Papa Murphy's Cream Cheese

Papa Murphy's cream cheese topping is moderate in histamine, not high and not low. It is a cultured dairy product, which keeps it out of the low range, but it is fresh and unaged, which is why it does not land where a hard aged cheese does.

Why papa murphy's cream cheese is rated moderate

Cream cheese is made by adding a culture to pasteurized milk and cream, and that culturing step is what puts it in moderate territory. What it skips is the part that pushes cheeses high: it is not aged for weeks or months, and it is not a hard or blue or brined cheese. Papa Murphy's version lists pasteurized milk, cream, salt, guar gum, natamycin, and cheese culture, so it is a straightforward fresh cheese with a stabilizer and a mold inhibitor. On a pizza it is also a topping rather than the base, and it is the only component here that carries the moderate rating.

What changes your risk

• The culture is the moderate part — the cheese culture is what makes this cream cheese rather than plain cream, and it is the single reason this topping is not a low item.
• It is unaged, and that is why it is not high — aging is the step that pushes cheeses like cheddar into the high range. This one never goes through it, which is the whole difference between moderate and high here.
• How much of it goes on — cream cheese is dolloped, not spread edge to edge like a sauce, so how heavily a pizza is topped genuinely changes how much of a moderate item you are eating.
• How long the topped pizza sits before it is baked — this is a protein-rich dairy topping, and a protein food left sitting at room temperature for a long stretch can pick up histamine from bacteria depending on handling. Baking kills bacteria, but it does not remove histamine that has already formed.
• Warm holding and leftover slices — a slice with cream cheese that sits out warm is the riskier one. Dairy is the component to watch on that pizza, not the crust.

Lower-histamine alternatives

If you want to stay lower at Papa Murphy's, the lower-histamine items on this menu are Chicken, Onion Mix, and Zesty Herb Blend. Chicken is a fresh cooked protein, and the onion and herb components bring flavor without the cultured dairy. Building around those keeps a pizza in lower territory than one topped with the cream cheese.

How to lower the risk

Papa Murphy's is a build-to-order counter, so you are choosing the components that go on before you take the pizza home. Nothing is published as removable from the cream cheese itself, so the decision happens at the topping stage rather than after. If cream cheese is on your pizza, bake it promptly rather than letting the topped pizza sit out on the counter for a long stretch, since that sitting time is where a dairy topping can pick up histamine. Chill any uneaten portion quickly rather than leaving slices out.

Common questions

Is cream cheese lower in histamine than cheddar?

Yes. Cream cheese is fresh and unaged and rates moderate, while aged cheddar rates high. Aging is the difference.

Is Papa Murphy's cream cheese fermented?

It is cultured, which is what the cheese culture in the ingredient list does. That is a mild, short process compared to the aging and ripening that push cheeses into the high range, which is why this sits at moderate.

Does baking the pizza lower the histamine in the cream cheese?

No. Heat can kill bacteria, but it does not remove histamine that has already formed. Baking does not move a moderate topping into the low range.

I do fine with fresh dairy. Will this be okay?

People who tolerate fresh dairy often handle cream cheese better than aged cheese, but it is still a moderate item and reactions vary a lot person to person. There is no way to promise how you will do with it.