Doug and I were watching a favorite Italian cooking show the other night when I practically started hyperventilating. “No!” I shouted at the screen, as the Michelin-starred chef prepared to serve up his pasta. “Don’t do it! Don’t do it! You just RUINED the dish.” I couldn’t believe my eyes. The chef was spooning spaghetti with squid sauce into a hollowed-out round of cheese.
I’m not Italian but I’m firmly on board with the Italian prohibition against fish with cheese. I have no clue why this pairing is taboo, but the wrongness is so deeply ingrained in me that I don’t question it. Until I do. The chef’s transgression got me thinking about the times that I actually enjoy fish with cheese, because every rule has an exception, no? I came up with three.
Number One: Bagels with smoked salmon and cream cheese
These days I’m more likely to schmear Snøfrisk or Madame Loïk or Gina Marie Farmer Cheese on a bagel—they’re all lighter than cream cheese—but then I pile on the smoked salmon with no second thoughts. Yes, please, to fish with cheese.
Number Two: Caesar salad
Of course this classic makes the list. I would never — never – grate Parmigiano Reggiano on pasta with anchovies, but a Caesar salad without cheese and anchovies is likewise unthinkable. Go figure.
Number Three: Saganaki
A beloved Greek meze and one of my all-time favorites, saganaki makes the best case for seafood with cheese. Shrimp, tomatoes, feta, ouzo…it’s an unimpeachable combination, and the sharp brininess of feta is key. Indeed, it’s the only cheese that would work. Greek cooks also prepare saganaki with mussels, and I’m all in with that, too.
Shrimp Saganaki
Saganaki at Ta Nissia in Thessaloniki
Feta makes the tomato sauce creamy, but the splash of ouzo is the mystery flavor. The recipe is from Marmite Cooking Lab, a delightful cooking school in Thessaloniki where I took a class from owner Smaragda Makri. Serve with crusty bread or stir in some plump cooked white beans (such as Greek gigandes) before serving.
1 dozen large shell-on shrimp (about ½ pound)
Kosher or sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 small red onion or ½ large red onion, chopped
1 fresh green Anaheim chile, halved lengthwise, seeded, then sliced crosswise
2 large cloves garlic, minced
½ serrano chili, minced (adjust to taste)
1-1/2 cups chopped fresh or canned plum tomato
Pinch baking soda, optional
¼ cup ouzo, Pernod or Pastis
3 to 4 ounces crumbled Greek feta
2 tablespoons chopped Italian parsley
Season the shrimp all over with salt and pepper and set aside.
Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large, heavy Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the Anaheim chile, garlic and as much serrano chile as you like. Cook, stirring, until the vegetables are soft, 3 to 5 minutes longer. Add the tomatoes, ½ cup water and a generous pinch of salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer and cook until the sauce is thickened and tasty. If it seems too tart, add a pinch of baking soda and cook for 1 minute; baking soda will mellow the tomato sauce noticeably.
In a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add the shrimp and cook for about 2 minutes on both sides, until almost done. Add the ouzo and cook, turning once, until the shrimp are hot throughout, about 1 minute. Transfer the shrimp and any pan juices to the tomato sauce, along with feta and parsley. Cover and set aside to cool a bit. Serve warm, not hot.
Serves 2 to 3