The Cheese Blog
Winter Artisan Cheese Fair- This Sunday
I spent the past two days at a Calistoga hot springs retreat. Wow. One might think a Northern Californian like myself would head to the natural springs yearly, since they're only an hour an a half away, after all, and are the most relaxing thing since Grandma's freshly baked peanut butter cookies. Well, not the case with this girl. This was my first time; I am what some might call an "over-worker." I tend to work 14-30 11-plus days straight months at a time until I hit a wall and (and not a padded one, a wall with more of firm, brick-like texture) fall flat on my face, and realize, hey, perhaps I should take better care of myself.
So these past few days I have been. I feel amazing. I'm convinced I returned much more glowy than I left. Could be the springs, the hours of conversations I had with a dear friend, the massages, the yoga, the hikes, the pines, or, the glitter the folks at the springs sprinkle on you every night while you sleep. Who knows. But the point is, I feel refreshed. Also important- I am excited for what this weekend brings- an opportunity to eat pounds of cheese, hang out with cheesemakers, and taste through some of the best of Northern California's wine and beer while holding a pen with which to sign books (I'm coordinated, see).
I hope you have a chance to stop by the Sonoma Winter Artisan Cheese Fair this Sunday. If you do, stop by my table and say hi. I've love to meet you, readers!
Also, here's a link to an article I recently wrote for the Bold Italic, called "7 Pairings to Elevate the Way You Cheese," if you'd like to read about San Francisco's delicious cheese scene. The photographs are by my awesome friend Molly DeCoudreaux- I love them.
More soon....
An Ode to Cheese Labels, and, My Face on One.
- "Fromage Étiquette de Kirstin", by Curd Nerd.
Unless it's Casu Marzu and its claim to fame are the bugs crawling through its funky interior, cheese rarely has to try hard to be pretty. The best a Casu Marzu cheesemaker can do is adorn his wormy wheel in a bow and dress and hope it catches someone's eye. But an everyday artisan cheese? It comes out of the cave all glowy and bright, like it just had a facial. It's beautiful already, and likely relaxed from ample massaging.
Well, when I was unwrapping cheese at work the other day, I found myself once again taking pictures not of the cheese, but of its label. And then I took one of cheese paper. Yup, that's what it has come down to.
I don't think I ever mentioned cheese labels here at "It's Not You, it's Brie."
In case you haven't been caught by a coworker before while taking shots of what's wrapping cheese, so perhaps aren't yet aware, the labels and wrappers can be almost as delicious as the cheeses themselves. Here are some of my favorites.
I'll be sure to record more in the future. Since I wrote this first post, I have learned oh so much, my dear readers. I have learned of one man's obsession with "Fromage Étiquette" (French for "cheese labels"). The added designs on this post are all Curd Nerd's. The label with my face on it above, thank The Man Himself (but really, thank you!) Curd Nerd is a lactose leaning, cheese-loving, fromage-ophile working the cheese industry in New Zealand. And he's awesome. See more here. Really loving the labels? Oh, but Curd Nerd has a pinintrest board too. Thank you for sharing, Curd Nerd! I had to redo this post after seeing such dairy art love.
Any favorites from your area?
Herbed Cauliflower & Cheese Casserole - A Hot Dish for a Cold House
I didn't want to leave you hanging too long, dear readers. Last week I posted a cheeseless recipe. I'm sorry. This was only because I needed a breather, so I could fit more cheese in my belly after an extremely full five days of tasting, drinking, having fun, and possibly even overeating at the Good Food Awards and The Fanciness. Since the recipe was a soup and it's winter, I thought if you were also feeling full, you might be able to forgive the dairy-slight for the week. Basically I pushed my food needs on you. I may or may not do it again.
To assuage any fears you may have that I'm turning the wrong corner, however, here is a cheesed up recipe for you. A gouda and cauliflower casserole, but with a little mint and parsley for modernity's sake. Most importantly, it's topped with cheese. Also very important- it's heavy, rich, and it'll keep you warm in winter. If you're getting PG&E bills like I am because you live in a big, lofty, single-paned windowed house and some areas of it only get warm with an electric space heater, this is a very, very good thing. PG&E, this dish is because of you. But it's not for you- you can't have any.
Cauliflower Cheese Casserole
With family in Minnesota and a grandmother who was more comfortable with a can of cream-of-mushroom soup than she was with filling a cookie jar, I grew up acutely familiar with the casserole, otherwise known as the “hot dish.” Despite the flack the can of cream-of can of soup gets, I rarely minded being served the baked savory dishes. They were rich, creamy, normally covered in cheese, and, quite frankly, a welcome respite from all the vegetables normally served.
Although I wouldn’t turn down a rich hot dish because it had a can of soup in it, I now like to make the base for my casserole from scratch. I start with a béchamel like I’m making mac n’ cheese and liven it up with fresh herbs, citrus, and a vegetable or two. Because it has noodles, this casserole is like a mac n’ cheese, but a little less rich, and the acid in the lemon juice cuts through the creamy béchamel. Serve with a salad on the side.
Serves 6-8
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons, plus 2 teaspoons unsalted butter 1 clove garlic, chopped 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice 1 1/2 teaspoon salt 4 cups cauliflower florets 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour 3 cups whole milk ½ onion, finely chopped 2 tablespoons mint, chopped 1/3 cup parsley, chopped zest of one lemon 7 ounces (1 ¾ cups) Gouda, shredded ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes 6 ounces dry penne pasta, cooked according to package directions
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375°F.
Melt 1 teaspoon butter. Add garlic, lemon juice, ½ teaspoon of salt and stir to combine. Place cauliflower florets on a sheet pan and top with butter mixture. Gently mix to evenly coat cauliflower. Bake for 15-20 minutes.
Grease casserole dish with 1 teaspoon butter. Set aside.
While cauliflower is roasting, heat a large, heavy bottomed sauce pan over low heat. Add remaining 3 tablespoons butter and flour. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring the whole time, and being careful to get around the edges of the pan. Add ¼ cup milk and whisk thoroughly so there are no lumps. Repeat with remaining milk, adding ¼ cup at a time. Whisking constantly, increase heat to medium, and bring to a low boil. Add onion, then lower heat to simmer. Add 1 teaspoon of salt. Cook for 7 minutes, stirring occasionally. Next, add the mint, parsley, lemon zest and 5 ounces (1 ¼ cup) shredded Gouda and mix until the cheese is melted. Add the pepper flakes and the pasta and stir.
Remove cauliflower from oven and place in prepared casserole dish in even layer. Pour pasta mixture over cauliflower and mix gently. Top with remaining cheese.
Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, until the sauce starts to firm and the top is golden brown and crusty. Remove from oven and wait to let cool for 5 minutes before serving.
What's your favorite cheesy casserole?
Awards and Making Room for More Cheese
Well The Fanciness is over, and, wow, I'm .... full. Eating pounds of chocolate, charcuterie, cheese, cupcake-flavored popcorn, and everything and anything that's either caramel or chocolate and labeled fleur de sel-ed or "salted" will do that to you. And of course one doesn't stop there. There are thyme and lemon zest cookies to try. By the way, did you know that Psy has a commercial for spicy ramen? They were playing it at the show.
In other news, I was honored to attend the Good Food Awards this past Friday in the Ferry Building. Because I was a judge, I had the chance to see the winners line up and receive acknowledgement for their hard work and general deliciousness. And then... I got to taste (seeing a theme for the past five days here?) the winners's goods. Shout out to my friends at Jarred SF Brine and Briar Rose who won for their pickles and cheese. All the winners are tops, but these ladies are awesome, relatively new to the scene, and their creations are especially delectable. Slightly off-point and perhaps too unrelated, the first times Emiliana of Jarr-ed and of Sarah of Briar Rose and I met (seperatley) involved eating very rich pork. Emiliana and I met while she was roasting a suckling pig, caja china style, at the wine shop where I work, and Sarah and I shared fried pig skins in North Carolina while waiting for more pig to arrive at a BBQ joint. They both had me at crispy pork skin, and after I tasted what else they made, well, I was sold again.
Speaking of rich things and my love of pork fat, I'm going to do something very unorthodox for this blog, and post an un cheese-related recipe. With the pounds of cheese and salted pork that I ate over the past five or so days, this girl needs some veggies. After fifty and sixty-degree weather in the Bay Area the past couple days now just rolling over to misty and rainy skies, I'm also feeling the soup vibe. So today, I'm sharing with you one of my favorite original soup recipes. You know, in case, like me, you need to prep your tummy for more cheese for next week. Or later this week. Also, If you're keen on seeing occasional cheese-prep-breather recipes, let me know, I have a few more I can share.
Lamb, Kale & Chickpea Soup
Inspired by Greek and Corsican food, this soup packs a lot of flavor. Olives, citrus, chickpeas and lamb are staples of these cuisines, and since they’re also some of my favorite flavors, I cook this soup at least once a month during the colder seasons. The chickpeas and lamb make it filling, and the kale, of course, counts for veggie points. I need nothing more than this soup and crusty bread spread with butter for a winter’s meal. Well, that, and a glass of wine. Use a mix of cured olives for the best result. Serves 6-8
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons unsalted butter 1 pound lamb stew meat, cut into medium-sized pieces (keep the fat on) 1 1/2 onion, chopped 3 cloves garlic, chopped 2 carrots, medium diced 2 celery ribs, medium diced 1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste 1 quart chicken stock zest of one lemon 1 ½ tablespoons fresh lemon juice ½ cup pitted, lightly chopped mixed olives 2 cups cooked chickpeas 2 sprigs rosemary 1 bunch kale, de-stemmed and chopped pepper to taste
Melt butter in heavy-bottomed soup pot on medium-heat. Brown lamb about 3 minutes on each side, then set meat aside. Add onions and garlic to still-hot pan and cook for 10 minutes. Add carrots, celery, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and cook for 5 more minutes. Put lamb back in pot, cover with chicken stock, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, and bring to boil. Add lemon zest and juice, and olives. Cover, reduce to simmer, and cook for 40 minutes. Add chickpeas and rosemary and cook for 35 more minutes. Remove rosemary sprigs and discard. Add kale, recover pot, and cook for 5-7 minutes more. Using a potato masher, crush about half the chick peas to thicken soup. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Cheese, Wine & Beer Eventavaganza Hits the Bay
Ladies and gentleman, if you happen to be in the Bay Area in the next couple months and like cheese and beer and wine, and... then, buckle up. There's a tidal wave a coming. Classes here, class there, SF Beer Week, Sonoma Cheese Festival, Sonoma Cheese Conference, and ... whew. More. Just prepare to be full and and happy until at least late March.
Because I recently published my book (see right-hand Amazon link and huge promo photo of me in the above flyer), I'll be around. I tend to be around anyhow, but in these next couple months, I'll be super around. Educating, sipping a beer or wine or two, writing, attending events, consulting. Below I'm listing some forthcoming events that have caught my eye in my area, and also some events that I'll be hosting, and classes I'll be teaching and attending. I've bolded the titles of the ones I'll be hosting or those at which I'll be reading my book (and tasting cheese). Hope to see you around!
Good Food Awards Gala Reception (THIS Friday)
Join us in celebrating the 114 Good Food Award Winners of 2013 at a gala gathering inside the San Francisco Ferry Building, with the winning food and drink on tap. Rub elbows with the winners from 30 states and 1 Federal District, media, host Alice Waters and the 130 Good Food Awards judges [one of them is me, rubbing elbows] while sampling the best cheese, charcuterie, pickles, preserves, confections, chocolate, and coffee on regional tasting plates and in dishes as envisioned by 10 local chefs, including Sarah and Evan Rich of Rich Table, Comstock Saloon's Carlo Espinas, Bill Corbett of The Absinthe Group, Trevor Ogden of Chambers and Slanted Door alum Grace Nguyen of Asian Box. An open bar will serve the 14 winning beers alongside cocktails mixed by Rye on the Road with the 13 winning spirits. Black tie optional."
Cheese School of San Francisco
Author Kirstin Jackson’s new book, It’s Not You, It’s Brie is a celebration of the unique character of American’s artisan cheesemaking. In this class, she’ll introduce you to the cheeses that she loves so much she had to write a book about them. As her day job is as the wine bar manager (and cheese program director) at Solano Cellars, Kirstin select four wines from her most beloved winemakers to toast the occasion.
Super Bowl Showdown, Instructor: Gordon Edgar | Friday, February 1st (6:30-8:30pm)
The Super Bowl, a time for cheering, chanting, and cheese. In this class, the cheeses from the home state of the bowl-bound teams will go head-to-head. You’ll decide who the winner is ahead of Sunday’s game. You’ll also taste the party-ready cheeses and accompaniments instructor and legendary cheese buyer Gordon Edgar thinks are worthy of a trophy.
Luscious & Loverly: Valentine’s Day Cheese & Wine Thursday, February 14th (6:30-8:30pm)
There is no better way to romance your honey than with rare and fine fromage, luxurious accompaniments, fiery bubblies, and indulgent dessert wines. Instructor Kirstin Jackson author of It’s Not You, It’s Brie, leads the lovefest with a festive guided tour through the most indulgent of cheeses and wines. Muh!
In this four-hour Saturday workshop you’ll learn the basics of making fresh cheeses from home-cheesemaking guru Mary Karlin, author of Artisan Cheesemaking at Home. First, you’ll sample the types of cheeses that you’ll be making — panir, ricotta, marscarpone, and chevre — and learn the science behind the curdling process. Then you will break into cheesemaking teams: Each team will make all four cheeses. By the time it’s all over you’ll have enough home-made cheese to take home to your loved ones, if you can resist eating it all yourself
Epicurean Connection: It's Not You, it's Brie Reading .... has been postponed- will update once rescheduled.
San Francisco Beer Week
In this beer-pairing workshop, Master Cicerone Nicole Erny and Kirstin Jackson, author of "It's Not You, It's Brie: A Guide to Unwrapping American Cheese Culture," will collide two fascinating worlds of flavor: farmhouse beer and farmstead cheese. Participants will taste through 5 beers and 5 cheeses to learn what defines these terms and walk away with an arsenal of experiential knowledge on how to pair the two.
About Nicole: Nicole is the fourth person, first woman and youngest person to acchieve the title of Master Cicerone (R). This Certification culminated from 2 days of intensive written, oral, and tasting exams which were proctored and graded by highly respected and experienced members of the beer industry. Of the 11 candidates that sat for the exam in November of 2011, Nicole was the only new Master Cicerone to emerge.
Drake’s Sau & Brau – Part Trois, Feb 13, 2013 6:00 PM
Sau & Brau has become one of the must-attend events of SF Beer Week, and there's little reason to wonder why. Each year we open our doors and our taps to lovers of pig and beer with a whole hog pig roast dinner and up to 20 taps flowing with Drake's beers including our special small-batch Barrel Aged Beers. Throw in some live music, good friends, and nearly the entire Drake's staff on hand to talk beer and brewing, and you have one helluva great night.
Enjoy artisanal grilled cheese sandwiches and craft beer pairings at this intimate event hosted by SF's first gourmet grilled cheese restaurant and the central coast's premier craft brewery. The Firestone Walker brewing team will walk you through a selection of premium craft beers and Heidi Gibson, THE AMERICAN'S Commander-in-Cheese, will educate you on the art and science of grilling cheese and creating gourmet sandwiches.
Sonoma Valley Cheese Conference, Febuary 24th-26th New Generation Cheesemakers
"A rising group of new generation and urban cheesemakers will take the spotlight at the Tenth Annual Sonoma Valley Cheese Conference – an annual gathering of American artisan cheesemakers, retailers, distributors and food writers, on Feb. 23 – 27, 2013, in Sonoma, Calif.
Hosted by Sheana Davis of The Epicurean Connection, the conference is a premier destination for cheese industry opinion leaders from across the nation. This year, the event will highlight a core group of young cheesemakers representing a new generation in the industry. In addition, the bright lights of the big city will take the spotlight with a presentation on urban cheesemaking in Seattle, Milwaukee and New York." (I'll be signing books at the Sunday event, come say hi!)
California's Artisan Cheese Festival, Sonoma
Join us March 22 – 24, 2013 for the 7th Annual Festival at the Sheraton Sonoma County – Petaluma. You will have an opportunity to meet cheesemakers, celebrity chefs, educators, cheesemongers, authors, farmers and even the four-legged friends that produce the milk so we can make the cheese!
I'll be teaching this class with friends Garrett McCord and Stephanie Stiavetti, authors of Melt: The Art of Macaroni and Cheese, publishing this year.
"Join these three well known food bloggers and cheese authors as they explore the delicious world of cooking with cheese. While delightful on its own, more and more dairy lovers are taking the dive and cooking with their favorite cheeses. But what are the intricacies of combining your favorite cheese with herbs, fruits, vegetables and meats? How does a cheese’s texture change as it bakes or is swirled into a sauce and, most importantly, how do you plan for these changes when developing a recipe? Both cheeses and culinary ingredients will be tasted in their cooked and uncooked states."
A New Year, and the Wheels Keep Rolling.
2012 has come and almost gone, and we, this blog, and those goats in the above photo, are still here to tell its story. It’s been a pretty eventful year. A hurricane and snowstorm from which many devastated communities in the northeast still haven’t recovered. Sandy Hook. A drought that shook our farmers to their core. An election at home. A lot to take in.
On the bright and also important side, dairy has had some public light shown on it. New York Times covered the craziness of the milk market in "In Dairy Industry Consolidation, Lush Paydays," for example, and people like Mary Ledman, whose insights were introduced to me by New York dairy farmer and lawyer @NYFarmer are getting the word out there. Beer and wine have also got their fair share of attention. Blogs and papers are writing about the cool things craft brewers are doing in the United States and mainstream media continues to take more of an interest in the fabulous and weird things happening in domestic wineries. People are also, in general, just adoring cheese a bit more widely domestically. All good things. And I’m just touching open the United States.
As it is, 2012 has been a very full year and I’m sure that we’re all have or are going to honor people and communities that we have lost, help out where we can, and do things in general to heal. We all do this in our own way- sometimes publicly, sometimes privately. One way to heal and grow beyond helping when possible, is to also realize the awesome and beautiful things around us. It’s important to notice.
With that in mind, the following is a list of things that made a mark on me -for the better- this year. Some are personal, some are just generally cool or dairy-related.
I hope your new year is bountiful with happiness and many opportunities for growth.
THE LIST
Occupy Sandy. This grass-roots organization rallied and did what mayors, the president, Red Cross, and other disaster relief organizations could not for victims of Hurricane Sandy because of time delays, bureaucracy, red tape, and politics. And even though coverage of the disaster has faded in mainstream media, the problems people are facing because of Sandy have not, so Occupy Sandy marches on.
American Cheese Society Conference being in North Carolina. Southern cheese rocks (see Prodigal Farms photo above). But not everyone in the cheese community noticed until the ACS held their annual conference in North Carolina this year and had a chance to try the wonderful dairy of the region. It is now clear to those that it wasn't before that southern dairy is to be taken seriously. And the fried pig skins and hush puppies that often make it to diner tables before meals- those were worth a trip too.
I published my book. On a personal note, this was huge. When I first came up with the idea for writing a cheese book, I was at the end of a long relationship, working five days a week at a wine shop, trying to fund my writing and find venues in which I could publish, and, … more. Now, I’m not as stressed –sometimes-, down to working three days a week at the same wine shop (and oh how I still love my co-workers and my ability to taste wine while working), and, well, happy. Thankful. The publication of the book was not just not just that to me- it also marked the end and start of a journey. A cheesy journey, surely. And also personal one. And hey, I made some good cheesemaker friends, traveled around the country, and put a lot of words on paper. Not bad.
I started drinking beer again. Oh, for those of you who have not yet experienced the absence of wheat gluten in your life, you may not understand how it feels to take your first sip of a saison again after not ingesting wheat for a year. It’s magical, and I’m fully aware of the blessing. I’m feeling so, so lucky, and I feel the need to share it. Of course, better gluten-free beers and awesome, funky ciders are making their way around too.
Seeing my friends do awesome things. Some are having cute babies, some are getting married, some are leaving not-so-productive relationships. One of the coolest things about being in your thirties is watching your friends make big moves and seeing all their earlier hard work start to pay off. I'm sure you're seeing it around you too. Like my friend Molly DeCoudreaux, for example. Or another friend who started her own private therapy practice. Another friend of mine is about to start her own career consulting business and rent her own office. I'm so proud!
Happy New Year!
Holiday Cheese Plate Guide, Take Two: Ideas.
I've been informed that as a cheese writer-blogger it is my duty to post about how to make a winter holiday cheese plate. As I am not the best at keeping up on my asbribed duties (I wait to water my house plants until they look like they're ready to croak and consider it a test to see how far my car will go with the yellow gas light on), it may or may not surprise you that I'm going to deliver as requested. Just in a slightly different way.
The thing is- there are already perfectly good and fabulous guides on how to make a winter cheese plate out there. Like this one that Casey Barber wrote on IVillage for which she interviewed my lovely cheese pal Tia Keenan and I. I've even said a little peice about holiday plates prior to Thanksgiving on my blog here.
Instead of trying to re-state or re-shape the wheel, I'm going to build off the wheel. Or, at least, I'm going to lightly push that wheel to get it rolling in hopes that it might be a little more helpful. In the aforementioned "Festive Fromage: How to Make the Perfect Cheese Tray" article, Tia and I shared a little advice.
Today I'm going to provide you with a little cheat sheet for following through with that advice. For a wedding, you want something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue, well for a simple go-to cheese plate, it's easy to go with something A- mild & creamy, B- something hard and saltier, or firm and nutty, and C- something a little brighter and funkier (quick, someone make it rhyme!).
Here are some fabulous picks from to fill those genres, with links to read more about their deliciousness when applicable. The suggestions are merely that- use this as a guide only. I have faith that you can substitute at will! I know you guys are good.
MILD AND CREAMY
La Tur: - cow, sheep and goat.
Brazos Valley Eden (pic above)
Bent River brie- creamy, with cauliflower and truffle flavors.
Brie l'Original - rich, butter, mushroom.
Avalanche's Lamborn Bloomers - goat, mild, spreadable, sweet.
Mt. Townsend's Seastack - lightly tangy yet sweet, adorable, cow's milk.
Brillat Savarin (lead photo)
HARD AND SALTY, OR NUTTY AND FIRM
Abbaye de Belloc - nutty, brown butter
Bellwether San Andreas or Pepato
Comté - taste at a shop! There are some amazing importers, like Essex St, and then there are some bad ones, so try to taste before buying.
Pecorino- Foglie de Noce, Ginepro, try some new ones- go crazy!
Aged Goudas- salty & sweet & hard.
BRIGHT AND MAYBE FUNKY
Le Jeune Autize - like a goat's milk Morbier.
Mayor of Nye Beach - also goat's milk, lemony, funky, fresh.
Epoisses - creamy, stinky, sweet.
Cato Corner Hooligan - sliceable, sweet, funky, cow's milk.
Leaf-wrapped Robiola's - adorable, a little funky, and proud of it.
And.... you know how we mentioned the glorious-ity of bubbles and cheese? It's the truth, and it's easy. The following are some names of my favorite sparklings, from the Champagne region and beyond, and here's a more specific guide if you want to focus specifically on pairing cheese with sparklings.
Some of my quick go-tos:
Lucien Albrecht Crémant d'Alsace; Raventos Cava; Labet, Macle, Puffeney Crémant de Jura; Sommariva or Bisson Proseccos; Schrambserg or Domaine Carneros sparklings from California; Pierre Peters, Domaine Bouchard, Marie-Courtin, Diebolt-Vallois Champagne.
Hope this guide helps, and, Happy Holidays!
In case you missed it:
"Wine & Cheese Gifts to Make Your Holidays Bright" - my guide for buying for wine dorks and cheese geeks, Menuism.