When I lose cheeses in the back of my fridge, they rarely emerge the better for it. Once or twice, I’ve unintentionally improved an uncut wheel by forgetting I had it, but I generally prefer to leave the aging to the experts. Even they can be surprised by what happens. The Swiss cheese pictured above was a happy accident. Wheels misplaced in the creamery’s cellar and discovered months later had evolved in spectacular fashion. The cheese didn’t get dryer, as one would have expected. It got creamier.
Read moreBlue Ribbon Worthy
When it comes to Brian Civitello at Mystic Cheese, I’m a fan girl. Civitello is a student of history who finds inspiration in cheeses of the past. He’s a risk taker. But most important, he is exceptionally skilled. Everything I’ve tasted from his Connecticut creamery has been captivating, unusual and memorable, including the newcomer pictured above. It won a blue ribbon at the American Cheese Society competition this year.
Read moreCannelloni Time
My eggplant crop was a runaway success this year—not always the case—and frankly I’m getting a little tired of baba ghanoush. I’ve cooked eggplant with pasta every conceivable way and still I have eggplant. For Labor Day, when normal people were grilling burgers, we grilled eggplant. That’s when I was reminded how much I enjoy this pasta-free riff on cannelloni, which I developed for a Sur La Table cookbook several years ago. Eggplant and tomato are a proven love match; add ricotta and prosciutto to the mix and you hit it out of the park.
Read moreA Lotta Burrata
Do you recall your first encounter with burrata? I do, and I can’t believe it was only 20 years ago. It seems like this embellished mozzarella has always been with us, surprising and seducing us with its luscious interior. But it’s a relative newcomer, all but unknown in the U.S. until the early 2000s. Now it’s everywhere, a fan favorite on Italian menus from Pasadena to Poughkeepsie. A cheese counter without burrata—why would you do that? Being a minimalist, I’m happy with a plate of toast, a naked ball of burrata and a pepper grinder, but even I enjoy a burrata dressed up on occasion.
Read morePlaying Favorites
Recently I did a presentation on West Coast cheeses for a group of visiting chefs from Asia. After a guided tasting of the dozen cheeses I had selected, they had questions. The only one that stumped me was, “What’s your favorite West Coast creamery?” I didn’t have a ready answer but, in thinking about it afterward, one producer did keep coming to mind for its back story, its values and the consistent high quality of its cheeses. I could never name the favorite among the many worthy creameries on the Left Coast, but Cascadia Creamery is definitely on the short list.
Read moreWhen in Naples…
Opting to follow the crowds instead of the guidebooks, my husband and I ended up in a packed working-class lunch spot in Naples a few years ago. After a glance around, we decided to have what everyone else was having: rigatoni in tomato sauce topped with a dollop of snow-white ricotta. Eyeing the other diners, we did what they did, stirring in the fluffy ricotta before diving in. The cheese made the tomato sauce so mellow and creamy. If you’re preparing pasta with tomato sauce in the weeks ahead, please try this technique. If your sauce also has eggplant, zucchini or sweet peppers, so much the better.
Read moreWho Made Your Goat Cheese?
Where goat cheese begins: California cheesemaker Erika McKenzie-Chapter of California’s Pennyroyal Farm
After decades of effort by U.S. creameries, “American cheese” is no longer a laugh line. Consumers know that our country produces many exceptional cheeses that rival those from Europe. But these days it’s not always clear what “American cheese” means. If a fresh goat cheese is made in California with imported frozen curd from Spain, is it still American? Is it even, to be perfectly literal, fresh cheese?
Read moreGrill This Cheese, Please
Receiving a new sheep cheese wrapped in grape leaves was all the excuse I needed to fire up the Green Egg. But receiving cooking instructions from the cheesemaker made the decision inevitable. “I recommend grilling it for 5 to 6 minutes, until it gives when you pick it up with tongs,” says the maker. “I love grilling peaches with it.”
Read moreEight Great Values
Just when you think there are no bargains left at the specialty cheese counter, I’ve rounded up eight selections that consistently over-deliver for the price. In my view, these beauties outclass comparable cheeses that cost a lot more. “Value” doesn’t just mean you paid a low price; you can always find inexpensive cheese at the supermarket. Value means you got more than you paid for.
Read moreCanada Rocks the Cheese World
Winning wheel: Raclette de Compton au Poivre/Photo: ACS and Valerie Tobias Photography
For the first time in its 38 years, the American Cheese Society competition’s Best of Show is Canadian. Not only that, but the runner up is, too. Both winning wheels were made in Quebec, by different creameries, and they topped 1,600 other entries from North America. Fortunately, a Washington State cheese placed third to prevent a Canadian sweep of this prestigious annual judging.
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