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Would you like some salad with that cheese?

2008-11-19

As Thanksgiving draws near I've been thinking more and more about new and interesting recipes. And being me, I've had a special eye out for delicious new ways to eat cheese. Who's surprised by that one?

While I love and appreciate good cheese, I've also been trying to eat a bit healthier lately. As such, today's topic combines both my love of using cheese in recipes and the desire to eat more healthily. Today's question is...

What's the best cheese to put in a salad?

Bill from New York likes, "blue cheese or parmesan." Jill from Briarcliff Manor, New York prefers, "a really good shaved parmesan." And Ian S. from Boston explains that, "If it's vinaigrette dressing, then feta. If it's bleu cheese dressing, then, well, bleu cheese. If it's ranch dressing, then cheddar."

Ah, two votes already for one of my favorites, parmesan cheese. Fresh parmesan cheese, which, being a hard cheese, keeps for a suprisingly long time in the fridge, can make almost any food better in my opinion. And salad is certainly no exception. I might shread a little parmesan on my cereal in the morning if I didn't think I'd get strange looks from my husband!

After that, I can't disagree with Ian's basic cheese logic. Feta and vinaigrette are certainly a lovely pair, for instance. I'm not a huge fan of ranch dressing, but I have no qualms about adding cheddar to my salads!

One of my favorite simple salads is a basic mixture of greens, cherry or grape tomatoes, strips of honey ham, and, of course, strips of swiss cheese. I often pair this with a nice honey mustard dressing. And the beauty of both the ham and swiss cheese is that they are both strong enough flavors to overcome the sweetness of the dressing. Yum!

On one additional cheese recipe-related notes, I wanted to point out a new cheese product I recently tried and the cool thing I intend to do with it! The brand is President and it's a basic brie cheese, but the novelty is in the fact that it's in a long skinny loaf form (instead of the standard round mold). Besides making it easy to slice and add to crackers, what I think would be awesome is to slather your favorite jam on it and wrap it in flaky dough (I generally cheat and use the ready-made croissants that come in the canister.) Then bake it in the over and it's ready to serve, slice, and serve with bread or crackers. I may just be serving this over Thanksgiving! (And I'm sure my guests will be thankful!)

And stay tuned until next time when we delve into the all important question (well, maybe not ALL important, but it's good to be prepared!): "If you were stuck on a desert island and could only bring one cheese with you, what would it be and why?"


What kind of world would you live in?

2008-10-30

It's funny to me how cheese seems to make everything better. I made scrambled eggs for dinner the other day. (Hey, there's nothing wrong with eating breakfast for dinner!) And it was ten times more fabulous with some fresh parmesan included (and some basil- mmmmm!). Adding cheese to pasta inevitably makes it taste better. And you've got to add cheese to garlic bread, sandwiches, and pretty much everything else (in my life, at least!). Cheese is pervasive and delicious.

Of course, there are other foods that tend to make many tastes better. Chocolate is one. Why eat a cherry when you could have a chocolate-covered cherry (and boy does that go for strawberries too!)? What's a sundae without hot fudge or peanut butter without a chocolate shell? Or a mocha latte without mocha?! Heck, I prefer my pretzels covered in chocolate!

So what would you do if you were forced to make a terrible choice. What would you do if the food spirits demanded...

Which would be preferable, a world without cheese or a world without chocolate?

Bill from New York answers, "Without chocolate. Too much stuff is made with cheese, whereas chocolate is just dessert, which I can live without." Jennifer from Boston prefers a world, "without cheese. Gotta have chocolate." And Jill from New York concludes, "A world without cheese. Without chocolate would be too tragic."

It's funny how there seems to be a gender divide on the issue! Go figure!

Okay, first of all, I have to take issue (as a representative of the female gender in this debate) with the conclusion that chocolate is "just dessert." I take issue with the very idea of "just dessert." There is no "just" in dessert! Dessert is a foundation of the state of happiness. Just dessert, indeed!

Of course, as may be evident from my choice of food blog topics, cheese is also a foundation of happiness from my perspective. Come on, I want to have my cake, and eat my cheese too!

I guess when push comes to shove I'm going to have to go with my gender and opt for a cheese-free world (under extreme duress!). I feel like a traitor to my blog! For shame! Can't we just have a world without cauliflower or something?

And our next exhilirating cheese topic will be: "What's the best cheese to put in a salad?" Until next time, enjoy your cheese and your chocolate while you can!


It's Cheese & Wine Party Time!

2008-10-15

Today's question is actually quite relevant to me this week as I'm holding a wine and cheese party for the residents of my building. It's kind of a "get to know your neighbors" gathering. You could argue that it's somewhat strangely timed considering that we've lived in the building for over two years now, but hey, better late than never!

So, in order to help myself as well as anyone else out there holding a cheese-filled get together, here's our question.

When you buy cheese for a party or get together, how do you decide which cheeses to get?

Jennifer from Boston answers, "I never have done this. But I would pick a couple of my favorites, plus cheddar since many people like that." Ian S. from Boston advises, "Depends on the nature of the party. Cheese should match the event and other amenities. People who buy camembert to go with tailgating chili and PBR are just silly." Finally, Jill from Briarcliff Manor, New York, says, "By the tastes of who is coming. Some people are more adventurous than others. If it's a big party I get a range of mild to stinky."

Jennifer's strategy for picking out cheeses is very similar to the one I use. I tend to pick one or two that I know *I* at least like, and then choose a cheese that people in general tend to like. Examples of the latter include cheddar, smoked gouda or brie.

Of course, it's important not to miss Ian's point about the context of the cheese event. I wouldn't feed stilton to a group of teenagers anymore than I would serve American cheese to a cheese lovers group. It's important to consider your audience. Then, as Ian suggests, consider your venue. For the cheese course of a gourmet dinner you could be more adventurous than, say, cheese bought for an office party. A bit of commonsense when picking out cheese goes a long way!

Jill's range of mild to stinky also brings up a good point. It's nice to have that one stinky cheese to please the self-affirmed professional cheese eaters, while also serving a mild havarti, for instance, to be sure of pleasing the masses.

As for my building party this week, I believe the following cheeses will be on the menu: aged cheddar (because most people like it and it's suprisingly good!), gruyere (a medium flavor, but a taste many people enjoy), something stinky I have yet to decide upon (because I've just gotta have something stinky!), and a baked brie with some jam spread on top (because it's creamy and delicious with nice, fresh bread- which I will be buying, not making, thank you very much!). Don't you just wish you too lived in my building?!

And next time we turn our attention to the super important question, "Which would be preferable, a world without cheese or a world without chocolate?"


Blue Cheese Stuffed Olive Martinis or Cheese Sushi

2008-10-08

Have you ever tried chocolate covered bacon? I haven't actually had the pleasure myself, but I have some old coworkers who swear by the stuff. It sounds weird, but I like chocolate covered pretzels so why not chocolate covered bacon? They're both sweet and salty combos.

Like everything, I suppose it's in the eye of the beholder...or, in this case, the tongue of the beholder? The reason I bring it up is to introduce today's fabulous cheese related question:

What's the strangest thing you've eaten with cheese on it or in it (ie. cheese-covered chocolate or a cheese-infused martini?)?

Ian S from Boston reveals that he ate, "A Lamb McSpicy at a Paris McDonald's. Had some kind of cheese on it, but was hard to tell over the yogurt and lamb. Worst meal of my life." Jill from Briarcliff Manor, New York says, "I never went to one of those county fairs where they put cheese on everything. So I'd have to say quince jelly on manchego cheese. But it tastes good." Bill from New York suggests, "Cheese sushi (Well, not really, but just imagine...)."

Oh man, assuming Ian S is not joking, Eeeeew. Okay, that sounds culturally insensitive, and culinarily (not quite a real word...) insensitive coming from the editor of a cheese blog and website. But wow! Cheers if you enjoy a good lamb mcspicy; just don't order one for me! (Although I'm quite impressed that Ian ordered it in the first place!). Anyway...moving on. This is a great example of a strange thing with cheese.

As for Jill's quince jelly with manchego cheese, this is a good example of a strange cheese combination which is actually tasty. Just because it's strange doesn't make it bad. That's today's morality tale! And for those of you who are curious and didn't know (like me), quince is a very tart fruit commonly used to make jelly. The interesting thing is that you can't eat it unless it's cooked. Strange all by itself, no?

Last but not least, cheese sushi. Whether or not it actually exists somewhere doesn't really matter. I could actually imagine that it could be delicious. Most things with cheese are more or less inherently yummy, so why not sushi? If anyone ever gets around to testing this theory, I'd love to hear about it!

And what's the strangest thing I've eaten with cheese? Well, my mother once made a basil cheesecake, which is not what you'd normally think of as a perfect dessert but was actually quite tasty. The key to enjoying basil cheesecake is to think of it more as an appetizer not a dessert, sort of like a really decadent rich quiche with less eggs!

Next week we delve into the wonder world of cheese buying science, asking: "When you buy cheese for a party or get together, how do you decide which cheeses to get?"


You can't take my cheese from me!

2008-10-01

There are a few things I don't think I could live without: love, affection, ice cream, coca-cola (yes, I'm addicted), and brie. If I had to give up the blue cheeses, I'd be sad but okay. No more manchego? That would be a bad day for tapas, but I'd survive. But brie???

A baked brie smothered in jam served with freshly baked bread? Nope, couldn't make it. That one is a dealbreaker for me. I eat brie; therefore I am. Didn't Descartes say that? And what about our readers?

If you had to give up one of your favorite cheeses, which would it be and why?

Ian from Boston says, "I would probably give up cheddar just because I've had so much that I could just call it enough. Cheddar is great because it goes with everything, but I could usually find a replacement in each situation that usually defaults to cheddar." Jill from Briarcliff Manor, New York answers, "Brie. I'm pregnant. I have given it up and it's painful to watch others eat it." Jennifer from Boston chose, "smoked cheese because I don't get it often anyway."

I can totally undertand where Ian is coming from as many of the traditional uses of cheddar cheese (grilled cheese, macaroni and cheese, tacos/burritos) can absolutely be taken care with other cheese choices. On the other hand, the reason that people have found so many uses for cheddar is because generally...WE LIKE CHEDDAR! I don't think I could do it!

Jill comes at this from a fairly unique perspective, that of a cheese-impaired pregnant woman. My impression is that you're allowed to have hard cheeses only when you're pregnant (to make sure you avoid excess bacteria which might make your fetus unhealthy). But to give up creamy brie? Oh, I'm crying inside. At least in Jill's case, the brie cheese deprivation is definitely only a temporary state.

Finally there's Jennifer's smoked cheese answer. Based on her phrasing, this seems like a little bit of a cheat as the question asks you to give up "one your favorite cheeses." But her logic is still sound anyway!

And actually, after much personal anguish at the thought of having to give up one of my favorite cheeses, I think I might have to go the smoked cheese route, specifically smoked gouda. I have always enjoyed this smokey smooth cheese, but, like Ian, I have certainly had a lot of it and there are other cheeses which I find equally delicious.

So there you have it, the painful answer to giving up a favorite cheese. *Sigh* My mood should pep up as I slowly realize that I don't actually HAVE to give up any cheese...!

Next week, we ask "What's the strangest thing you've eaten with cheese on it or in it (ie. cheese-covered chocolate or a cheese-infused martini?)?"