Can we have goats cheese if it is the ard sort?

[used2bthin]

I want to make a goats cheese tart but have got pregnant ladies coming over, is it just soft ceese to avoid? Some of the packets didnt say about whther they were pasturised but the soft ones said not suitable for pregnant women.

Or have you tried any nice alternatives?

Tart as in fully cooked through? Because if so, it doesn't matter if pasturised or not.

oh ok I didn't know that! Has the thinking changed on cheese? I think I avoided it completely when I was pg with dd but have already had it pasturised this pg once after a friend said she was.

i asked the doctor this on Friday and she said no cheese that wasn't from a cow.

That is utter rubbish. Feta doesn't come from cows and is fine if pasturised, even uncooked.

er okay, just saying what my doctor said! i asked about feta and she then said no and not goats cheese either, she said it was all she craved when she was pregnant but couldn't have it.

GPs are not the people to ask. I got a detailed list from my gynocologist listing the cheeses and criteria.

www.nhs.uk/chq/Pages/eating-goats-cheese-during-pregnancy.aspx?CategoryID=54&SubCategoryID=216

According to the NHS, hard cheeses are safe (even if made with unpasturised cheese). Some soft cheeses (including feta and mozzarella) are safe if made using pasturised milk, so you need to check for that on the packet.

But mould-ripened soft cheeses and soft blue-veined cheeses are unsafe.

The concern is that the soft cheese might contain listeria, but any listeria bacteria should be killed by thorough cooking, which is why any cheese should be okay if fully cooked.

Sorry, didn't link that right. Here:

www.nhs.uk/chq/Pages/eating-goats-cheese-during-pregnancy.aspx?CategoryID=54&SubCategoryID=216

The Food Standards Agency website says soft, unpasturised cheese is safe if cooked. After all, what bacteria is not dead after being blasted in an oven for 20 min or more at 180 degrees or more!?! I ate camembert, oven baked and runny with crudites dunked in etc, yummy.... and if the FSA say so I believe them!

Thanks everyone! Its a lot less strict than I realised and that is a good link.