| Term | Definition |
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| Crescenza | Variation of an Italian-style cheese. Good on flat bread or pizza. Excellent dessert cheese paired with fresh fruit such as berries, peaches and plums. (Mild, slightly tangy, Cream, white, Soft, creamy)
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| Crottin | Made from goat's milk, generally 10 days to 3 weeks old. Crottin which is aged up to 8 weeks is used for grating. The Gourmet Cheese Detective
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| Crumbly | A term referring to a cheese that has portions that breaks off when the cheese is cut. Blue-veined cheeses are particularly crumbly. The California Milk Advisory Board
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| Cultured | Describes a food product, like cheese, to which bacterial cultures have been added to develop flavor. The California Milk Advisory Board
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| Curd | Cheese is made of curds. Curd comes from the Latin word "coagulare", meaning to thicken or to clot. Curds are obtained by curdling (coagulating) milk with rennet (an enzyme) or an acid such as lemon juice or vinegar; then draining off the whey. Whey is the liquid portion of milk, after the solids (protein and fat) have been extracted. The solids become curds when an acid (vinegar, lemon juice) or enzymes are added.
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| Curd Molding | The stage of cheesemaking in which the cheese curd is ladled into molds that determine the final shape of the cheese: round, rectangular, cylindrical etc. This process is also known as "hooping the curd".
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| Curdling | An early stage in cheesemaking when milk coagulates after the introduction of rennet. The California Milk Advisory Board
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| Curing | Another term for "ripening". (See Ripening) The California Milk Advisory Board
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| Curing Or Maturing Or Aging | The stage in the cheesemaking process when a cheese is left to ripen. The California Milk Advisory Board
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