Ingredient Information

Cheese, Cream

Reduced fat cream cheese (sometimes called light cream cheese) is actually an American version of the French Neufchâtel (new-sha-tell). Like its French counterpart, it is a semi-soft cheese, but American versions are made with a lower fat cow’s milk (23% milk fat instead of the 45% used in the French Neufchâtel).

Regular cream cheese is made with milk that is about 35% butterfat. In practical terms this works out to about 10 grams of fat in an ounce for regular cream cheese and only 7 grams in the light version. Reduced-fat cream cheese can be used in place of regular cream cheese in recipes. Because it has a higher moisture content the amount of liquids need to be reduced in some recipes, especially baking.

1 Tbsp. reduced fat cream cheese = 35 calories, 2.5g fat, 1.75g sat fat, 0g mono fat, 2g protein, 1g carbohydrates, 75mg sodium, 8mg cholesterol