We are big polenta eaters at my house, especially in cool weather. I tend to make it on the lean side, without gobs of butter and cheese, but there’s no denying how tasty it gets when you stir in some calories. Years ago, my husband and I often ate dinner at a late-night café near our house where all the food was prepared on a hot plate. Even with this limitation, the cook made fabulous polenta with roasted tomatoes on top and Gorgonzola melting in the crevices. I recreate it at home on occasion (minus the hot plate) but my new obsession is polenta taragna—part buckwheat flour, part cornmeal. It’s not for dainty people, but with fresh butter and a fragrant Italian melting cheese like Primo Pascolo (pictured above), this rustic dish achieves Michelin star status—at least in my eyes.
Read moreExtreme Yum
A super-smelly Camembert (in a lidded box, no less) is the alpha male of my fridge right now. I close the door quickly but there’s no containing that scent. It’s for an upcoming tasting, where it will be divisive. The quieter little guy pictured above is better behaved but, if you ask me, just as enticing, with extra credit for being perfectly ripe. Just look at that texture. The aroma is impeccable, too—a subtle fragrance hinting at butter-cooked mushrooms and yeast. If you want a Camembert that comes out swinging, buy the other one. If you appreciate a more mannerly cheese that plays nice with wine, this one’s for you.
Read morePeared to Perfection
Cheese with pears. Pears with cheese. Either way, it’s a wonderful pairing. Or pearing. Serve honey-roasted pears with ricotta cream or Gorgonzola dolce. Add sliced red pears to a salad with crumbled Roquefort and toasted walnuts. Sometimes I’ll poach pears in a light Port syrup and then steep them overnight so they soak up the deep ruby color. Pair with any blue cheese you love and you have a gorgeous dessert. And then there’s the easiest finale ever: blue cheese, ripe pears and sweet wine. Hard to top that.
Read moreIt’s a Rave
My husband and I spent a memorable few weeks on Corsica several years ago, and I fell hard for the island and its cheeses. For good reason, it’s known (in translation) as both the Isle of Beauty and the Island of Shepherds. But when I tried to find similar Corsican cheeses at home, I largely struck out. I might occasionally score some Fleur du Maquis—a lovely creation, although Corsicans don’t eat it—but the rest of the island’s production was nowhere to be found. Until now.
Read moreEasy Peasy & Cheesy
We’re done with insalata caprese, right? Even in sunny Napa Valley, where I live, the tomato plants are saying, “Enough already.” Time to move on. I’m looking forward to revisiting some cool-weather favorites, like these six from my personal autumn hall of fame.
Read moreThe Murky Matter of Raw-Milk Cheese
Always raw: Cascadia Creamery Sawtooth (left) and Jasper Hill Farm Alpha Tolman
With raw milk experiencing surging demand in the U.S., it seems a good moment to revisit raw-milk cheese. Almost certainly, it’s on the decline. Both here and in Europe, cheesemakers are abandoning raw milk. And almost certainly, many of the “raw milk” cheeses in the marketplace are not raw—at least not in my estimation. That’s because the definition is not as cut-and-dried as you might think.
Read moreThe Girls Got It Done
Photo: AlexandreAlloul.com
First at last! Almost 50 years after American vintners upended the wine world by beating the French, an American cheesemonger has done the same, topping the podium at the recent Mondial du Fromage, a biannual competition informally known as the Cheese Olympics. And the story gets better.
Read moreHappy Ending
With several independent cheese shops closing and with tariffs wreaking havoc, the cheese world hasn’t been a font of feel-good stories lately. But here’s one: Grafton Village Cheese, a 130-year-old Vermont producer in financial meltdown, has found a buyer. David is saving Goliath in this case…
Read moreStar-Studded Evening for Cheese
Seven blue-ribbon winners on one plate. Am I fantasizing or what? Thanks to a little help from my friends, it happened. Guests in last night’s World Cheese Tour class got to taste not only a hand-picked selection of first-place finishers from the recent American Cheese Society competition. Among those seven were the Best of Show, the first runner-up and another cheese that finished in the Top Ten overall. For us cheese lovers, that’s a Grand Slam.
Read moreThe Brie That Never Dies
Many years ago, I ordered cheese in a Paris restaurant (surprised?) and I vividly recall the moment it arrived at the table. “Le véritable Brie de Meaux,” the waiter announced as he set it down with ceremony, pronouncing each syllable slowly so we couldn’t miss his message: This was the real deal—raw-milk Brie with a protected name, the epitome of French soft-ripened cheese.
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