Cheese Makes a Comeback!

Cheese is making a comeback on the dining scene. There is a rising trend to serve gourmet cheeses as a separate exciting course. The best part of this returning mania is that creating a sophisticated and harmonious assortment of cheeses and accompaniments is incredibly easy.

With our how-to's, simple guides and recommended cheeses, your next get-together, whether it is a gathering for one or one hundred, will be a spectacular success!

Creating a spectacular cheese course starts with the shopping. You should take a few minutes to before you buy to make a shopping list. This can be as simple as choosing your favorites, but keep the following in mind:

* Three to five different cheese selections are best.
* Selecting cheeses of different types and textures will serve to create greater interest. The variety of cheeses you choose should be from different milks, such as cow, goat, and sheep. Include cheeses that are soft, semi-soft/semi-firm, firm and hard.
* Plan on serving approximately one ounce of each cheese per person.

Accompaniments should not only complement the flavors of the cheeses you are serving, but should enhance them The best way to see if the accompaniment works well with a particular cheese is simply to taste them together. If you like the flavor combination, then odds are your guests will too. Traditional accompaniments for cheeses include: bread, crackers, cured meats, honey, olives, fruit, nuts and roasted vegetables.

Cheeses should always be served at room temperature, so plan ahead and remove your cheeses from the refrigerator at least one hour before serving for maximum flavor. Firm and hard cheeses should be served sliced thinly or in bite-size chunks. Cut softer cheeses into wedges. Make sure you have a small knife available for cheeses that will need to be cut by your guests.

Soft Cheeses

Soft cheeses get creamer as they ripen. Their texture can range from that of soft butter to thick sour cream. Examples of soft cheeses are Brie, Camembert and La Serena.

Semi-Soft / Semi-Firm Cheeses

Semi-soft/semi-firm cheeses have less moisture than hard cheeses so they can usually be easily sliced. Ardrahan, Gubbeen, Fontina, Caciotta, Le Moulis and Morbier are examples of semi-soft/semi-firm cheeses.

Firm Cheeses

Firm cheeses have a unmistakable firm texture, and become harder and more intensive with age. In firm cheese, the curd is broken into a very small grain, and then either cooked or left uncooked before pressing. Firm cheeses have a lower moisture content. Appenzeller, Wensleydale, Cheddar, Red Leicester, and Idiazabal are examples of firm cheeses.

Hard Cheeses

Hard cheeses have had most of their moisture removed, giving the cheese a firmer texture, often becoming crumbly. They routinely have more intense flavors than softer cheeses. Varieties of hard cheeses include Doddington, Sbrinz, Pecorino, Parmigiano Reggiano, and Bianco Sardo.

Other types of cheeses include: Blue Cheese, Fresh or Un-ripened Cheeses, Pasta Filata, Washed-Rind Cheese, and other specialty cheeses.

Blue Cheese

Blue Cheese earned it's name from the mold called Penicillium roqueforte, which creates the delicate blue-green marbling and gives the cheese its unique flavor. Blue Cheeses can range in texture from hard and crumbly to soft and creamy. Types of blue cheeses include: Crozier Blue, Gorgonzola, Roquefort, Shropshire Blue, and Stilton.

Fresh cheeses are usually uncooked or un-ripened, and are ready to eat very soon after they are made. Normally they are moist and mild in taste. Varieties of fresh cheeses include: Cottage cheese, Mascarpone, Mozzarella, and Ricotta.

Pasta Filata cheeses are a family of cheeses that originate in Italy. They are cooked, kneaded and stretched. Provolone is an example of this type of cheese.

Washed Rind

Washed Rind cheeses have been washed or immersed during the ripening process in a solution of beer, brine, wine, or brandy to promote exterior mold. These cheeses possess a very strong aroma and have intense flavor. This type of cheese includes Munster, Raclette and Taleggio.

By Darren Borror

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Spice Up Your Macaroni and Cheese

My children's favorite meal is macaroni and cheese. The cheesier it is the the more he enjoys it. I love it myself, but the cheesier it is, the more fattening it becomes, too. Here are a few ideas to make that family classic a little better for the kids.

Add variety to the cheese. Macaroni and cheese is nothing unless it is dripping cheese from both ends of the noodle. But, the cheese your mother chose doesn’t have to be the same cheese that you use. Choose Velveeta® Light cheese spread. The light version has a third of the fat and melts much better than regular cheese. This cheese works well if you prepare your macaroni and cheese in a pot on the stovetop. If you are a person that bakes your macaroni and cheese like a casserole, you can substitute fat-free sharp cheddar for the full fat version and use skim milk to make it creamy.

How about making that side dish the main meal? Macaroni and cheese can become the entire meal if you add some protein. Turn your side dish into a casserole dinner with lean ground beef. This transforms your dish into cheesy beef and macaroni. The beef will help to fill your kids up faster and will give them the protein that their body needs. Add a teaspoon of chili powder to give it a southwestern flavor. For a weekend lunch, add chunks of ham to their macaroni and cheese for a quick meal. The meat breaks up the monotony of just having the same dish all of the time. Chunks of boneless chicken breasts will also work as well as the ham if your child prefers chicken. Hotdogs also work with macaroni and cheese but because of the nitrites they contain, don’t use them as often as you use the ham and chicken.

Substitute your pasta. There are so many more healthy alternatives to the normal macaroni pasta noodle. Now, grocery stores provide a whole wheat or multigrain pasta that is derived from wheat flour instead of white. The pasta is brown in color but when you add the cheese, no one will know the difference. If brown pasta doesn’t do it for you, Barilla® makes pasta called Barilla Plus® that has additional nutrients to make it more nutritious for the eater. The pasta remains the natural yellowish color. Dreamfields® has macaroni noodles that contain only five grams of digestible carbohydrates. That means nothing to your children, but to you it means that they won’t get fat from consuming that specific brand.

Add some color to their macaroni and cheese. Chop a tomato and stir it into the macaroni and cheese prior to serving it. The red makes a bold statement in the sea of yellow. Tomatoes contain antioxidants which are great for your body. If your children prefer hot foods, add a few crushed red peppers or diced red and green peppers to their macaroni and cheese for a bolder flavor. If you don’t have any peppers or tomatoes on hand, use a cup of salsa in the macaroni and cheese in a pinch.

What about breakfast? Your child would jump at the chance to be served macaroni and cheese for breakfast. Add a few pieces of turkey bacon or reduced fat bacon to their plate. Crumble the bacon on top of the macaroni and cheese and serve. If bacon is not your child’s favorite, add sausage crumbles. It’s unconventional, but it’ll taste good.


By Christine Steendahl

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Cheese - Just The Word Is Yummy

Remember when your Mom had a plate full of “cheese and crackers” or a grilled cheese sandwich with your favorite soup. We can have some yummy memory. Well, we grew up, and discovered that there is a lot more to cheese than crackers and a sandwich.

What if we could go back to prehistoric times? Now, imagine your watching a big caveman pounding away at a large flat stone. Beside him sitting on a rock is his goat skin all tied up full of milk. It is a very hot day, and the mild is coagulating. Which came first the wheel or Cheese? Granted that is a loose definition of the birth of cheese but I think you are starting to understand ; cheese has been around for a very long time. About 4000 years ago, people started to domestic, and breed animals. They make milk. Out of milk, curdled= solid nutritious food we call cheese. All kinks of animals produce milk that we make into over 400 types of cheese. Goat, sheep, cows water buffalo, camels, and yaks. I’m sure there are more, ( Yaks I have to try that one).

Rennet is used most of the time to induce coagulation; however, some cheeses are curdled with lemon juice, vinegar, or Cynara. Styles of cheese and there unique taste and consistency are a result of using different species of bacteria, and molds.
The variations of making cheese are numerous. Aging, mold wash, pulling, just to name a few. When we finally slice, cut, or grade our cheese and smell the aroma, taste the tartness, dryness, or creamy textures, we are in " Cheese Heaven.”


By Robert Timmons


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