Costa Cruises Now Makes Fresh Mozzarella at Sea

Bread and pasta have long been made fresh on board cruise ships and — in this era of artisans — some lines have embraced the craft food-making trend onboard, too. Carnival Cruises installed an onboard brewery on the new Carnival Vista and now Costa Cruises has become the first cruise line to make their own cheese on board, too.

The line has partnered with Latteria del Curatino, an Italian company that makes smaller versions of the machines used in creameries, to install cheese making equipment on Costa Diadema and _Costa Favolosa. _

The line's resident cheesemakers make not only fresh buffalo mozzarella but also burrata (a creamier mozzarella), fior di latte (cow's milk mozzarella) and scamorza (a firmer mozzarella) using milk from Italy's Piana del Sele area. The fresh cheese will be used in dishes at the line's Pummid'Oro pizzerias, where it will be listed on a special "Goccialatte" menu ("goccia latte" means "milk drop" in Italian). The buffalo mozzarella will be used on pizzas and salads while other dishes using the made-on-board cheeses include Neapolitan peasant bread with porcini mushrooms, fior di latte, and guanciale, as well as one with tuna with Doganella oil, red onions, and burrata.

And, while it's always a pleasure to eat freshly made items, this new program is especially exciting because rich, creamy mozzarella and trendy burrata — which has become a hot item on menus in American cities over the last couple years — are famous for tasting best as soon as they're prepared.

After weeks of testing, cheesemaking on these two ships began in late November, and the line has plans to expand the program to six additional ships over the next few months.