When Peaches Meet Ricotta: A Love Story

by Jess Beer, Weavers Way Retail Director

August 1, 2025

You know that moment when you walk into the farm market and the smell of perfectly ripe peaches hits you before you even see them? The fruit is so ready you can practically taste the sunshine they’ve been soaking up. My brain immediately goes to, “OK, some of these are definitely going in a panzanella with our heirloom tomatoes and Claudio’s fresh mozzarella. But others are getting grilled for dessert with Fulper Farms ricotta and a little local honey.”
This is why I love fresh cheese in the summer — it works with everything.
Fresh cheeses are unaged and are consumed shortly after production, typically within days or weeks of being made. Unlike aged cheeses that develop complex flavors and firmer textures over months or years, fresh cheeses retain their mild, clean taste and soft, creamy texture. Examples of fresh cheeses include mozzarella, ricotta, burrata, chèvre, cottage cheese and feta. Their high moisture content — typically 70 to 80% water — distinguishes them from aged varieties and makes them naturally cooling and refreshing.
Cheesemaking likely began by accident over 7,000 years ago, when early humans stored milk in pouches made from animal stomachs. The natural rennet in the stomach lining would cause the milk to separate into curds and whey during travel.
Why Fresh Cheese Makes Sense in Summer
I need to eat actual food even when it’s 90 degrees out, but the thought of anything heavy makes me want to seek out the nearest air conditioning. You can’t live on peaches and tomatoes alone (trust me, I’ve tried), especially when you’re running around farmers markets and trying to keep up with everything summer throws at you. Fresh cheese gives you the protein you actually need without making you feel sluggish afterward.
Fresh cheese doesn’t try to be the star of the show. Persian cucumbers with mint and French feta is cooling and perfect. Goat Rodeo chèvre with figs and honey on toast is simple and delicious. When you want something that feels a little more substantial, grilled zucchini with feta and lemon hits the spot. Plums and burrata does the same when you’re craving sweet and creamy. When you actually do feel like turning on the stove for five minutes, a quick pasta with peas, lemon and ricotta punches the ticket. And don’t get me started on grilled corn with queso fresco, lime, and any and all fresh herbs — that’s summer on a plate right there.
These mild, creamy fromages say, “Hey, what flavors do you want to play with today?” They make sweet things taste sweeter, balance out acidic tomatoes and turn a handful of vegetables into something that feels like a meal.
Seriously, Don’t Turn On Your Oven
For those nights when turning on your oven offends you, fresh cheese makes no-cook meals easy. Here are a few examples:
The throw-everything-in-a-bowl meal: Cottage cheese with whatever produce looks good, canned chickpeas or black beans, olive oil, salt and pepper. Add half an avocado if you’ve got one. It’s not fancy, but it’s packed with protein and you can eat it while standing in the kitchen.
Caprese, but more interesting: Classic tomato/mozzarella/basil is great when tomatoes are perfect, but add sliced peaches and suddenly, you’re a genius. Or turn it into panzanella by adding chunks of good bread and letting the tomato juices do their thing.
The original “girl dinner”: This existed way before TikTok. Burrata with cherries, prosciutto and melon, pistachios from the bulk bins. I always grab a Merzbacher’s City Wide Sourdough to toast lightly. It feels indulgent but requires zero cooking skills.
The Local Cheese Scene
I love that we get to work with producers like Fulper Farms, who’ve been making dairy products in Lambertville, NJ for over a century. They’re into their fifth generation: The farm started when Mary Fulper brought one cow to town in 1909, and now her great-great grandsons are running a modern operation that still focuses on fresh, local dairy. Their ricotta is exactly what you want when you’re grilling those peaches I mentioned earlier.
In addition to Fulper Farms, the Co-op also carries cheeses from Goat Rodeo in northern Allegheny County, Valley Milkhouse from Oley, Berks County and South Philly’s own Claudio’s, to name a few.
This is the time of year I miss working behind a cheese counter. There’s nothing like getting to experience that “aha” moment with shoppers when they taste something delicious and you can see them imagining the easy meal they’ll make and share with others. After 20 years of working with cheese from specialty shops in Philly to Colorado, those moments never got old.
Summer’s short, but the memories we make around simple, delicious food stick with us. Next time you smell those perfect peaches calling your name, remember that there’s probably a fresh cheese available that would love to join the party.