Cheese!

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For all things cheesy. I got a mozzarella making kit for xmas, and made my first batch. Not too much work - about 1/2 an hour of gentle heating, gentle mixing, gentle ladling, microwaving, and kneading - and the results taste great. Only eaten with a drizzle of olive oil so far; I've yet to try melting it. We've also recently discovered cheese curds, which are squeaky and salty and a nice quick snack.

Jaq (Jaq), Wednesday, 4 January 2006 16:44 (eighteen years ago) link

I have so much leftover Christmas cheese it's incredible. I have, in various sizes:

Lord Of The Hundreds
Carney Ash
Sage Derby
Stinking Bishop
Lincolnshire Poacher
White Stilton with lemon peel
plus about another three I can't remember.

I WILL (not) LEARN NEXT TIME.

aldo_cowpat (aldo_cowpat), Wednesday, 4 January 2006 16:52 (eighteen years ago) link

The folks that make Stinking Bishop also make one called Slack Ma Girdle - which I can get through Amazon, if I time it exactly right. (which I failed to do this year)

Jaq (Jaq), Wednesday, 4 January 2006 16:59 (eighteen years ago) link

Cheeeeeese!

At some point this year I might try to make Indian cheese.

Casuistry (Chris P), Thursday, 5 January 2006 03:34 (eighteen years ago) link

I made paneer! It was easier than mozzarella, but I didn't let the milk get hot enough before I added the lemon juice. And then I didn't twist it tight enough in the cloth, or let it drain long enough. So it was less paneer-like than it could have been.

Jaq (Jaq), Thursday, 5 January 2006 04:57 (eighteen years ago) link

I think I have literally eaten my own weight in cheese this xmas, none of it very exciting either. And my dad came to stay and insisted I put my nice camembert in the fridge, the heathen :(

Also I was given a toasted sandwich maker (ah, fond memories of student life) so that has upped the cheese consumption even more.

White stilton with lemon peel sounds amazing!

Archel (Archel), Thursday, 5 January 2006 09:10 (eighteen years ago) link

Mmmm cheese toasties! I have missed eating my own weight in cheese this holiday season. I miss eating brie soooo much.

Panther Pink (Pinkpanther), Thursday, 5 January 2006 11:03 (eighteen years ago) link

I have had cheese and biscuits with glasses of port for the last three days. I feel like a retired colonel.

My current favourite cheese would have to be Mrs Bell's Blue (first from top) which was on the cheeseboard at the hotel Mrs Coastaltown and I stayed at in Ludlow last year. Yum.

Matt (Matt), Thursday, 5 January 2006 12:43 (eighteen years ago) link

Dear god, there's white stilton with OTHER kinds of fruit?? Racheeee once made me eat w. s. with APRICOTS, and I thought that was the height of curdled dairy goodness. Alas despite the fact that we bought it at some regular old grocery store in the UK, the supply in NY is very undependable. Now I want some for elevenses.

Laurel (Laurel), Thursday, 5 January 2006 15:06 (eighteen years ago) link

I get the one with apricots from Waitrose far more often than I should...

Archel (Archel), Thursday, 5 January 2006 15:58 (eighteen years ago) link

Laurel, at various times I've found a whole arsenal of adulterated Stiltons at Westside Market, on Seventh Avenue and like 16th Street. Or I'd look at Bierkraft -- is that near you?

Paul Eater (eater), Thursday, 5 January 2006 19:22 (eighteen years ago) link

I finally found it a few years ago at the Garden of Eden on err 27th betw. 7th and 8th Aves, I think. Have never been to Westside Market. Bierkraft technically within taking-the-bus distance so that may be the best chance. Thanks, Paul! I'm bringing you all my grocery woes from now on.

Laurel (Laurel), Thursday, 5 January 2006 20:08 (eighteen years ago) link

I have just had some white stilton with cranberries and orange peel. Num num. Christmas cheese!

ailsa (ailsa), Thursday, 5 January 2006 23:12 (eighteen years ago) link

one month passes...
White stilton with mango and ginger! Wow!

Jaq (Jaq), Sunday, 26 February 2006 00:25 (eighteen years ago) link

Oh, that's good stuff. Mmm, cheese with bits in it!

ailsa (ailsa), Sunday, 26 February 2006 07:31 (eighteen years ago) link

I'm surprised I didn't rail against cheese with bits of fruit in it further upthread, I can't stand the stuff, usually using a good strong fruit to hide the fact that it's really rubbish cheese, same theory as the salted butter argument.

Last night we had some average manchego and something new for me - Buffalo blue, quite sharp and acidic but pretty creamy at the same time, nice.

Porkpie (porkpie), Sunday, 26 February 2006 17:09 (eighteen years ago) link

Why would you take really good cheese and put bits in it? That would seem like a waste. Of course it's somewhat rubbish cheese. The point is the interaction between the cheese and the bits, no?

Casuistry (Chris P), Sunday, 26 February 2006 17:16 (eighteen years ago) link

yeah, but it's nasty. Why not have some good cheese and some nice fruit on the side? like a nice old cheddar (god it's ages since I had some Montgomery) and a crisp apple?

I suppose I'm just a cheese rockist.

Porkpie (porkpie), Sunday, 26 February 2006 17:34 (eighteen years ago) link

Yeah, it's bland-ish cheese made better by the addition of other stuff. I could eat some stilton and eat some cranberries as well, but someone has gone to the bother of putting them together for me. It's like railing against chocolate chip cookies on the grounds you could eat some plain cookies and a bag of buttons, or something.

ailsa (ailsa), Sunday, 26 February 2006 19:16 (eighteen years ago) link

for me it's like herbal or fruit teas, the idea sounds great, you try it and ... meh.

Porkpie (porkpie), Sunday, 26 February 2006 19:47 (eighteen years ago) link

Well, the convenience of someone else having put things together already, meaning I can just toss some in the lunch bucket and not have to discover later that I grabbed dried squash instead of mango or pickled watermelon rind instead of ginger to go with my cube of Laughing Cow or whatever, makes it okay by me.

In other news, I made mozzarella again today, but only 2/3rds of the batch actually became mozzarella-like while the final 1/3rd is much more ricotta-ish. It will still be tasty, I expect.

And, we finally found a store that sells organic pasteurized (vs. ultra-) milk, which as a side benefit is also non-homogenized.

Jaq (Jaq), Monday, 27 February 2006 00:49 (eighteen years ago) link

ps. Porkpie, you're not wrong on that - it's completely crap cheese. Had some last night, more like artificially flavored mango chalk. I'd be better off with a bottle of Major Grey's chutney and a hunk of cheddar.

btw, was the buffalo blue made with water buffalo milk? I'm wondering if anyone does cheese from buffalo/bison milk.

Jaq (Jaq), Tuesday, 28 February 2006 15:22 (eighteen years ago) link

Eichten's in Minnesota makes a line of bison-milk cheeses. I remember a sort of full nutty/grassy flavor that reminded me of some Italian cow cheeses.

Paul Eater (eater), Tuesday, 28 February 2006 15:38 (eighteen years ago) link

I think it was this:
http://www.pepperjamsearch.com/gourmet-food/igourmet/buffalo-blue-cheese.htm

It tasted a hell of a lot better than it smelt. I almost wouldn't taste it, the smell put me off so much, but it was very tasty

Vicky (Vicky), Tuesday, 28 February 2006 16:31 (eighteen years ago) link

This weekend I bought:

Beaufort (a French gruyere-a-like)
Cave-aged Gruyere
Reblochon de Savoie
Cornish goat brie-style thing
A soft ewe's cheese that was really very lemony.

MUST STOP BUYING CHEESE.

aldo_cowpat (aldo_cowpat), Monday, 6 March 2006 10:59 (eighteen years ago) link

For the Oscar party:

Dolce Latte
Lingot de Quercy
Petit Basque
an English Cheddar whose name I forget but which was incredible.

M. White (Miguelito), Tuesday, 7 March 2006 15:14 (eighteen years ago) link

four months pass...
DEAR GOD, I BOUGHT £30 OF CHEESE AT THE FRENCH MARKET LAST WEEKEND. I NEED HELP.

aldo_cowpat (aldo_cowpat), Thursday, 3 August 2006 09:47 (eighteen years ago) link

No, you need some very tasty bread and crackers

Vicky (Vicky), Thursday, 3 August 2006 11:15 (eighteen years ago) link

Fortunately, I have plenty of those.
Unfortunately, my brother is coming down tonight and he and his wife will eat it all.
Fortunately, the brie was very, very ripe when I bought it and needs eating anyway.

aldo_cowpat (aldo_cowpat), Thursday, 3 August 2006 12:06 (eighteen years ago) link

Curses, when you said you needed help I presumed it was to eat the cheese and was about to offer my services.

Matt (Matt), Sunday, 6 August 2006 15:26 (eighteen years ago) link

I ended up buying even more cheese as we drove round Somerset yesterday and despite 4 of us eating our fill last night there is still more than when we started.

aldo_cowpat (aldo_cowpat), Sunday, 6 August 2006 15:33 (eighteen years ago) link

I'm just back from a fortnight roughly halfway between Cantal and Roquefort and OMG THE CHEESE. My favourites, both from the same producer in Aveyron:

Pascadol: kind of like a very shallow camembert in shape - it's only about a centimetre tall - but tastes much fresher and creamier.

Tomme de Cedene: older, riper and huger, at about a metre across. Makes for cracking aligot.

I have no idea if anyone imports either of these to the UK - I just got them from the local market - but I strongly advise tracking them down if you are able.

Mädchen (Madchen), Thursday, 10 August 2006 11:34 (eighteen years ago) link

eight months pass...
jaq, please post your paneer advice? please?

Ai Lien, Tuesday, 17 April 2007 16:19 (seventeen years ago) link

You want the milk to be just boiling when you add the lemon juice. Stir it in and take the milk off the heat then let it sit awhile (15 min) for the curd to form. Pour everything carefully into a cheesecloth lined strainer, let it stand for 30 min or so to drain out the whey, then twist up the cheesecloth tight and let it hang and drain even more (overnight even). Then you can slice it and brown it in ghee.

Jaq, Tuesday, 17 April 2007 19:20 (seventeen years ago) link

I spent way too many $ on cheese while I was home last weekend. I hadn't had any St. Agur for so so long. Also got some of the old standby d'Affinoise and a little wheel of Cowgirl Creamery's Mt. Tam (another triple cream white mold buttery bit of decadence). Also some dalmatian fig spread to go with the St. Agur for extra-double yum.

Jaq, Tuesday, 17 April 2007 19:25 (seventeen years ago) link

Powdered cheese is great. I went to the spice store (I think it might be called The Spice Store) in Chicago and bought dehydrated, powdered bleu and cheddar cheeses. Wonderful on anything that lends itself to sprinkling and cheese: popcorn, toast, potatoes, and cetera.

Also noteworthy: powdered shiitakes.

Jesse, Wednesday, 18 April 2007 03:36 (seventeen years ago) link

Was it Penzey's Spices? I buy from them on-line, but they've got stores in a few places. They had a few different "cheese sprinkles", but I haven't tried any. Would they work on a salad, or are they too powdery for that?

Jaq, Wednesday, 18 April 2007 13:09 (seventeen years ago) link

It was http://www.thespicehouse.com/

Jesse, Wednesday, 18 April 2007 20:02 (seventeen years ago) link

I went to the Penzey's in Memphis a few weeks ago. Nice, but pricy.

Rock Hardy, Thursday, 19 April 2007 03:25 (seventeen years ago) link

so, in the fridge right now is:

smoked cheddar (posh non-factory stuff)
a camembert
some oude gouda (which is absolutely gourgeous)
and a beautiful looking langres

.......


and here's me boiling up some plain rice with miso as I've had a bastard of a stomach upset since Wednesday.

Porkpie, Saturday, 28 April 2007 12:22 (seventeen years ago) link

two weeks pass...
I just discovered farmer's cheese today -- Baltic style if that means anything. I sort of could tell that I would like it from the list of ingredients and the designation PLAIN but I never imagined how something could be perfectly plain. Recommended with Shredded Wheat with Bran. Small biscuits. Squares.

I was wrong about Tomme de Savoie. I had it at the end of a long complex meal. It is way too salty.

youn, Sunday, 13 May 2007 22:55 (seventeen years ago) link

two years pass...

You guys, I have a large quantity of crumbly queso fresco of the non-melting variety. Is there any way to melt this stuff into a smooth cheese sauce?

Hugh Manatee (WmC), Sunday, 16 August 2009 21:27 (fifteen years ago) link

Probably not. If it doesn't melt readily from heat, the proteins aren't going to co-operate into smooth sauceness. You could try to blend it into submission, but it will most likely just be grainy suspended cheese particles instead of creamy deliciousness.

Jaq, Sunday, 16 August 2009 22:08 (fifteen years ago) link

If it won't melt then it won't blend - if you try, the resultant sauce will have the consistency of cheese flavoured wallpaper paste.

Master John of Scotland, alias Scotus (snoball), Sunday, 16 August 2009 22:12 (fifteen years ago) link

Use it instead like you would feta - omelet filling, with warm boiled red potatoes dressed in olive oil and lemon, crumbled on a salad, etc.

Jaq, Sunday, 16 August 2009 22:31 (fifteen years ago) link

Good ideas. I have some new potatoes that need to be dealt with.

Hugh Manatee (WmC), Sunday, 16 August 2009 22:39 (fifteen years ago) link

hmm, in that case olive salad with dill and oregano wouldn't be offensive

Matt, Thursday, 20 August 2009 23:26 (fifteen years ago) link

olive salad? what egzactly is this?

outdoor_miner, Wednesday, 26 August 2009 17:31 (fifteen years ago) link

It's actually just called that. It's made with durian, caperberries, avocado, lychee and boiled peanuts.

repeating cycles of smoking and cruelty (Michael White), Wednesday, 26 August 2009 18:22 (fifteen years ago) link

food of the gods

just sayin, Wednesday, 26 August 2009 18:55 (fifteen years ago) link

oh, i'm afraid of durian. thanks tho', but why is it called olive salad, to trick people?

outdoor_miner, Wednesday, 26 August 2009 21:53 (fifteen years ago) link

New Orleans olive salad
Feta Olive Salad
etc.

Jaq, Wednesday, 26 August 2009 22:11 (fifteen years ago) link

(Apologies)

repeating cycles of smoking and cruelty (Michael White), Wednesday, 26 August 2009 22:13 (fifteen years ago) link

yummy looking salads, and a quote from A Confederacy of Dunces, to boot! nice

outdoor_miner, Wednesday, 26 August 2009 23:58 (fifteen years ago) link

tsk

Matt, Sunday, 30 August 2009 00:03 (fifteen years ago) link

five years pass...

I just got a $150 gift certificate to Murray's! By "I" I mean my spouse but whatever! DECISION PARALYSIS has set in. What cheese should I get?

http://www.murrayscheese.com/cheese.html

mom tossed in kimchee (quincie), Friday, 9 January 2015 00:30 (nine years ago) link

OMG, wow! So many look so good. I love smelly cheeses, so epoisses and stinking bishop would probably be in my cart, but how to decide???

Jaq, Friday, 9 January 2015 01:02 (nine years ago) link

yes very cool quincie! i was vegan for about 10 years, now vegetarian, so cheese has really been an exciting thing for me to explore. i'm just finding it so nice to have this very complex, diverse group of strong-tasting and interesting-textured and fatty food to have throughout the day. just having a very slices or chunks throughout the day to accompany a meal has really elevated a lot of things i used to cook vegan.

marcos, Friday, 9 January 2015 01:05 (nine years ago) link

very few slices

marcos, Friday, 9 January 2015 01:06 (nine years ago) link

what a delicious cerfiticket! so many great choices too on that website. i'd be tempted to try one of their unique bleus, like a Gorgonzola. and that smoked chevre from Oregon sounds really nice. i dunno, taleggio for grilled cheese purposes? i freakin' love nice British cheddar. oh, and that caerphilly looks lovely....

Tom Waits for no one (outdoor_miner), Friday, 9 January 2015 20:40 (nine years ago) link

three years pass...

went to Claremont to visit the remaining Rhino records store and took a little walk around. . . and lo and behold a sweet, small cheese shoppe! got a hunk of a very soft washed rind cheese from France called Langres Coupe that has the wonderful funk, but the texture is sorta unusually light. can't really describe that except it seems slightly aerated but it's not, far as i can tell. also got a aged Dutch gouda, L'amuse that likely rules, too. anyways, will def. get back over to Cheese Cave again someday

form that slug-like grex (outdoor_miner), Saturday, 24 November 2018 20:36 (five years ago) link

one month passes...

I feel like a barbarian now that I just learned that not everyone (most people?) eats the rind on cheese. I always eat it.

Yerac, Wednesday, 16 January 2019 18:25 (five years ago) link

I eat it when it tastes good and don't when it does not.

mom tossed in kimchee (quincie), Thursday, 17 January 2019 02:18 (five years ago) link

Yeah it depends

why date Ryan Adams in the first place? (Sufjan Grafton), Thursday, 17 January 2019 02:42 (five years ago) link

three years pass...

I ordered some DIY cheese kits and they just arrived! Scanned through the instructions and am a little o_O at some of the sterilization measures but hopefully I’ll be making some Monterey Jack soon!

Wordle Stephen Curry II (Leee), Wednesday, 19 January 2022 05:22 (two years ago) link

And nice to see other people also making cheese in this thread! Another thing I need to get before I even start is bleach!

Wordle Stephen Curry II (Leee), Wednesday, 19 January 2022 05:24 (two years ago) link

intersting, but probably a prudent gesture

Half Japanese Breakfast (outdoor_miner), Saturday, 22 January 2022 23:38 (two years ago) link

two years pass...

omg Willoughby, where have you been all my life

https://www.tasteatlas.com/images/ingredients/32e78069c80541d59dd79d7f72925608.jpg?mw=1300

go polish your nose ring (sleeve), Saturday, 7 September 2024 22:08 (one month ago) link

thought this revive would be this

An Otter realizing all his cheese has run out... pic.twitter.com/cwgWCbmv8U

— In Otter News.... (@In_Otter_News2) September 7, 2024

Yuwen Hu's army (Noodle Vague), Saturday, 7 September 2024 22:37 (one month ago) link


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