When a young cheese maker in the town of Colby, Wisconsin, decided to alter the process his family used to make cheddar cheese, the result was a new type of cheese that was named in honor of the town. Colby cheese is a sweeter, semisoft version of cheddar that delivers protein, calcium, phosphorus and B vitamins.
Colby cheese is soft, moist and has a mild flavor because it is made using a process that washes the curds and reduces its acidity. Colby cheese dries out and loses flavor quickly, so it's best to buy only as much as you can consume immediately after opening the cheese.
Basic Nutrition
One slice of Colby cheese, weighing 28 g, contains about 110 calories. It delivers 9 g of protein, which represents 14 percent of the recommended daily value based on a 2,000-calorie-a-day diet. Colby does not contain dietary fiber and has just 1 g of carbohydrates.
Vitamins
Colby cheese delivers 6 percent of the daily value for both vitamin A and riboflavin. Vitamin A is essential for vision, bone growth and fighting infections. Riboflavin, or vitamin B2, is needed for proper metabolism of nutrients as well as the production of energy. Colby cheese also contains 4 percent of the daily value of vitamin B12 and 1 percent of folate, vitamin B6 and vitamin K.
Minerals
Colby cheese provides 192 mg, or 19 percent of the daily value, of calcium and 13 percent of phosphorus. Both minerals assist bone strength and growth, and they contribute to other critical functions. Calcium is necessary for muscle contraction and nerve transmission, while your body uses phosphorus to make energy and in the nucleic acids that carry genetic information. Colby cheese also provides 6 percent of the daily value of zinc and selenium. Zinc is required for healthy growth, the immune system and neurological functioning. Selenium is a trace element used by enzymes in many different biochemical processes.
Fat and Salt
Colby contains 9 g of total fat, which includes about 28 g of cholesterol and almost 6 g of saturated fat. These values represent 14 percent of the daily recommended amount of total fat, 9 percent of cholesterol and 28 percent of saturated fat. If you purchase a low-fat brand, you can reduce the total fat to around 2 g, drop cholesterol content to 6 g and saturated fats to about 1 g. If you're watching salt intake, consider a low-salt brand, which lowers sodium content from about 170 mg to 6 mg.
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