[friendlymamma]

I'm just wondering because I wanted to make these burgers with blue cheese sprinkled on top, and you know, the blue cheese really makes the burgers. Also, what about blue cheese dressing, for dipping, etc? Just curious what others thought.

 

[avivaelona]

I don't think blue cheese dressing is an issue, and honestly I don't really worry about blue cheese either. But technically it is one of the things you are supposed to skip when pregnant.

Do a search though because about three months ago a real cheese expert on these boards did a run down of the cheese question.

 

[heidirk]

I eat it!

 

[D'sMama]

Mmmm... blue cheese burgers...

:

Go for it! My policy is: I eat what I want, when I want and enjoy it! I think basic safety precautions like you would take normally (ya know, nothing expired, rotten, no poultry juices on the raw veggies, etc.) are always important, but I can't be bothered to limit my food choices. But, to each her own.

BTW, I think blue cheese dressing (unless you make it yourself) is usually pasteurized, so not a problem at all. Not positive, though.

 

[javilu]

I've also heard and read the blue cheese dressing (from the store) is okay. If you're worried about the blue cheese, maybe you can mix it into the burgers before you cook them so it will also be heated. I saw a recipe on TV once where they made a thin burger patty, put a little pile of cheese in the center, put another thin patty on top, and then sealed the edges to make a stuffed burger. If you cooked something like that really thoroughly, it would cook the cheese too, I'd think.

 

[odenata]

I wouldn't be worried at all. Blue cheese burgers - yum! I've had several this pregnancy, until I developed a lactose intolerance.

 

[Kellie_MO4]

I *love* blue cheese burgers... mmmmmm.... And I still eat it. Every once in a while I'll check and the tub/jar says pasturized, so I don't worry one bit

 

[ann_of_loxley]

I wouldnt worry. Chances are, the blue cheese is pasturised anyhow.

 

[PookieMom]

Most everything packaged in the U.S. is pasteurized anymore so go for it

 

[Qestia]

Tastes good to me! I had buffalo chicken tenderloins with blue cheese last night. Yum!

The concern is listeria--same as the concern about luncheon meat. I haven't done research this time around, but did with DS, and concluded my risk of listeria was extremely low. (I think the stat I found was that less than 10 women in the US annually actually lose their babies due to listeriosis).

 

[tuppence]

Argh! You've just accidentally poked one of my pregnancy "what to expect" hot buttons. And I'm not yelling at you, but I hate that whole "you can't eat soft cheeses thing." Almost every cheese sold in the US is pasturized and even if it's not, almost all of them are aged for 60 days or more. Listeria is very rare and unlikely to gotten from any american made pasteurized cheese, soft or hard. Of course, I've just been guilty of gross imperialism because I didn't check where you were from, so if you're in Europe or something, I've got nothing. Of course, I eat raw cheeses from clean dairies, so...

 

[christigpa]

Love blue cheese - had some on my dinner salad last night and a little bit on crackers the week before. Technically it's a "no-eat listeria risk food" but moderation is key in my book.

Enjoy those burgers, they sound great.

 

[tak]

I've eaten blue cheese. My doctor says everything in moderation is fine.

 

[blooangl]

Hey there,

Just a little head's up about blue cheese/soft cheese/raw cheese...

I work in an artisanal cheese shop, and am preggo, so here's the run down:

In the past, most blue and soft cheeses were imported and made from raw milk.

That is no longer the case, as the law reads now, any cheese made from raw milk must be aged for 6 weeks or longer before release. This gives the cheesemaker time to make sure that 'good' bugs and not 'bad' bugs have got the run of the land, so to speak.

So, the soft cheeses and many blues that everybody are worried about are actually not made from raw milk, and supposedly, according to the government, are not at risk for listeria.

However, if you want to talk about risks of listeria, all the major outbreaks have been in industrial/factory type cheeses, not made from raw milk, and mostly semi-firm (think cheddar or colby jack)

The more the cheese is handled (like pre-crumbled blue) the greater the chance that something, not just listeria is in your food...

Thus,

Buy quality blue cheese, hopefully from somewhere that cuts to order, and if you can't do that, crumble it yourself...and don't expect to have a conversation about the risks of cheese with someone in the medical community, because they all just say that it's 'not allowed'.

 

[sweetlea]

I look for pasturized cheeses. The bigest issue is with soft, non-pasturized cheeses. We jsut had blue chees burgers two nights ago. They were YUMMY!

 

[friendlymamma]

Thanks everybody! I think I will indulge! Yum

:

 

[janasmama]

Quote:

Originally Posted by puffnstuff I've also heard and read the blue cheese dressing (from the store) is okay. If you're worried about the blue cheese, maybe you can mix it into the burgers before you cook them so it will also be heated. I saw a recipe on TV once where they made a thin burger patty, put a little pile of cheese in the center, put another thin patty on top, and then sealed the edges to make a stuffed burger. If you cooked something like that really thoroughly, it would cook the cheese too, I'd think.

I've done this and I love it b/c you can get more cheese in the burger without it falling off. MMmmmmm.

 

[jjawm]

My friend's friend miscarried because of listeria. They're unsure how she got it. So although I totally craved blue cheese my entire pregnancy, I didn't eat it. It's not worth the risk. I think if I hadn't known what my friend's friend went through I wouldn't be as concerned.

 

[whalemilk]

Quote:

Originally Posted by blooangl I work in an artisanal cheese shop, and am preggo, so here's the run down:

And if I was your friend, you'd give me free samples, right?? *bats eyes*

 

[blooangl]

You wouldn't even have to be my friend

We give out samples to everybody!