The calendar says summer is imminent (the weather says it’s here) and I’m already lightening up. More salads, more Muga rosé and definitely some fresher, lighter cheeses on the table. Mozzarella and burrata, of course, but what I really crave in summer is the lively, lemony tang of fresh goat cheese. Sometimes I warm it until it’s as soft as custard. Or I spiff it up it with fruity olive oil and chopped thyme or pink peppercorns. I recently found a new fresh goat cheese to love (it’s Italian) and reacquainted myself with another favorite from France that smells like a hillside in Provence.
Read moreFromage without Flinching
Finally, a French cheese to love at a price we can like. It’s been a while since I’ve bought artisan cheese from France without flinching at the checkout counter. Of course you can find affordable Brie and Camembert at the big-box stores, but these cheeses are typically industrial, with quality on par with their cost. This beauty is a distinctive raw cow’s milk tomme, with a rustic natural rind, abundant aroma and an uncommon “double-textured” interior. The reasonable price is just one more of its many admirable features.
Read moreBeaufort to the Fore
If January were a cheese, it would be Beaufort. So meltable, so sturdy, so warming. A good Beaufort—and it’s all good—elevates potato gratin, French onion soup, fondue, even a winter chicory salad. Stylistically, it’s Comté’s first cousin, yet it’s all but obliterated by that cheese’s prominence. France makes at least ten times more Comté than Beaufort, so when I see the latter at a cheese counter, I pounce. Gustiamo, the Italian food merchant, equates January with pasta and chickpeas. For me, cold weather means Beaufort.
Read moreHappy Anniversary, Roquefort
Anniversary? Birthday? I wasn’t sure what to call it, but Roquefort is celebrating a milestone this year. That most iconic of French blue cheeses received the first AOC—appellation d’origine controlee—100 years ago this summer.
Read moreGoat Cheese Dresses Up
For someone who doesn’t typically want stuff in or on my cheese, I sure do love this herb- and spice-rubbed beauty. In fact, I can’t think of too many goat cheeses I enjoy more than this aromatic gem from France, which I wouldn’t hesitate to serve to goat cheese avoiders. People who think goat cheese is always tart and chalky are amazed when they encounter a chèvre as sweet, nutty and creamy as this one. So whether you’re a goat cheese enthusiast or on the never-chèvre side, prepare to be amazed.
Read moreMissing Cheese is Back in Action
Well, cheese fans, the year is off to a great start. A beloved French cheese—one of my favorites—has returned to the U.S. after a five-year absence. To be honest, I had given up hope of ever putting it on a cheese board again, but I hadn’t realized its very survival was in doubt. Now, thanks to some out-of-the-box thinking, this magnificent sheep cheese is on more secure footing and has a future.
Read moreOops. Missed One!
Sometimes it seems like my brain is at capacity. If a new cheese name goes in, another one gets pushed out. In last week’s post about great French Basque cheeses, I inadvertently omitted the newcomer that got me thinking about Pyrenees cheese in the first place. Former cheesemonger Steve Jones alerted me to Tomme per Diou, and there aren’t many cheese people I trust more. I can’t wait to share this raw-milk wheel in my classes (which reminds me: the 2024 World Cheese Tour class schedule is online) and to see more retailers stocking it.
Read moreBefore You Travel with Cheese, Know the Regs
Fromagerie Laurent Dubois, Paris/Photo: Susan Sturman
Ever wondered what cheeses you can legally bring back from Europe? Would you take a risk on any of the French cheeses pictured above? Maybe you would bury a couple of beauties in your suitcase and “forget” to declare them? I’ve covered this ground before, but with so many people traveling internationally again, it’s worth a refresher. Even a cheesemonger friend of mine who’s headed to Switzerland soon didn’t know the regs.
Read moreThe Magic Touch of Hervé Mons
After years of disappointing encounters, I stopped buying Camembert and Tomme de Savoie. The French Camembert sold in the U.S. always tasted lifeless to me. The Tomme was often stale or cardboardy. My wonderful taste memories from France did not jibe with the sorry specimens I was finding at American cheese counters. But then came Mons. Thanks to French affineur Hervé Mons and his team, we’re getting superb versions of these two classic cheeses, and others as well. In anticipation of Bastille Day, I assembled an all-Mons cheese board. So much deliciousness on one tray! Then I reached out to Fromagerie Mons to see if they could explain his magic touch.
Read moreSummer of Chèvre
A creamy goat cheese coated with sweet paprika, shallots and garlic, Fleur Soleil is my new summer crush. With a bottle of rosé, a fresh baguette and a salad, there’s lunch. Or dinner. Or a picnic. I could eat this dreamy cheese all day long. The texture is almost fluffy, and the seasoning is bold but not overdone. Just in time to pair with summer tomatoes, zucchini, eggplant and peppers.
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