Mozarella and ricotta cheese ?

[supersonic]

Sorry to bring this up - I can see it has been bought up so often but am still unsure. I am 13 wks pg and although I have been eating melted mozarella (out of a pkt) I am pretty sure this is okay howver I am particularly wanting spinach and ricotta tortellini and have even bought some today can someone pleae confirm that I can eat this - please!!!!!!!!!! alo ca you eat mascarpone and gorgonzola (sorry about the spellings)
thanks

I thought it was ony blue cheeses that were off limits (and swordfish!) probably get shot down now!

I ate everything except raw seafood during my pregnancy
in France the blue cheese thing is taboo!

yes you can eat mozzarella, ricotta, mascarpone and gorgonzola

mozzarella is pasteurised so as long as you eat it within the best before date it will be fine

ricotta and mascarpone are pasteurised then heated to a higher temp than pasteurisation so are doubly safe

gorgonzola although mouldy has a very high salt content so as long as it's pasteurised it should be ok

in fact I think mascarpone should be compulsory in pregnancy

wow sweetkitty a real cheese expert!

To be honest I'm a food microbiologist and have seen most of these things being made as well as deciding on use by dates and potential bacterial contamination (or I was before I had DD) and theres nothing I would not eat in pregnancy as I know you are more likely to get Listeria off ham or salad than a non pasteurised mouldy cheese (they standards are so high in these high risk products).

(Although I wouldn't eat swordfish, marlin, tuna, oysters and sushi as I'm a veggie)

sweetkitty, the voice of reason - at last!

all the food advice they give in the uK is totally OTT I reckon

Thank you soooooooooooooo much you do not know relieved I feel I have been feeling guily for eating mozarella and have been worried about ricotta - thanks again - especially sweetkitty you are genius!

I'm not saying there isn't a risk though as theres always the potential for infection (I mean Listeria here as it's the one most people are concerned about) but having spent years studying it's growth in food I feel I can make an informed decision about what I can eat in pregnancy. I would still say to anyone whose worried to follow the Food Standard Agency guidelines.

I know it's a minefield and sometimes you feel like you should only eat canned beans throughout pregnancy!

I will be having a little bit of Brie at Christmas though

Wouldn't go as far as genius supersonic just a sad nerdy scientist that's spent far too much time with bacteria!

I'm 35 weeks pregnant and have spent my entire pregnancy craving blue cheese of any kind but have been too scared to eat it. On the one occasion I did eat it(months ago), I'd made it into a sauce to have with a fillet steak as i'd read that you could eat it if it was piping hot. Afterwards I felt so guilty that i'd miscarry that I just wouldn't bother again.

Each time my dp eats it though I sit and smell it - it drives me mad but I can't help it! It's on my list for dp to take in to hospital though - as soon as this baby's out I can't wait to have some. I'll stink the ward out but who cares!

Mozarella and ricotta i've been eating and I don't normally eat marscapone anyway.

Message withdrawn

what about parmesan?

cod - yes it is still only unpasteurised cheese but some retailers are putting warning statements on pasteurised soft cheese too cos theres a slighter higher risk

parmesan completely safe (although unpasteurised it's hard so ok)

cod drives me mad too and I'm supposed to be an expert, I eat everything pregnancies bad enough!

I was told no to "soft" cheese thats unpasturised but yes to pasturised "hard" cheese.. I remember asking in a restaurant if ricotta was pasteurised and was told no it isn't...I stayed away from any food I wasn't sure of..even mcflurries....even downloaded the ingredients from the internet but wouldn't risk it.!!!! LOL!!!

Never ever heard of ricotta being unpasteurised in every instance I've come across it is made from pasteurised milk then heat treated to at least 90 degrees C then hot filled into it's container (no risk from Listeria) then usually used in a dish that is being heated itself so if this was the case it would have been heat treated 3 times!!

my favourite link re eating in pg
very clear and informative. They have an advice line too.