Say Cheese

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Let’s talk about cheese

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A few years ago, the Husband and I went to this amazing outdoor wine festival.  We paid $20 for an all-you-can-taste spree of yummy reds and whites.  We ended up shutting the festival down, and the women running the Cabot cheese booth gave us two HUGE two-pound blocks of the most amazing extra sharp cheddar.  I’m sure you can imagine how ridiculously exciting it was to be handed four pounds of free cheese after an all-you-can-drink wine festival…. We carried them home wrapped in our arms like little babies.  Anyway, we ended up freezing a block and a half because there was no way we could get through it before it went moldy. 

 

Thus began my love affair with extra sharp cheddar.  The sharper, the better.  I’ve recently begun to branch out a bit and try new cheeses.  I’ve bought some gorgonzola, some blue, loads of creamy goat, and some Havarti (and I really enjoyed the Havarti – yum).  And today, I picked up sliced goat cheese, which I had never seen before.

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So creamy, so mild, so delicious.  For so long, I was on a sharp cheddar kick that I overlooked how wonderful the milder cheeses can be. 

 

Fun factoid (source):

 

People who are lactose intolerant (about a quarter of the American population!) are sometimes able to tolerate goat cheese even if they have problems digesting cheese made from cow’s milk. The levels of lactose are similar, but the fat molecules in goat cheese are shorter, making them more digestible. Even people who don’t have a lactose intolerance will find that goat cheese appears to be more easily digested than conventional dairy products.

 

All I care about is that it tastes good.  And it does.

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Goat cheese on lentils, rice cakes and horseradish hummus, and a salad.

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What cheese are you really into lately?

{ 40 comments }

 

  • Hillary June 2, 2012, 1:26 pm

    I am not an adventurous cheese eater—the only “strong” cheese I can handle is cheddar! But I love a good mozzarella—especially with some tomato and basil!

  • Emily G June 2, 2012, 1:31 pm

    That sliced goats looks amazing? Where did you find that in Charlotte?

    • Caitlin June 3, 2012, 10:36 am

      Trader Joe! Yum.

  • Jessica June 2, 2012, 1:52 pm

    Have you tried Dubliner? It’s an Irish cheddar, fairly sharp/white, but it’s got the little calcium crystals and saltiness like Parmesan and it’s kind of nutty… but it’s definitely got a crumbly/cheddar texture. It’s fabulous.

    (and one time I was making classic, old-school southern baked mac n’ cheese – with the roux and everything – and realized I had already used the 1lb block of cheddar I was counting on. Used the Dubliner I had instead, and while it won’t be a regular thing because it’s so much more expensive, HOLY CRAPOLA was it fabulous!)

    • Stephanie C June 2, 2012, 5:10 pm

      This sounds like the Sea Side Cheddar sold at Whole Foods – one of my fave cheeses. Do you know if they are the same/similar?

      • Jessica June 6, 2012, 9:45 pm

        I think they’re similar, but not the same. Dubliner is made by Kerrygold in Ireland (the same people who make one of the more common Irish Butters sold in the US). Seaside is made in England, but the description sounds similar. I’ll have to try it!

    • Dione June 2, 2012, 8:46 pm

      Love Dubliner! See my comment below….I missed yours til I posted.

  • Ashley @ My Food 'N' Fitness Diaries June 2, 2012, 1:59 pm

    i’ve been loving cheese lately, especially muenster cheese! yum!

  • Kristin June 2, 2012, 2:20 pm

    Love me some brie!

  • Erin June 2, 2012, 2:21 pm

    I’ll eat pretty much any cheese you put in front of me – I’ve even loved all the “smelly” cheeses since I was a kid. You should try going to Whole Foods or another store with a good cheese section and talking to the folks behind the counter. I’ve tried many interesting ones that way! Gruyere is a great cheese for melting into stuff and I love Comte for just eating with crackers.
    If you ever get a chance to go into a real cheese shop, do it! It smells funny but there are amazing things to try.

  • Natalie B June 2, 2012, 2:24 pm

    I’m really loving trader Joe’s honey goat cheese. So good on rosemary crackers and topped with some dried cherries.

  • Katie @ Peace Love & Oats June 2, 2012, 2:24 pm

    ahhh cheese is always good! and that hummus looks delicious too!

  • Emily June 2, 2012, 2:29 pm

    I’m with you — super sharp cheddar cheese is my favorite. I also really like pepper jack on sandwiches. American cheese is fine, but I like cheese that adds a little kick to my food.

    When I was at the open-air market in Barcelona, someone gave us a small piece of this absolutely delicious cheese and it was different than any cheese I’ve had before. Unfortunately I don’t have any clue what it was.

  • Annette@FitnessPerks June 2, 2012, 2:42 pm

    I love gouda!! Strong cheeses are so yummy -like Grueyere, colby jack/pepper jack, blue cheese, and gorgonzola. YUMM.

  • Morgan June 2, 2012, 3:04 pm

    I have come to the conclusion that I must be the only person in the world who cannot stand cheese. People speak so lovingly about their favorites that I actually try it semi frequently (3-4 times a year) but I pretty much despise it all. I love the idea of having people over for wine and cheese because I love wine and it seems so sophisticated, but I just cannot get over the texture.

    • Christine @ BookishlyB June 2, 2012, 5:05 pm

      I’m kind of jealous! I wish I didn’t like it! I always end up eating too much and it really isn’t the healthiest food when you’re exceeding the serving size suggestions.

  • Lauren June 2, 2012, 3:10 pm

    Yum. Love cheese! I just bought haloumi to grill or pan fry and I love making chips from shredded, fried parmesan. I guess my fave would be fried cheese 🙂

  • Ramona June 2, 2012, 3:20 pm

    Girl, I love me some American cheese!

  • Earthy Nicole June 2, 2012, 3:26 pm

    I actually just moved to “Amish Country” so I’ve got a lot of great locally made cheeses around to try. My favorite right now is a baby swiss. It’s sort of creamy and sweet like butter! I’ve never had any goat milk or cheese at all but my best friend will be milking her goats soon so maybe I’ll have to try some.

  • Debbie June 2, 2012, 3:51 pm

    That goat looks like a Doxie!

  • Alison June 2, 2012, 5:13 pm

    That lunch looks super tasty! I LOOOOOVE cheese. I was just saying yesterday that I wish I could eat cheese all day long everyday. But, obviously that’s a bad idea. I love goat cheese, and feta, plus some spicy types as well.

  • Kim L June 2, 2012, 5:41 pm

    I love all cheeses, but my favorites would have to be feta cheese, blue cheese and sharp cheddar!

  • Katie June 2, 2012, 6:39 pm

    Yummy! I love love LOVE goat cheese and am especially obsessed with Trader Joe’s goat cheese and honey. It’s like they found the perfect proportions for it and it tastes so good! 🙂

  • Debbie June 2, 2012, 7:14 pm

    Where would I find horseradish hummus? Sounds great!

    • Caitlin June 3, 2012, 10:35 am

      Trader Joes!

  • Megan June 2, 2012, 7:15 pm

    I love cheese but my husband is boring and likes cream cheese and moterey jack. That’s about it. lol.

    My older sister was lactose intolerant as a baby but tolerated goat’s milk. (and breastmilk, of course).

  • Chelsea @ One Healthy Munchkin June 2, 2012, 8:12 pm

    I love cheese and will eat pretty much any kind! Lately I’m particularly loving brie. Paired with some apple, fig jam, and turkey on a panini – it’s heavenly!

  • Maura @ My Healthy 'Ohana June 2, 2012, 8:38 pm

    My friend’s baby loves that mild goat cheese! I’m totally into smoked Gouda for sandwiches 🙂

  • Dione June 2, 2012, 8:43 pm

    Love extra sharp cheddars! I am Canadian so I buy Balderson two year cheddar at costco all the time…I should get the five year next time.
    My current favorite is Dubliner by Kerrygold from Ireland. I would describe it as tangy and sweet at the same time. It’s like a dry aged cheddar and gouda maybe. Its well aged cause it has crystallization throughout. I buy it all the time at costco too:). I got my significant other hooked on it too.

    • Dione June 2, 2012, 8:44 pm

      I see someone above me loves it too ha:)

  • Rosalie June 2, 2012, 8:45 pm

    I’m basically just in love with all goat’s milk cheeses lately ha. There’s a local farm that makes the most amazing goat fetas and a variety of plain and flavoured spreadables (cracked black pepper, maple, garden herb, herbes de provence, sundried tomato… all amazing!). And goat brie is delicious! I find most commercial bries to be really… boring, so in the absence of the pricier, high-quality cow’s milk bries I’ve been taking advantage of goat brie.

    Much to my dismay I haven’t had occasion to sample a really extensive cheese platter for awhile…

  • Jenn June 2, 2012, 9:09 pm

    I love provolone! One of my fav, easy dinners: Morningstar Spicy Black Bean Burger, 1 slice of provolone, topped with a sunny side up egg:)
    Heavenly!

  • April June 2, 2012, 9:47 pm

    I am in total love with feta! I throw it on salads and put it in my frittatas and scrambled eggs. So good!

  • Irina @ Chocolatea Time June 2, 2012, 11:18 pm

    Yesss that goat cheese is so good! I actually just ate a slice about 1.5 hours ago. Trader Joe’s always carries the best foods!

  • Lexi @ You, Me, & A World to See June 3, 2012, 12:58 am

    I’ve never tried hummus or goat cheese on rice cakes, but that sounds awesome! Love the fun facts about goaty cheese 😉

  • Sam @ Fit for My Fork June 3, 2012, 6:55 am

    I love cheese! There’s a havarti they sell at Safeway that has jalapenos in it (I think it’s jalapenos, it’s been ages since I’ve had it) and I eat that stuff by the slice. It’s amazing!

  • Regan @ Cabot Creamery June 3, 2012, 9:18 am

    I’ve never seen sliced goat cheese. Interesting… I like goat cheese with figs… thinking a grilled cheese made with these slices + some homemade fig preserves would be sinfully good…

    …although so would an extra-sharp cheddar + apple butter grilled cheese, come to think of it. I’m sort of biased that way. It comes with the job, right? 😉 We’ll be here with plenty of extra-sharp when you get ready to change it up again!

    ~Regan Jones, RD
    for Cabot Creamery

    • Alett June 4, 2012, 11:06 am

      Love the Cabot extra-sharp cheddar (salivating) -> it is the BEST for homemade mac & cheese!

  • Alett June 4, 2012, 11:08 am

    thanks for the factoid!
    I’m currently a huge fan of Tartufo speziale (sp?) it is a creamier cheese with truffles. yummo. It is an occasional guilty pleasure plus it is only available at certain Whole Foods markets (although you can get other cheeses with truffles that are good but not as melt in your mouth good)
    🙂

  • Katy @ HaveYouHurd June 8, 2012, 11:28 am

    Cheese is one of my favorite things in the world!

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