Comfort food and cheese save the day!

Today I was working on another article about the LaMancha goats and the great cheese Rhonda Gothberg is making at Gothberg Farms in Bow, WA, but it’s not finished and I got hungry.

It was a drizzly, chilly day and I was in extreme need of comfort food. My little tomatoes are nowhere near using for cream of tomato soup, so I flung open my pantry and cast about for something feel good. I reached for a container of organic cream of tomato soup that had been awaiting this very day.

I heated it, and put it in a pretty Bettye Barclay bowl. For me, an indispensable part of the enjoyment is presentation and the bowl Bettye made was lovely to look upon and it reminded me of great times with that artist.

So, I was ready to spoon away, but I knew it was missing something.

I had already finished off a small but delicious wedge of Gothberg Raw Caprino Romano, which would have been such a nice addition to the soup. Gone. Even a dollop of her Greek Style Yogurt would have been marvelous. Gone. Her Woman of LaMancha would have been perfection! Didn’t have any.

However, I did have a little bit of Garcia Baquero winey goat cheese. I immediately grated it and tossed it into the creamy soup, topped off with a Spanish olive.

Ay Carumba! It really hit the spot! I was comforted. I was warmed. My mouth was happy. I heartily recommend grating whatever cheese you have into soup. And we are definitely entering Soup Season!

So, let me tell you the very little I know about Garcia Baquero Winey Goat Cheese. Garcia Baquero is the major producer of Manchego cheese in Spain. However, that cheese is made with sheep’s milk, and is aged anywhere from 3-9 months, or longer.

Winey Goat Cheese, made with 100% goat’s milk is very similar to Manchego in its fine salty sharpness and wonderful finish, but there is a slight taste difference … not better or worse … just different. It, too, is a semi-firm cheese that has been aged, but I couldn’t find out for how long. I did find out that part of its distinction is that it was soaked in red wine.

Garcia Baquero has been distributed in the USA since 2008 by Norseland, Inc.

So, when you’re putting together a Spanish cheese board, remember to include some Winey Goat Cheese. It pairs well with cured meats and autumn fruits and goes well with Rioja or Tawny Port.

www.gothbergfarms.com

The Market at Birch Bay

Cheese Saver Tips ala Beecher's Handmade Cheese ...

I was browsing Beecher's Handmade Cheese website and came across some interesting cheesemonger tidbits. This is a really good site for their line of really great artisan cheeses, recipes, etc. I took the above photograph at The Market at Birch Bay cheese department, which carries some of Beecher's but check out the Beecher's website for a full array of their cheeses.

Since there will be Thanksgiving leftovers, I thought this article from their website particularly helpful:

"Purchase only as much cheese at one time as you can eat in 2 or 3 sittings to avoid having to store cheese for too long.

Store cheese in the warmer parts of your refrigerator, such as a produce drawer or the top shelf, away from the fan.

Always rewrap cheese after it has been opened using a fresh wrapping.

Plastic wrap is acceptable for wrapping cheese. Some purists believe that plastic wrap does not allow the cheese to breathe. They will only use wrappings such as waxed paper, parchment paper, butcher paper or aluminum foil.

Some feel that plastic wrap imparts a flavor to the cheese, but new improvements in the quality of plastic wrap now make that less likely.

If cheese is wrapped in plastic, the wrapping should be changed every few days to allow the cheese to breathe, and to keep the cheese from becoming slimy or discolored.




Different types of cheese require different methods of storage. Follow these simple guidelines:



Hard cheeses with little moisture (such as Parmesan, Dry Jack) should be wrapped to avoid further moisture loss using plastic wrap.



Semi-hard cheeses (such as Cheddar, Jack, Swiss) can be wrapped in either plastic or waxed paper or parchment paper.



Semi-soft cheese (such as Brie, Gorgonzola) should be wrapped in parchment or waxed paper, or may be kept in a plastic container



Soft or fresh cheeses (such as Ricotta, Feta) should be kept in a plastic container.



Double wrap strong, pungent cheese like Blue Cheese or Limberger to avoid having these aromas permeate the refrigerator. It is best to place these cheeses in an airtight container for extra assurance against aroma leakage.



If a cheese develops a mold, slice the cheese about ½ below the mold to insure that it has been entirely removed, the rest of the cheese will still be fine. The exception to this rule is soft cheese or semi-soft cheese where the mold can more easily spread. Soft or semi-soft cheeses that develop a mold should be discarded.



Cheese may be frozen but the texture may become crumbly after it is defrosted, and the flavor is frequently diminished. Frozen cheese is best used for cooking. Goat and sheep milk cheeses tend to hold up better when frozen than cow milk cheeses. Defrost all cheeses slowly in the refrigerator instead of bringing them to room temperature right away. Do not freeze cheese longer than one or two months. Cheese that is already cooked and then frozen, such as cheese in a frozen macaroni and cheese, does not suffer in flavor or texture. "


Find many more interesting articles on their website:



http://www.beechershandmadecheese.com/

Happy Thanksgiving

Applewood Smoked Cheddar ...

I was poking around The Market at Birch Bay artisan cheese counter, looking for something a little different. I came across a wheel of Ilchester Applewood Smoked Cheddar and wondered what I could experiment with using a smoked cheddar. While loitering a bit longer looking at other cheese options, Birch Bay friend Betty Glassman came around the corner. It’s always fun to see Betty and I filled her in on this new artisan cheese I was going to try and she eagerly picked up a chunk and we agreed to both try it and share our results.

I immediately went home and looked in my pantry to see what might pair well with the cheese. I was so hungry I just wanted to inhale it on the spot, but with great discipline—yeah, right—I sliced a Fuji apple. The crisp, juicy freshness of the Fuji went well with the very creamy consistency and delightfully smoky taste. There’s a very pleasant balance of mild cheddar and smoke flavoring. I had an ice-cold Beck’s in the refrig and found it went well with this cheese.

In addition to apple slices, I also made a hale and hearty grilled cheese sandwich with buttered 9-grain whole wheat bread. I apologize, only half of the sandwich lasted long enough to be photographed. I could NOT resist sinking my teeth into the smoky grilled cheese. Good eats.

Later in the evening I went socializing and the hostess had two types of Yancey’s Fancy she served with an assortment of fresh grapes, cherries and crackers. One was a Bergenost (buttery triple cream, Norwegian style cheese: decadent!) The other was a smoked gouda. What fortunate timing! I could compare the Applewood smoked cheese with the Yancey’s Fancy smoked cheese. Where the cheddar was smooth and the smoke taste was mellow, the gouda was a different consistency, a little more …uhm … rubbery, rather than creamy, and the smoke flavoring reminded me of mesquite … a totally different taste sensation! I much preferred the mellow quality of the Applewood cheddar. Thank you, Julie.

I found that neither of these smoked cheeses are firm enough to grate, and I wouldn't say either crumbled well, the way most cheddars do anyway. The cheddar melted in a most delightful way. I'll definitely make more grilled cheese sandwiches using that cheese, but I'll also try other breads.

I learned that applewood smoked cheddar originally was a mild cheddar smoked at a low temperature using apple wood, and then hand-rubbed with a mild paprika. Now, however, most cheesemakers add smoke flavoring to the cheese instead of actually smoking it. I did find that Carr Valley Cheese in Wisconsin still smokes their mild cheddar. Sid Cook is the master cheesemaker at Carr Valley, and the latest in four generations of Cooks to build their business using innovative measures based on old world craftsmanship. Check out their website at http://www.carrvalleycheese.com/

I couldn’t reach Betty for her feedback, but I’ll share that shortly! I am delighted that others will be contributing to this artisan cheese adventure; the more the merrier!

Ilchester Applewood Smoked Cheddar/pasteurized cow’s milk/Somerset, Great Britain

Yancey’s Fancy Smoked Gouda/pasteurized cow’s milk/Corfu, NY, USA