Strawberry Almond Cottage Cheese Pudding

Cottage cheese tips

For the cottage cheese, use fat free, low fat, or full fat – your choice. Obviously, fat free will have fewer calories, but it also tends to be a bit more watery and less flavorful. Full fat will make a thicker and more flavorful food, but will add more calories to your snack. So, it’s your choice.

I almost always use Lucerne full fat large curd cottage cheese. I find the flavor is always good, and the texture is great. Recently I bought a different brand of cottage cheese because I was shopping at a different store that didn’t carry Lucerne.

I was really surprised at the difference in texture between the two brands. The Lucerne was thick while the other brand was very thin and watery. It still tasted great, but the two will definitely give different results if used in this recipe.

If you start with a thin watery cottage cheese, the end product will be thinner. Now, in the case of a pudding it may not be a problem to have a thinner treat. But, if you’re using cottage cheese in a baked good, the extra water can have an effect.

So I recommend that if your cottage cheese is very thin and watery, place it in a strainer lined with cheesecloth or a coffee filter over a bowl and refrigerate overnight to drain off the excess liquid. 

How to make

This no bake dessert comes together quickly and easily in the food processor. And no chia seeds necessary for this fun recipe.

Start with the almond paste so that it gets finely ground.

Then add in the cottage cheese and powdered sugar, processing until blended.

Use your favorite cottage cheese – low fat, full fat, large curd, small curd. I prefer (and recommend) full fat large curd for best flavor and texture. 2% fat would be my next choice. If your cottage cheese is really thin and watery, I recommend straining out the liquid before using it.

Make it less sweet by leaving out the powdered sugar, or use a sugar alternative if desired.

Next, pop in the strawberries and almond extract; process just until blended. I like to leave the strawberries a little chunky so you can see the pretty bits of red. But feel free to make it completely smooth if you like.

Cover and chill to allow the flavors to meld, the spread to thicken, and the almond paste to soften.

Serve it like yogurt with a spoon. Or, serve it as a sauce over fresh fruit, maybe garnished with pistachios or toasted almond slivers. It can also be served as a dip – try dipping cookies, graham crackers, pretzels, or fruit into it.

Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.

Can I use frozen strawberries?

Yes, you can use frozen strawberries but make sure they’re completely thawed and drained of any juices that run off. The extra juices will make the mixture too thin.

Can I use other berries?

Yes, you can use any fresh berries you like: raspberries, blueberries, or blackberries would all work well.

Can I use something other than cottage cheese?

Yes, you can use plain Greek yogurt, vanilla yogurt, or Ricotta cheese instead of the cottage cheese in this. The texture will change depending on how thick or thin your sub is.  

More cottage cheese desserts

I have tons of these fun cottage cheese dessert recipes like Cottage Cheese Cookie Dough, Blueberry Cottage Cheese Cake, and Cottage Cheese Chocolate Pudding. And be sure to check out my collection of High Protein Dessert Recipes.