I was wandering around the cheese deli at Haggens in Fairhaven, WA and came across a little package of cheese and read that it was a Gorgonzola blended with pear and finely chopped cranberries and hazelnut. I’ve enjoyed cheese/fruit blends before but I hadn’t eaten any with cranberries.
Because we’re so close to Thanksgiving, I wondered if cranberries could be found in other cheeses, as well. I was excited about the prospect and started looking around at cheese deli counters in other shops.
Lo and behold … I quickly came across three other cheese selections that blended cranberries. So, let’s get to it.
The first one I came across was Rising Sun Farms Gorgonzola Cheese Tortette™ It’s a velvety Gorgonzola with cream cheese and pears; then crowned with cranberries and roasted hazelnuts. All natural ingredients are the mantra of Elizabeth and Richard Fujas, owners of Rising Sun Farms—free of trans fats, genetically modified organisms, growth hormones, preservatives, sulfites or other chemicals. Gluten free.
Because we’re so close to Thanksgiving, I wondered if cranberries could be found in other cheeses, as well. I was excited about the prospect and started looking around at cheese deli counters in other shops.
Lo and behold … I quickly came across three other cheese selections that blended cranberries. So, let’s get to it.
The first one I came across was Rising Sun Farms Gorgonzola Cheese Tortette™ It’s a velvety Gorgonzola with cream cheese and pears; then crowned with cranberries and roasted hazelnuts. All natural ingredients are the mantra of Elizabeth and Richard Fujas, owners of Rising Sun Farms—free of trans fats, genetically modified organisms, growth hormones, preservatives, sulfites or other chemicals. Gluten free.
Their convenient 3 oz size and plastic container, is great for eating on the go. However, you can also refrigerate it for 6 weeks, or freeze it for up to 18 months. I don’t personally see it lasting 18 months, though. Once you experience the taste, you’ll want another one!
They also offer it in a Torta size (9.5 oz) and I came across this recipe on their website
1 tablespoon butter
4 ounces mushrooms, finely diced
¾ cup Gorgonzola Cheese Torta1/2 cup green onion tops
6 chicken breast halves
6 chicken breast halves
6 tablespoons Dijon mustard
Preheat oven to 450°F. Melt butter in skillet over medium heat. Add mushrooms and sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. In bowl, mix Torta with green onions. Add mushrooms and season with salt and pepper. Loosen skin of each chicken breast gently with fingers. Spread 1/6 of Torta mixture between skin and meat of each breast. Place on baking sheet. Spread 1 tablespoon of Dijon mustard over each breast. Bake until golden brown and thoroughly cooked, about 45 minutes.
Serves 6.
Preheat oven to 450°F. Melt butter in skillet over medium heat. Add mushrooms and sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. In bowl, mix Torta with green onions. Add mushrooms and season with salt and pepper. Loosen skin of each chicken breast gently with fingers. Spread 1/6 of Torta mixture between skin and meat of each breast. Place on baking sheet. Spread 1 tablespoon of Dijon mustard over each breast. Bake until golden brown and thoroughly cooked, about 45 minutes.
Serves 6.
Is your mouth starting to water?
Next on my list is Real Yorkshire Wensleydale Cheese with Cranberries. This is a registered cheese of the Wensleydale Creamery in North Yorkshire UK. The creamery has been in the business of making cheese for over 100 years.
White Real Yorkshire Wensleydale cheese has a mild, fresh flavor and a crumbly, flaky texture. I must admit that this was my least favorite of the cranberry cheeses. It seemed a little dry to my taste, and a little sour in the nicest context of the term.
However, I came across a cross-reference to Wallace and Gromit animated shorts—I absolutely LUV Wallace and Gromit, as obviously many others do, too.
I read that in the 1990s, Wensleydale cheese sales had fallen so low that production was at risk of being suspended. However, the popular Wallace and Gromit animated shorts A Grand Day Out and A Close Shave had the main character Wallace, a cheese connoisseur, mention Wensleydale as a particularly favorite cheese. Animator Nick Park chose it solely because it had a good name that would be interesting to animate, unaware of the company's financial difficulties. The company contacted Aardman Animations about a license for a special brand of "Wallace and Gromit Wensleydale", which proved to be an enormous success. When the 2005 full-length Wallace and Gromit film, Curse of the Were-Rabbit, was released, sales of Wensleydale cheeses jumped by 23%.
Third on my list is another product of England, White Stilton® with Cranberries. White Stilton is made in the same way as blue Stilton except that the blue mould is not added to the vat at the making stage and the cheese will be sold at about 3 weeks of age. White Stilton has a fresh, milky flavor with a beautiful creamy background. Ideal with fruit or crumbled onto salads or melted onto toast.
One of my favorites is a blend of Mango and Ginger, but when I saw the Cranberry version, I figured it to be worth the purchase. It was!
This is way more creamy consistency than Wensleydale. I thought it interesting that one reviewer observed that “…even though it is extra creamy and deliciously tangy, it was somehow unfinished by itself—much like a plain yogurt.” They liked the introduction of the fruit, and reports the fruity blends are among the best selling blended cheeses in the UK.
Especially in light of Thanksgiving, I came across a Turkey and Cranberry Ciabatta Sandwich and figured it would come in handy for leftovers:
Cut freshly baked Ciabatta bread in half and then slice it in two horizontally. Spread one side of each half with cranberry sauce. Place some sliced turkey on top. Add stuffing if desired. Crumble White Stilton with Cranberries over the top and serve.The final cranberry selection is Carr Valley Chipolte and Cranberry Cheese created at Carr Valley Cheese in LaValle, Wisconsin.
I came across this blog by James Beebe and he sums up this cheese so nicely that I’m just printing his words.
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Corks and Curds
Reflections on Wine and Cheese
Corks and Curds
Reflections on Wine and Cheese
Carr Valley Chipoltle Cranberry Cheddar
Master Cheesemaker Sid Cook at Carr Valley Cheese has done it again. He has created another unique and interesting variety of flavored American cheddar: Chipotle Cranberry Cheddar.
Master Cheesemaker Sid Cook at Carr Valley Cheese has done it again. He has created another unique and interesting variety of flavored American cheddar: Chipotle Cranberry Cheddar.
One of Sid's newest creations, it has already won a Bronze Award at the U.S. Championship Cheese Contest.
Chipotle Cranberry Cheddar uses a robustly flavored white cheddar. The sweetness of the cranberries contrasts nicely with the spicy, smoky flavor of the chipotle peppers. Carr Valley's website describes the cheese as having the flavor of Texas barbecue sauce. One writer described the cheese as a "mouth party." It is at the very least a good cheese to bring to a party.
As a general rule, I do not buy cheese-with-stuff-in-it because of the inferior quality of most such products. The "stuff" is typically added because the cheese-without-the-stuff would be exceedingly uninteresting.
On the way to a party last week, however, I took a chance with Carr Valley's Chipotle Cranberry Cheddar because I knew Sid Cook was behind it. I was not disappointed. I recommend this fun variation on ordinary cheddar."
And I found it to taste every bit as spicy delish as James Beebe describes.
To wrap up this cranberry caper … I took a platter of the four cheeses, along with Fuji apples slices and buttery crisp crackers, to the office for the gang to sample and enjoy. It was a total success. There wasn’t a crumb of cheese, a cracker or an apple slice left on the platter!
It seemed most favored the chipotle and cranberry cheese, but the Gorgonzola was a close second. I thought it was interesting that one of the guys wouldn’t even try the gorgonzola because he was informed beforehand that it was a kind of blue cheese. His loss! The gorgonzola was soooooooo creamy and mild and an excellent complement to the finely chopped dried cranberries and hazelnut. So, I didn’t tell him that the White Stilton was also a mild sister of the Blue Stilton cheese or he wouldn’t have tried that either.
Because I so enjoyed the Gorgonzola cranberry combination, I Googled and came across the following recipe. I think I’ll be whipping it up for Thanksgiving. And I really mean whipping it up because it takes almost no time at all! Give it a gander:
Phyllo Cups with Gorgonzola, Fruit and Nuts
Tiny phyllo shells are filled with a mixture of Gorgonzola cheese, dried cranberries, apple and walnuts, then baked.
Ingredients:
36 mini-phyllo cups (3 packs of 12)
6 ounces of Gorgonzola cheese
½ tsp lemon-pepper seasoning
¼ tsp seasoning salt
½ cup dried cranberries
½ cup of sweet apple, finely diced
½ cup chopped walnuts
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350-degrees and place phyllo cups on baking sheets. In a bowl mix together remaining ingredients. Divide filling equally between phyllo cups; bake 10 minutes or until golden brown and crisp. Serve hot or at room temperature.
Servings: 36
Note: phyllo cups are available at most larger grocery stores in the frozen food section.
Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!
http://www.risingsunfarms.com/
http://www.wensleydale.co.uk/
http://www.stiltoncheese.com/
http://www.carrvalleycheese.com/
http://www.corksandcurds.blogspot.com/
To wrap up this cranberry caper … I took a platter of the four cheeses, along with Fuji apples slices and buttery crisp crackers, to the office for the gang to sample and enjoy. It was a total success. There wasn’t a crumb of cheese, a cracker or an apple slice left on the platter!
It seemed most favored the chipotle and cranberry cheese, but the Gorgonzola was a close second. I thought it was interesting that one of the guys wouldn’t even try the gorgonzola because he was informed beforehand that it was a kind of blue cheese. His loss! The gorgonzola was soooooooo creamy and mild and an excellent complement to the finely chopped dried cranberries and hazelnut. So, I didn’t tell him that the White Stilton was also a mild sister of the Blue Stilton cheese or he wouldn’t have tried that either.
Because I so enjoyed the Gorgonzola cranberry combination, I Googled and came across the following recipe. I think I’ll be whipping it up for Thanksgiving. And I really mean whipping it up because it takes almost no time at all! Give it a gander:
Phyllo Cups with Gorgonzola, Fruit and Nuts
Tiny phyllo shells are filled with a mixture of Gorgonzola cheese, dried cranberries, apple and walnuts, then baked.
Ingredients:
36 mini-phyllo cups (3 packs of 12)
6 ounces of Gorgonzola cheese
½ tsp lemon-pepper seasoning
¼ tsp seasoning salt
½ cup dried cranberries
½ cup of sweet apple, finely diced
½ cup chopped walnuts
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350-degrees and place phyllo cups on baking sheets. In a bowl mix together remaining ingredients. Divide filling equally between phyllo cups; bake 10 minutes or until golden brown and crisp. Serve hot or at room temperature.
Servings: 36
Note: phyllo cups are available at most larger grocery stores in the frozen food section.
Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!
http://www.risingsunfarms.com/
http://www.wensleydale.co.uk/
http://www.stiltoncheese.com/
http://www.carrvalleycheese.com/
http://www.corksandcurds.blogspot.com/
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