It is a type very similar to Tuscan pecorino, with specific characteristics of production, labeling, and particular organoleptic and gustatory properties.
Marzolino enjoys the recognition of Traditional Agri-food Product (PAT) and is also produced in a couple of Umbrian and eleven municipalities in Lazio. We must therefore be careful not to confuse products of the same category but substantially different. Marzolino cheese is always young and with a characteristic shape. More generally, some Tuscan pecorino cheeses can be seasoned and cylindrical in shape.
Note: Tuscan pecorino "properly so called" instead enjoys the recognition of Protected Designation of Origin (PDO).
The maturation of Marzolino cheese can vary from three to six months but, generally, the cheese has a rather tender texture. The etymology of the name comes from the month in which, in the past, cheese-making was carried out; today, however, production lasts all year round.
Marzolino cheese is a product that belongs to the II fundamental group of foods. Contains high biological value proteins and quite specific nutrients - some B vitamins, mineral calcium, etc .; there is no shortage of non-specific micro and macro nutrients albeit in significant quantities - vitamin and provitamin A, phosphorus etc. Conversely, Marzolino cheese is also a significant source of cholesterol, saturated fat and sodium. It can be included, in portions and with adequate frequency of consumption, in the diet of all healthy subjects; the same cannot be said in the context of clinical nutrition - hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, lactose intolerance etc. We will go into more detail later.
Marzolino cheese has a typical loaf shape. The rind is pale or reddish. The paste is light, tender and slightly grainy. Taste and aroma are delicate, fragrant and characteristic. It becomes slightly spicy with maturation. The production label is printed on one of the two sides.
Marzolino is a table cheese, even if its particular solubility makes it suitable for blending in various recipes, and goes well with young white, rosé or red wines.
and very significant lipid, which increase slightly with the prolongation of maturation. Calories are mainly supplied by fatty acids, followed by proteins and very few carbohydrates - mainly in the slightly seasoned forms. The lipid chains are mainly saturated, the peptides have a high biological value - that is, they supply all the essential amino acids in the right proportions and quantities compared to the human protein model - and the very few simple carbohydrates - lactose, disaccharide.Marzolino cheese does not provide dietary fiber; on the contrary, it contains cholesterol. Increasing the seasoning tends to dry out slightly, the lactose is degraded by the bacterial microflora increasing the concentration of lactic acid and increases - relatively - the concentration of histamine. The quantity of purines, as for the other foods of the same food group, it is quite contained and does not provide gluten.
The vitamin profile of Marzolino cheese is characterized by the abundance of riboflavin (vitamin B2), retinol and / or equivalent (vitamin A and / or RAE). Many other water-soluble factors of group B are fairly concentrated, such as thiamine (vitamin B1). and niacin (vit PP) On the other hand, as far as minerals are concerned, cheese shows significant concentrations of calcium, phosphorus and sodium.
against overweight - which should be low-calorie and normolipidic. However, it should be remembered that, as regards the concentration of fats and energy density, in the overview of Italian cheeses, this product is considered a good compromise.
The prevalence of saturates on the total profile of fatty acids and the abundance of cholesterol make Marzolino cheese unsuitable in case of hypercholesterolemia. If the metabolism is compensated, cheese can be added to the diet occasionally and in very small quantities.
Containing high biological value proteins, Marzolino cheese can be considered an "excellent source of essential amino acids. It is recommended in case of increased need for these nutrients; indicative examples are: general, specific malnutrition, chronic malabsorption and" increased need - for example during pregnancy or when practicing extraordinarily intense and prolonged sports. The use of cheese as a nutritional source of high biological value proteins / essential amino acids is however limited by its less desirable properties which, to ensure the balance of the diet, require the use of small portions and a modest frequency of consumption.
Lactose, in itself scarce due to lactic fermentation, can however cause discomfort to the most sensitive intolerant; on the other hand, statistically speaking, adverse reactions to marzolino cheese - which occur mainly with gastrointestinal symptoms of diarrhea, bloating, abdominal tension, flatulence and cramps; rarely nausea and vomiting - can be considered infrequent. quantities of histamine, especially in the six-month forms, must be considered inappropriate in case of specific hypersensitive intolerance. Gluten free and low in purines, it is instead relevant to the diet against celiac disease and hyperuricemia.
Given the wide range of water-soluble vitamins of group B, which mainly perform the function of cellular coenzymes, marzolino cheese can be considered a useful food to support the metabolic processes of various tissues.In the marzolino cheese there is an abundance of fat-soluble vitamin A and / or its equivalents (RAE), necessary to maintain intact the visual function, the ability to reproduce, the cell differentiation, the antioxidant defense, etc.
Considering the considerable percentage of sodium, the marzolino cheese should be avoided or strongly limited in the preventive and / or therapeutic diet sodium sensitive arterial hypertension. In its diesa, this cheese is however much less salty than aged pecorino and therefore less unsuitable for the diet. DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension).
The richness of calcium and phosphorus is a very useful feature to guarantee the skeletal mineralization requirement - to form hydroxyapatite - very delicate in the phase of fetal development, growth in infancy and storage in old age - due to the tendency to osteoporosis Notes: it is good to remember that for bone health it is also necessary to guarantee a correct nutritional intake of vitamin D and / or an adequate sun exposure in the hot season.
Pregnant women can only consume Marzolino cheese made from pasteurized milk, while they should avoid that made from raw milk; eventually, the latter can be made suitable for cooking.
Marzolino cheese is not allowed in the vegan diet. The traditional one should not contain animal rennet, but vegetable (cagliofiore) based on thistle - or wild artichoke; if so obtained, the marzolino cheese lends itself to the vegetarian diet. Using calf rennet instead, it must be excluded. It has no contraindications for the Muslim and Jewish religions; Hindus can consume the marzolino obtained with cagliofiore. The opinions of observant Buddhists, in this regard, are conflicting.
The frequency of consumption of Marzolino cheese - as a dish - is less than or equal to 1-2 times a week, while the average portion corresponds to about 80 g.
of various kinds - even with mushrooms, dried fruit, cured meats etc. - cold salads, fondues to season first courses or toasted slices of bread. It is also excellent when melted on red meat.It can be paired with wines of various types, white, rosé or red, as long as they are young; two typical examples are Montalcino and Montepulciano - from Tuscany, of course.
; the length is 15-21cm. The weight is between 500g and 1.5kg. It has a thin, whitish rind that tends to reddish as it ages - during ripening it is tinted with tomato.
The paste has a hue ranging from pure white to straw yellow. It has a compact and elastic structure, sometimes slightly grainy, never decidedly crumbly; may show thin, irregular and uneven partridge eye holes. Tends to stick to the palate. The flavor and aroma of marzolino cheese are delicate and fragrant, better in cheese made from raw milk; the taste is initially sweetish then sour and slightly salty; tends to the spicy in the forms of six months. There are variants with truffles or chilli.
. This can be left raw or pasteurized. Two milkings are mainly used: the first in the evening, to which a skimming is applied by surfacing, the second in the morning, to which the entire lipid fraction is preserved. Raw milk gives rise to a more aromatic and valuable cheese; it also preserves the flora natural bacteria necessary for curd coagulation.The milk is then collected and heated to 30-32 ° C, allowing any physiological flora - in the Marzolino cheese made from raw milk - to replicate by metabolizing lactose with the production of lactic acid. The actual curd is formed with the " addition of rennet - vegetable thistle or calf animal, in about 20-25 minutes.
The curd is then broken, crumbled and left to rest. Therefore it separates from the whey by collection and drains into perforated containers. The bleed is reinforced by pressing.
Dry and compact, the cheeses are dry salted and put to dry briefly wrapped in special bags - cloths - for about 2 days, during which they turn every 8 hours.
The first maturation takes place in controlled atmosphere rooms - such as cellars - and on wooden boards or saccole; during this period the forms are continuously turned and washed.
Finally, the seasoning takes place, lasting from 3 to no more than 6 months; some color the rind by dyeing it with tomato. This is followed by the labeling on one of the two faces and the placing on the market.
