Gooey Delights

As we head into the Christmas season, thoughts turn to warm fires and comfort food and what could be more comforting than to spend the evening enjoying the Swiss tradition of Raclette or Cheese Fondue?  Our imagination conjures up pictures of snowy days on the ski hill as we carve the perfect course down the slope, the crowd cheers, cowbells ring as we raise our hands in the victory air-punch....OK, so I face-planted!

The history of Raclette goes back 700 years to the Swiss cowboys in the southwestern part of Switzerland best known for the Matterhorn.  These were the young men who lead the herds high up into the summer pastures of the Alps.  They would take basic provisions with them and of course one of those things would be a wheel of cheese.  This would be one of the semi-firm wash-rind cheeses that the Europeans are so well-known for.  In the evenings, they would face the wheel in front of the fire until the top layer became soft and then "racler" which is the French verb for "to scrape" the gooey cheese onto a piece of bread or new potatoes and enjoy this with onions and pickles.  To this day, this is the traditional way of enjoying Raclette.

Today, Raclette has become a meal that also includes a variety of charcuterie - cured meats such as sausage and prosciutto, seafood like shrimp, vegetables and of course, boiled new potatoes and a selection of pickled condiments.

Why not start a new tradition in your home this Christmas Eve by enjoying Raclette or Fondue?

Classic 3-Cheese Fondue

·         235 ml (1 cup) dry white wine

·         1 clove garlic, halved

·         200 g (7 oz) each of Gruyere, Emmental and sharp Cheddar

·         30 g (2 tablespoons) Sherry

·         15 g (1 tablespoon) cornstarch

·         Nutmeg, dry mustard and pepper to taste

Grate the cheeses, set aside.  Rub the inside of your fondue pot with the halved garlic and discard the rest of the clove.  Heat the wine without boiling and if desired, add a splash of lemon juice to the wine.  Add the cheese to the hot wine handful by handful, stirring until cheeses have melted.   Combine Sherry with cornstarch and add to melted cheese mixture.  Dry mustard and or nutmeg can be added to taste.  Serve the fondue with chunks of crusty bread and vegetable crudités for dipping.

Bon Appétit!



"What Is He Buzzing In My Ears?" Robert Browning 1812-1889

In early August, the American Cheese Society held its annual conference and awards program in Montréal.....I can hear all Canadians doing a collective double-take.   Did you really mean Montréal, CANADA or is there a Montréal in Wyoming for example?  Yes, I really meant our own Montréal.  Finally Canada has started to gain some recognition south of the border for a little more than great hockey players and an excellent economic system! 

But this was a bit of a strategic move for the American Dairy Industry. Canada is a bit, well let's tell it like it is, A LOT unfamiliar with cheeses that come from the States and like Canada, there has been a real upsurge in small, artisinal cheese makers who are doing some really interesting things. Take this one for example, Barely Buzzed from the Beehive Cheese Company in Utah.

This reads like a modern-day "Green Acres " for those who remember the 60's sit-com, except that it involves two brothers-in-law (Pat and Tim) who decided
to chuck the 9-to-5 (one was in real estate and the other a partner in a softwear company) for cheese making.  Launching their business in 2005, they discovered quite by happenstance that their cheddar (Promontory Cheddar, an Irish-style cheddar with a buttery sharpness made with the milk of a single-herd) when rubbed with a coffee/lavender concoction all of a sudden took on a whole new flavour life of its own.  I have sampled this cheese to a number of my customers asking for them to identify the flavour.  The response has been hickory, spices including nutmeg and allspice but no one has come up with the actual combination.  But the overall reaction has been "I'll take some of that!"

 

Barely Buzzed won first place in the Flavoured Cheese category at the ACS and is in stock at C'est Cheese Please! 

Just as a side note, Canadian cheese makers did exceptionally well at the ACS winning 73 medals, two of which were Best of Shows! 

Bon Appétit!

Alfred le Fermier

Sometimes things that we think are bad turn out to be good and I think that I have found one of those things.  The Departments of Health, both federal and provincial, would like nothing better than to outlaw raw milk cheeses.  So, in the 1990's when the federal government took a run at doing this, the Federation des Proucteurs de lait du Québec fought this ban on the grounds that Québec was a distinct region with a history of raw milk cheeses.  What has occurred is an increasing number of small farmstead frommageries have been engaged in producing cheeses - an estimated 70 artisanal factories with an output of over 500 varieties of cheese have emerged in the last 20 years!  The area of the Eastern Townships has become known as the Cheese Trail and in 2005, the sales of cheese amounted to an amazing $670 million!

So today, I would like to introduce you to yet another wonderful cheese-maker from La Belle Province,  La Station de Compton, a small producer of three cheeses including the above pictured, Alfred le Fermier named for the great grandfather who founded the family farm in Compton, Québec.  That is Alfred pressed onto his namesake cheese - and what a cheese it is!  The farm is certified organic, the herd of cows are Holstein and they graze on meadows full of clover, alfalfa and asparagus trefoil.  This is a wash-rind cheese that is aged for six to eight months on spruce boards harvested from the wood on the farm.  What results is a beautiful wheel, orangy-red in colour on the outside, straw-coloured on the inside with small pinholes, buttery, nutty with a finish of sweet grassy notes.  Albert le Fermier needs nothing to enhance it other than a medium-bodied syrah or cabernet, not too heavily fruited to take away from the flavours of the cheese.  If you are a white fan, perhaps try it with a Riesling.

Albert le Fermier was a finalist in the 2006 Canadian Cheese Grand Prix as well as a finalist in the Caseus (Québec Fine Cheese Competition) in 2008.  Simon-Pierre Bolduc, owner of the farm also produces two other cheeses, Raclette de Compton and Comtomme.

The success of the Québec cheese boom has created a challenge for us - so many cheeses and a low per capital consumption.  In Europe, the average person consumes 20 kilos of cheese a year while in Canada, that is only 12 kilos and much of that is the mozzarella that is found on our pizzas!  So come on Canadians!  Come on in to C'est Cheese Please! and sample some of the wonderful delights awaiting your discerning palate!

Bon Appétit!

The Big Cheese

Next to mozzarella, cheddar is probably the most consumed cheese in North America.  It has been produced since at least the 12th century and is thought that the Romans introduced the recipe to Britain originally bringing it from the Cantel region of France.  Unfortunately the name has never been protected so now we refer to cheddar as being anything from wonderful, aged cheese to something that comes out of an aerosol can.  Like Brie and Camembert, technically speaking only cheddar that originates from Cheddar in Somerset, South West England is entitled to bear the name but let's try telling that to Kraft!

Cheddaring actually refers to a process of cheese making where the curds are cut and stacked in a specific manner at the bottom of the vat every 10-15 minutes for an hour and a half allowing the whey to drain producing a cheese that is firm with a distinctive texture.  Beyond this initial  step, the techniques used vary depending on the region and cheesemaker.  One of the natural elements that contributed to the production of cheddar as we know it, are the caves found in Cheddar, England which provided an environment for the aging of the cheese.  It is this specific environment which cheesemakers seek to replicate when aging cheddar.

So how do we know a "good" cheddar from a "great" cheddar?  First, the ingredients. Any cheese which has "milk solids" as an ingredient falls in the category of factory cheddar.  A great cheddar is 100% milk with the addition of rennet and cultures.    Second, orange or white?  Natural cheddar is creamy to pale white in colour.  Orange cheddar results with the addition of annatto which is a natural plant extract.  When aging cheddar, ANY additional ingredient will affect the way that the cheese ages which is why most aged cheddars are white.  Thirdly, the age of the cheese - a young cheddar is mild in flavour and with age develops a complexity and a sharpness of flavour.  One other point is that as cheese ages, the lactose breaks down with the microbial fermentation of the cheese.

Here at "C'est Cheese Please!" we carry 5 and 7 year old cheddar from St. Albert.  Recently, the 5 year old cheddar won a silver medal at the 2011 Canadian Cheese Grand Prix.  Both are examples of great cheddars - complex and sharp but maintaining a creamy, clean finish but really in the end, you need to come into "C'est Cheese Please!" and taste for yourself a truly wonderful cheddar!

Bon Appétit!

Avec L'Amour À Maman!

There is something about Mother's Day that causes men great stress....so in an effort to ease the palpitations that are starting to occur, let me try to help you "Get It Right"!

New in the store this week are wonderful products that use culinary lavender as a major ingredient - Lavender Lemon Marmalade, Lavender Honey and a Lavender Apple Compote (all are priced at $6.99) from Steed and Co. Lavender.  Who knew?  Not only is lavender a wonderful fragrance that soothes the soul, it also complements cheese too!  Try drizzling the lavender honey over Paillot de Chévre or use the Lavender Apple Compote with a creamy brie and I am sure that you will be Mom's fave.  And the Lavender Lemon Marmalade is perfect with a croissant or scone to start her special day off on the right foot (or left, doesn't matter too much.)

Don't forget that fresh croissant, Pain Au Chocolat and Brioche are here at C'est Cheese Please! first thing on Saturday morning

And if your Mom has been a really good girl this year, there are lovely café au lait bowls ($19.99), sweet little milk jugs ($21.50) and confiture pots ($16.99) just arrived from France.

So Happy Mother's Day to all those special Mom's who wipe noses, tell you to straighten up and get a  grip and who love you to bits -          always!



Bon Appétit!



Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed and Something Blue!

OK, yes I admit it - I am  so excited about Prince William and Kate Middleton's upcoming wedding.  I got up in the wee hours of the morning to watch Diana and Charles' wedding (not so for the wedding of Charles and Camilla, but 'nough said about that) and I will be doing the same this Friday!  So with that in mind, I thought that I would remind you that there are frozen scones here at "C'est Cheese Please!" - Raspberry Lemon and Orange Cranberry ($11.98 for 6 large scones).  There is also MacKay's Lemon Curd which I thought would be great with the Raspberry Lemon scones and Lime Curd which would go with the Orange Cranberry scones very well - $7.50 for a 340g jar.  Or if you prefer, there is a selection of Greaves jams - peach, plum and black currant at $2.50 for a mini pot.  Now you just have to pour yourself a cuppa, sit back and enjoy the spectacle!

One of the touching things that this couple have done is to request donations in lieu of gifts and they have selected a number of charities that have missions that resonate with them.  In Canada, they have selected the Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary, so in honour of their wedding, 10% of sales this week will be donated to this organization.

Best Wishes Will and Kate!

Bon Appétit!

And Little Lambs Eat Ivey.......

Spring is taking it's own sweet time arriving this year.  While the rest of us are moaning and groaning about the rain/damp/snow that Mother Nature is throwing our way, these young ladies take it all in stride (or maybe hoof!) providing the mild, sweet milk for the cheeses made by Best Baa Dairy in Conn, Ontario.  Truly a family affair, Elizabeth and Eric Bzikot along with their son and daughter-in-law, Peter and Nicole manage their herd, farm and dairy operation along with developing their unique products while promoting the sheep dairy market.

In 1998, they moved from Manitoba to Ontario, purchasing the farm with the intent of raising sheep strictly for their meat and happened into artisanal cheese-making after discovering a market here for sheep's milk products.  Yogurt was the original product and soon after, Elizabeth started trying her hand at cheese-making.  Today, Best Baa Dairy makes a range of cheeses both with pasteurized and unpasteurized sheep's milk. Mouton Rouge is a wash-rind cheese with a lovely reddish exterior encasing a creamy, light yellow paste.  This is a raw milk cheese, aged for 60 days, nutty and butttery with a lovely creamy finish.  Sheep In  The Meadow with its dusting of herbes de provence, is creamy, mushroomy and fabulously smooth. Eweda is a deliciously, aged take on a Gouda.  All of these cheeses are in the case at C'est Cheese Please!

With spring weather nearly here, why not try this recipe for a hot Greek Salad with the Best Baa Feta available both  pasteurized and unpasteurized, $8.99 a tub at C'est Cheese Please!

Hot Greek Salad*

4 Zucchini

3 Yellow Peppers

3 Red Peppers

1 Red Onion

Good hand-full of Green Beans

Same of Yellow Beans

1 cup Kraft Zesty Italian Dressing

Parmesan Cheese

Best Baa Sheep's Milk Feta either pasteurized or unpasteurized

Chopped tomatoes (when our lovely Ontario tomatoes are not available, try using some grape or cherry tomatoes, cutting them in half)

Black olives

Romaine lettuce

Clean and tear the romaine lettuce and arrange on a large platter leaving the centre of the platter bare.

Prepare the vegetables by chopping into bite-sized chunks (don't be too fancy, this salad should look rustic and hearty).  Grill the vegetables on your BBQ using one of those great baskets to toss them around in.  Place them into a good sized bowl.  Heat the dressing in your microwave, pour over the grilled vegetables and toss the hot vegetables in the hot dressing.  Remove the vegetables from the dressing using a slotted spoon, place in the centre of the platter.  Add the chopped tomatoes, feta cheese, black olives and sprinkle generously with the Parmesan cheese.

*adapted from a recipe found in "What's Cooking?", Kraft Recipes

I love this recipe as you can feed a few or lots just by adjusting the amount of vegetables.  It goes great with Rack of Lamb marinated in lemon juice, garlic, olive oil and a sprinkling of Fleur de Sel and mini red potatoes (I par cook in the microwave and finish off on the BBQ) et voilà a fabulous meal and most of it happens on the BBQ - great for those hot summer nights when we all try to keep the heat out of the kitchen!

Bon Appétit!

I Love You in a Cheesy Way

How do I say "I Love You"?  Well, it's quite simple when there is a heart-shaped delicacy that will do all the talking for you because what doesn't say "I Love You" like a fine piece of cheese?  Coeur de Neufchatel comes from the Normandy area of France where it is one of the oldest cheeses in continuous production dating back to 1035.  It was granted AOC status in 1969 (we have discussed the importance of the AOC designation to protect the production of these cheeses ensuring that the cheese that you enjoy today has been made following the traditional methods).  The milk used for this cheese comes from the Normande breed of cattle which was brought to the Normandy area by the Vikings.  The milk from this breed is particularly well-suited to cheese making (improved curdling quality and higher yields just in case you were wondering!)  During the cheese making, the curds are allowed to drain for a longer period of time than is the case with a traditional Camembert.  The resulting cheese has a grainy and thicker paste than does its Camembert cousin. 

This is a cheese that is more enjoyable in its younger version with a rich, mushroomy flavour enrobed in its velvety white rind.  Although the cheese is available in other shapes, it is the heart shape that it is famous for.  It is said that during the Hundred Years War (14th and 15th centuries) that the young maidens in Normandy fell madly in love with the English soldiers stationed in Normandy and started making the heart-shaped cheeses - you see even they knew that the way to a lover's heart was with a fine piece of cheese! 

Be sure to pop 'round to "C'est Cheese Please!" where Coeur de Neufchatel is in stock at $14.99.

Avec l'amour et Bon Appétit!