Say Cheese! Say Fromage Fort!

Dear Readers, our latest contest might be completed, and we'll be using the special ingredient suggested by our winner Molly Ebert in December, but we'll be having another Iron Chef contest in December, with the special ingredient to be announced in January, so continue to sign up and drop us suggestions! Someone will be a lucky winner close to the holidays! And the prize is a Junior's Cheesecake! Remember, one entry per person, per day, and you must be a follower of the blog.
Also...I've just got to brag...about one of my blog pals. Cleo Coyle is now officially on TWO national bestseller lists. Holiday Grind hit the #6 position on the National Bookscan Hardcover Mystery Bestseller List and #9 on Barnes and Nobel's Hardcover Mystery List for the Chain Nationwide and Espresso Shot, which was just released in paperback last month, came in as the #2 ranked paperback bestseller for the month of October by the Independent Mystery Bookseller's Association. Wahooooo!


Now, on to the regular portion of this blog. If you are a fan of Krista Davis’s Domestic Diva Series (and you should be!!!) , prior to Mystery Lovers Kitchen, you might have checked out her solo blog, The Diva Dishes. On that blog, I shared the recipe below , so I apologize for any duplication, but heck, I promised this fabulous find to our MLK fans, and I try never to break a promise. [I didn't have any great pictures then, that's a plus now.]

When I started writing The Cheese Shop Mysteries, I knew I liked cheese, but I didn’t realize there was so much to learn about cheese. For instance, did you know that you could sample a different cheese every day of the year? Did you know that cheese and wine are considered soul mates? Why? Because they both come from the earth. How does cheese come from the earth, you ask? Well, you probably know that cheese is made from the milk of cows, goats, and sheep. Did you know that what the animals eat affects the flavor of the cheese? That’s right. The grasses of a season affect the flavors of the milk, and therefore, the cheese. And... cheese made from milk drawn in the early summer differs from one made late in the summer because of the maturity of the grass. Makes sense, right?

Well, put wine and cheese together in one dish and, voila! Major yum!

For a budget-wise treat, here is a great way to use up all that cheese that you bought when you went cheese tasting, but know you can’t finish right away. [I do that when I go to a cheese shop. Buy too much. It all looks, and tastes, so good!] [Also, cheese left over after a holiday bash...a party...any reason.]

Anyway, never discard those little leftover pieces. The French call this concoction fromage fort or strong cheese.

FROMAGE FORT

Ingredients & directions:

Gather one pound of leftover cheese, three kinds is enough but five to six kinds would be superb!!! Trim off any mold or rind or dried parts. Cut the cheese into cubes. Put the cheese in a food processor.

Toss in three to four cloves of garlic smashed up. Chop for a few seconds.

Add one half cup of dry white wine and one teaspoon ground pepper.

Puree until creamy, about thirty seconds.

Remove and transfer into a crock or bowl. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate.

Let warm to room temperature to serve with crusty bread or crackers.

Note: I’d probably pair this with my favorite every-day sauvignon blanc, St. Supery. It’s always consistent.

Enjoy!

If you want to check out more about me, check out my website: Avery Aames. And don't forget to signup for my newsletter, filled with facts and, well, news!!

Better yet, become one of the first to buy The Long Quiche Goodbye. It's now available on Amazon, Borders and Books a Million for pre-order!! The publishing date is July 6! No cover art yet, but that's coming soon!

Say Cheese for Five Cheese Tips!

Have you ever been to a cheese shop? A real cheese shop? Where the cheese monger is more than willing to cut a slice of cheese off for you to taste? At no charge? Where the scents of grasses and nuts and clovers waft through the air? It’s a heavenly experience. You owe yourself a trip.

When you’re there, see how the cheese monger wraps up the cheese for your trip home. I'll bet she (or he) doesn’t smother it in plastic wrap. She wraps it in paper so the cheese can breathe. Cheese heads, cheese makers, dairy scientists, (and authors) say cheese is a “living thing.” It needs to breathe. So here are a few tips that I've gleaned over the past year while writing The Cheese Shop Mysteries.

Tip #1: When you get home, if the store you bought from wrapped your cheese in plastic wrap, rewrap it in wax paper or parchment. That allows it to breathe but protects it from drying out in the fridge.

Tip #2: If it’s a smelly cheese, place the paper-wrapped wedge in a plastic container. That still gives it a little air to breathe.

Tip #3: Don’t store the cheese in the deli bin. Put it in the produce bin which has a higher humidity.

Tip #4: Taste the cheese at the store first, if you’re allowed. Wheels of cheese can vary and one could be “off” or overripe. Be particular.

Tip #5: Try not to buy too much cheese. {I know, this is difficult!!! LOL} But buy only what you will consume in one week. That’s right, one week. Cheese should be enjoyed as “fresh” as possible. (Sort of like fish.) However, in weeks to come, I'll give you a wonderful recipe for your "leftover" cheeses.

And now, may I offer you one of my favorite dishes. It’s a no-cook dish…serving my favorite cheeses with a lovely wine, adding some olives, a little candlelight, and voila.

For those of you on the run, I hope you’ll enjoy the simple pleasures of cheese.

Tonight’s serving:

St. Agur's Blue is a blue cheese made from cow’s milk. It was developed in 1988 in the Village of Monts du Velay, in the Auvergne region of France by the cheese company Bongrain. Because of it’s rich butterfat content, it qualifies as a double-cream cheese. It becomes spicier as it ages and doesn't have the bite of Stilton.

Campo de Montalban is a semi-firm Spanish Cheese made from a blend of cow, sheep and goats’ milk in La Mancha. It is like manchego in texture, though manchego is only sheeps’ milk.

Cypress Grove's Purple Haze, a goat's milk cheese with hints of lavender and fennel. I just made Portobello Mushroom "Naked Burger" with this cheese melted on top.

Remember: Offer a simple cracker. Spicy crackers might overwhelm the cheeses.

And tonight's wine:

Nobilo Sauvignon Blanc, from South Africa, yummy, with a bouquet of tropical fruit and citrus. And reasonably priced.

Enjoy!

If you check out my website, Avery Aames, you'll find more recipes and histories of cheese and links to wonderful cheese sites!

Say Cheese!