an extremely soft, or loose, white, mild-flavored cheese made from skim-milk curds, usually without rennet.
[ 1840-50, Amer. ]
Regional Variation . FARMER CHEESE and FARMER'S CHEESE are widely used throughout the U.S. as terms for a kind of COTTAGE CHEESE. This same kind of cheese, with varying curd size and sourness, is also called SOUR-MILK CHEESE in Eastern New England; CURD or CURD CHEESE, chiefly in the Northeastern and Southern U.S.; POT CHEESE, chiefly in the Hudson Valley; SMEARCASE, chiefly in the North Midland U.S., and sometimes CREAM CHEESE in the Gulf States.