecake called Käsekuchen or Quarkkuchen in Germany.[40][41] Quark cheesecake is called Topfenkuchen in Austria. The Quarktorte in Switzerland may be equivalent, though this has also been described as a torte that combines quark and cream.[d][11]
In neighboring Netherlands there is a different variant; these cakes, called kwarktaart in Dutch, usually have a cookie crumb crust, and the quark is typically mixed with whipped cream, gelatine, and sugar. These cakes do not require baking or frying, but instead are placed in the refrigerator to firm up.[42] They may be made with quark or with the yogurt-like quark that is common in the Netherlands (see above).[35]
Quark is also often used as an ingredient for sandwiches, salads, and savory dishes. Quark, vegetable oil and wheat flour are the ingredients of a popular kind of baking powder leavened dough called Quarkölteig ("quark oil dough"), used in German cuisine as an alternative to yeast-leavened dough in home baking, since it is considerably easier to handle and requires no rising period. The resulting baked goods look and taste very similar to yeast-leavened goods, although they do not last as long and are thus usually consumed immediately after baking.
In Germany, quark mixed with chopped onions and herbs such as parsley and chives is called Kräuterquark. Kräuterquark is commonly eaten with boiled potatoes and has some similarity to tzatziki which is based on yoghurt.
Desserts using quarks (Russian: tvorog, etc.) in Slavic regions include the tvarohovník in Slovakia, tvarožník in Czech Republic, sernik in Poland, and syrnyk in Ukraine) and cheese pancakes (syrnyky in Russia and Ukraine).
In Latvia, quark is eaten savory mixed with sour cream and scallions on rye bread or with potatoes. In desserts, quark is commonly baked into biezpiena plātsmaize, a crusted sheet cake baked with or without raisins. A sweetened treat biezpiena sieriņš (small curd cheese) is made of small sweetened blocks of quark dipped in chocolate.
Although common in continental Europe, manufacturing of quark is rare in the Americas.[citation needed] A few dairies manufacture it, such as the Vermont Creamery in Vermont,[44] and some specialty retailers carry it.[45][46][47] Lifeway Foods manufactures a product under the title "farmer cheese" which is available in a variety of metropolitan locations with Jewish, as well as former Soviet populations.[citation needed] Elli Quark, a Californian manufacturer of quark, offers soft quark in different flavors.[48]
In Canada, the firmer East European variety of quark is manufactured by Liberté Natural Foods;[citation needed] a softer German-style quark is manufactured in the Didsbury, Alberta, plant of Calgary-based Foothills Creamery.[citation needed] Glengarry Fine Cheesemaking in Lancaster (Eastern Ontario) also produces Quark.[citation needed] Also available in Canada is the very similar Dry Curd Cottage Cheese manufactured by Dairyland.[citation needed] Quark may also be available as baking cheese, pressed cottage cheese, or fromage frais.[49]
In Australia, Ukrainian traditional quark is produced by Blue Bay Cheese in the Mornington Peninsula.[citation needed] It is also sometimes available from supermarkets labelled as quark or quarg.[citation needed]
In the United Kingdom, fat-free quark is produced by several independent manufacturers based throughout the country.[citation needed] All the big four supermarkets in the UK sell their own branded quark, as well as other brands of quark.[citation needed]
In Finland, quark (rahka) is commonly available in supermarkets, both in plain and flavored forms.[citation needed] It is produced by Arla, Valio and is also sold under private labels by Kesko and S Group.[50][better source needed] It is often used as a dessert when mixed with berries and whipped cream.[51][better source needed] Karelians have a dish called piimäpiirakka, which is a quark pie.[52]
Quark is a mod for Minecraft Java Edition, aiming to enhance the base game, using a very simple motto: Anything added to Quark could also be added to the default game without compromising its gameplay style. The name of the mod derives from this focus on small, simple change: Like quarks, each individual feature is small, but they build into a larger whole.
DOE supports research on the interaction of quarks and gluons, the ways they combine into composite particles called hadrons, and the way they behave at high temperature and density. Scientists study these topics at DOE accelerator facilities like RHIC and the Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator Facility (CEBAF) at the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility. The theory that describes the strong nuclear force known as Quantum-Chromodynamics is notoriously difficult to solve. However, it can be simulated on supercomputers built and maintained at DOE facilities. DOE has been a leader in the study of quarks and gluons since the 1960s. The idea of quarks was proposed in 1964, and evidence of their existence was seen in experiments in 1968 at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC). The heaviest and last discovered quark was first observed at Fermilab in 1995.
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