Cottage cheese is so versatile, so healthy, and YES, so delicious!! It is so much more than a lumpy old-timey diet fad. Cottage cheese has so many great uses in all kinds of dishes, from breakfast to dinner.
So check out these 40 Savory Cottage Cheese Recipes to see how you can use cottage cheese to create amazing appetizers, delicious lunches, and family-friendly dinners.. the possibilities are endless!
See also: 20 Low Carb Cottage Cheese Recipes
Savory cottage cheese recipes
My whole life I've enjoyed cottage cheese as a sweet-but-healthy snack—I usually make myself a bowl of cottage cheese drizzled with honey and topped with berries, or puree it with canned pumpkin (like in this pumpkin spice cottage cheese). But only recently I discovered how AMAZING cottage cheese is in savory foods!!
So I've rounded up the BEST recipes that use cottage cheese for savory foods. Below you'll find a lot of tasty cottage cheese appetizers and dips, great healthy side dish ideas, delicious creamy dinner casseroles, and high-protein pasta sauces. Oh, and I threw in a bunch of savory cottage cheese breakfast recipes too, so you can eat cottage cheese all day every day, if you want!
Some recipes below use lots of cottage cheese, and some only use a few tablespoons, so this is a good list to keep in mind when you're looking for leftover cottage cheese ideas.
Enjoy!
Savory Cottage Cheese Recipes You Have To Try
The list below is broken down into appetizers, lunch & dinner, and breakfast recipes, so make sure to check them all out!
Cottage Cheese Appetizers
First thing's first: let's make some delicious appetizers that are always a hit at parties! Some cottage cheese will add delicious creaminess and lots of protein, and no one will suspect a thing!
Whip up this cottage cheese dip with feta and add your favorite Mediterranean toppings - olives, za'atar seasoning, fresh herbs, a drizzle of olive oil. It's so good with pita or crostini!
This creamy cottage cheese queso has just 4 ingredients and takes 5 minutes to make! No cooking needed. It's perfect for dipping tortilla chips, over nachos, and for drizzling over tacos, salads, burrito bowls, etc.
This Spinach Cottage Cheese Dip is the perfect healthy spinach dip! It's packed with protein, full of flavour and takes only 10 minutes to make!
If you love love love Buffalo chicken dip and can eat it all day every day but hold yourself back because it's typically not very healthy.... then THIS DIP IS FOR YOU! It's made without cream cheese and uses cottage cheese and Greek yogurt in its place, but you would never know because of the delicious Buffalo sauce and chicken.
Want a vegetarian version of Buffalo dip? Make this Buffalo chickpea dip with cottage cheese!
These little cottage cheese fritters are delightfully crunchy and crispy, so you still get that satisfying comfort-food appetizer, but with loads of protein! Do not skip the pomegranate salsa for serving!
These cottage cheese chips are made with just 4 ingredients in the microwave. Healthy snacking is AWESOME! These chips need 4% (full-fat) cottage cheese to work best and crisp up.
This roasted garlic white bean dip has a secret ingredient: cottage cheese! It lends a super creamy texture and healthy protein boost to each bite.
Let's take a break from the cottage cheese dips and enjoy this savory cottage cheese salad! It's loaded with arugula, crisp pear, crunchy hazelnuts, and has a light lemony dressing.
Most creamy dressings are pretty unhealthy, but not this cottage cheese dressing!
This salad uses cottage cheese in the dressing to make it creamy, and it goes so perfectly with the rest of the tasty ingredients!
This creamy kale soup is packed with nutrients from the kale and gets its creaminess and protein from cottage cheese. The lemon and Parmesan give it loads of flavor!
Want more cottage cheese recipes? Make this Cottage Cheese Smoothie!
Savory Cottage Cheese Lunch and Dinner Ideas
Cottage cheese makes an amazing replacement for ricotta, sour cream, mayo, and other creamy ingredients. So let's see what we can make for dinner with cottage cheese!
This healthy alfredo sauce recipe is truly a comfort food game changer. Made with no heavy cream or butter, cottage cheese helps provide a silky smooth and luxuriously thick alfredo sauce made much better for you.
Yes, these turkey burgers have cottage cheese in them! The cottage cheese helps makes the burger patties juicy and delicious.
This spicy cottage cheese is inspired by an Ethiopian dish that I love. It's wonderfully spicy and savory, and the creamy cottage cheese goes so well with buttery collard greens. Give it a try if you're feeling adventurous!
Yes, lasagna can be made with cottage cheese and it is DELICIOUS! Layers of rich meat sauce, pasta, creamy filling and cheese will have the whole family coming back for seconds!
More dinner ideas: 30 Thin Sliced Chicken Breast Recipes
Cheese, Spinach and Cottage Cheese? Yep, you heard that right. And it’s so good all stuffed into a chicken breast and baked until cheesy perfection. This is a great lighter savory cottage cheese dinner idea.
This zucchini lasagna is a totally healthy take on classic lasagna. It uses ground turkey instead of ground beef, zucchini in place of noodles, and cottage cheese in place of ricotta. The creamy cottage cheese layer is the best part about this lasagna!
Cottage cheese in a grilled cheese?? Yes!! I mean, why not?? This is a fun "pizza" grilled cheese lightened up with our favorite: cottage cheese.
Cottage cheese is used in this spaghetti pie to make it lasagna-ish and so delicious!
This cottage cheese toast is high protein, has hidden veggies, and can be made in 10 minutes. Best part? It tastes like pizza!
This casserole is like a crust-less spanakopita, with delicious feta cheese, creamy cottage cheese, and a few other ingredients and seasonings all baked together. It makes a great vegetarian entree or side dish!
This one is called a "cheater" pierogi recipe because it uses wonton wrappers as a shortcut... and I am all about that! The filling is made with seasoned dry cottage cheese (simply strain as much liquid out as you can.)
This taco bake uses a whopping 4 cups of cottage cheese and is full of flavor! Just a few ingredients, such an easy way to feed a crowd.
This is one of the best chicken casseroles, and it's a great way to use cottage cheese! The crispy buttery ritz cracker topping is so good on top of the creamy chicken.
If you have just a little bit of cottage cheese to use up, this is a great light & healthy vegetarian stuffed zucchini recipe.
Yes, cottage cheese is a great ingredient for stuffed shells! The creamy cottage cheese pairs so well with ricotta and mozzarella to make a delicious creamy filling together with ground beef. This is always a dish that impresses people!
Love vodka sauce on pasta?? Me too!! This rich and creamy sauce is secretly healthy, thanks to the addition of cottage cheese. This high-protein sauce is perfect when you’re craving comfort food, but you want to enjoy something lighter.
Cottage cheese is the secret ingredient to make this classic dish extra rich and creamy. It’s perfect for comfort food that’s both nutritious and satisfying.
This is a delicious take on classic beef stroganoff. It's made with ground beef and has cottage cheese in the sauce to make it creamy.
This is such a great combination that I would not have thought of on my own! Just add a veggie and you've got a complete dinner.
Savory Cottage Cheese Breakfasts
There are so many ways to use cottage cheese in breakfast recipes!
These savory cottage cheese bowls are a great change of pace from sweet breakfasts. Load up the bowls with some eggs cooked to your liking, lox (try homemade lox!), diced cucumbers, and any other toppings you like! Don't forget lots of freshly ground black pepper.
It's cheesy, it's bacony, it's delicious, while still not being too heavy. Unlike most greasy breakfast casseroles, this one uses cottage cheese and skim milk. It bakes up perfectly golden and is a real treat for breakfast.
Want more cottage cheese recipes? Make these whipped cottage cheese bowls with almond butter!
Don't spend a ton of money on those Starbucks egg bites, make your own! This easy savory on-the-go breakfast uses cottage cheese to make the egg bites nice andd creamy (and to add a boost of protein).
This is a great breakfast casserole that serves 8 people and uses 1¾ cups cottage cheese! It has loads of ham and shredded cheese in it to give it lots of flavor.
Make fluffy scrambled eggs with cottage cheese! High protein and delicious. No further explanation needed.
This omelet recipe uses cottage cheese both for the egg mixture and the filling, for a delicious, easy, super high-protein breakfast.
I'm putting this one under "breakfast" just because it would make a great flavorful toast for breakfast. This bread is whole wheat, flavorful thanks to dill, with a bit of extra protein from cottage cheese.
This crust-less bacon cheddar quiche (or a frittata??) is a make-ahead breakfast recipe, and it's lightened up with cottage cheese. This one is great for brunch or lunch as well, I really didn't know whether to put it in the "breakfast" or "main dish" category.
This egg puff is loaded with protein and has a hidden vegetable in the form of riced cauliflower. What a great way to start the day!!
Want more cottage cheese recipes? Make Mango Whipped Cottage Cheese!
Cottage cheese - vegetarian high protein dinner ingredient
The great part about using cottage cheese for many of the recipes above is that it's a great source of vegetarian protein. So even if you're making yourself a plate of pasta, using cottage cheese in pasta sauce adds protein and helps make it a complete meal.
Enjoy these cottage cheese recipes!
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