Author: angela

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Cabrales and Beyond in Culture cheese magazine

Culture Magazine Summer 2010
Culture Magazine Summer 2010

Cabrales and Beyond (Touring the hidden valleys and farmstead
cheesemakers of northern Spain) is a good article about cheese in the Asturias area of Spain. The author, Gerry Dawes, highlights it on his blog.

We got as far as buying some cabrales (kah-BRAH-lays) from Calvert Woodley, and it was wrapped in leaves (not all are).  A creamy and earthy blue, but since a number of cheese from this area in Spain can be called cabrales,  we weren’t sure if this was one of the recommended ones or not — but we would recommend it anyway. Traditionally, it is made with a mixture of cows’, sheeps’ and goats’ milk, but now it is most often made with raw cows’ milk. They let you taste the cheese before you buy it at Calvert Woodley, so you can’t go too wrong.

This issue of Culture also includes: a 36-page beer guide.

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Happy National Cheese Day

Somehow, W got through National Cheese Day without any cheese.  I had this great salad at lunch at Jaleo’s “Ensalada de remolacha con citricos“, a salad of red beets, citrus, Picón cheese and pistachios with Sherry dressing. Picón: A three-milk blue cheese from the mountains of Picos de Europa in the Northern region of Cantabria.  Instead of cheese, we went to the Kennedy Center for  John Pizzarelli (Bucky’s son) & Jessica Molaskey — After meeting on the set of the Broadway musical Dream and falling in love, singer and guitarist Pizzarelli and songstress  Molaskey have performed together and individually on stages around the world for years. We’ve seen Pizzarelli a number of times, and he shone along with the rest of his Quartet, Larry Fuller (piano), Martin Pizzarelli (Bass) and Tony Tedesco drums). Didn’t know before: There is a show called Radio Deluxe with John Pizzareli.

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Happy Hour at Cleveland Park Bardeos

Cheese in CP

We stopped at Bardeos on the way to the National Zoo on Friday night. They have specials on their wine and beer, though it’s still not a inexpensive happy hour spot (7 Days a Week, from 5pm-7pm All wine is discounted) . But it’s a pretty bar, and the bartender couldn’t be nicer. Even though it is the most expensive way to get cheese, we couldn’t resist the cheese plate. We ordered PECORINO FORMAGGIO DI FOSSA / Italy & CONSTANT BLISS / Vermont.  It came with a big basket of bread and homemade crackers with fennel. (The crackers were great on their own, but took away from the flavor of the cheese).

And the National Zoo is open until 8:00 p.m. — the buildings aren’t open, but it’s a pretty place to walk — and there aren’t many people in the evening.

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Specially Made Cheese Box is Perfect

Cheese Box in Fridge Exact Fit

I’d seen expensive cheese boxes in stores, but not only were they too pricey — but too big. So W made we one to exactly fit the fridge in my shelf. It works great; keeps it fresh while letting it breathe. It looks like a square hat box for my cheese. I wrap them in wax paper inside the box. I use a glass container with a tight fitting lid for the blue.

Cheese Box out of fridge
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Notes from ‘The Complete Chile Pepper Book’

picture of book
by Dave DeWitt & Paul Bosland

some links:
The Chile Pepper Institute lots of stuff here, including seeds
Cross Country Nurseries bedding plants and chile pods (in central NJ)
www.peppers.com lots of food products
www.thechileman.org a UK site

some chiles that do well in containers: Early Jalapeno, Thai Chile, Big Early, Super Chile, Tangerine Dream, Redskin, Mohawk

For a vegetable-base hot sauce:

  • saute 1/2 cup onions, 1/2 cup carrots, and two garlic cloves (minced)
  • puree in blender with peppers of choice
  • combine this mash with 1/2 cup vinegar and 1/4 cup lime juice
  • simmer for 10 minutes
  • strain into sterilized bottles and refrigerate
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2010 Sheep and Wool Festival

There were a bazillion people trying to get in to the 2010 Sheep and Wool Festival in Howard County, Maryland. Some of our party spent 1.5 hours just trying to get into the event.

Everona Dairy was there, with (of course) Dr. Pat Elliott, the founder. We don’t usually get ‘cheese with stuff in it’, but in this case we made an exception. We purchased 3 cheeses to take down to NC this week:

Shenandoah
milk: Virginia sheep

Tomato Torta
milk: Virginia sheep

Beer Washed
milk: Virginia sheep

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Muffaletta and Stony Man

Everona Dairy had a booth at the Silver Spring farmer’s market – which goes to 1:00 each Saturday. We bought some dairy and some herbs to plant, and next visit we will think about the bison.

Muffaletta
milk: Virginia sheep
We usually don’t get ‘cheese with stuff in it’, this had bits of olive and ‘muffaletta’, whatever that is.

Stony Man
milk: Virginia sheep
Very nice, like Piedmont but aged more.

We also got some cow “yogurt cheese” — yogurt that has been drained from the Blue Ridge Dairy Company. They call it ” Greek-style Yo Lite made with skim milk.  Didn’t have extra whey that many Greek yogurts have on top, but has a much more tarty taste than FAGE.

Lunch: Thai Derm in Silver Spring. Missed coupon on their site since we didn’t plan on going. Disappointing: out of mango with sticky rice, but noodle dishes good.

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French Cheddar on the roof


Cantalet
French cow

We got this new-to-us cheese at Brookville.  There were Cherry Blossom fireworks on the waterfront, so we took the cheese up to the rooftop & we had a cheese tasting there.  The cheese was good  Cantalet ((kahn-TAHL-ay), French Cheddar). Supposedly it pairs wonderfully with reds from Merlot to Pinot Noir and whites from Sauvignon Blanc to Gewurztraminer — but we had Troegs  Hop Back amber ale from Harrisburg PA.

We bought at Brookville again 7/17/10. Still like the earthy taste of this cow cheese — and great to have it in the neighborhood. We had some at breakfast; some at dinner for dessert. You don’t need much – very rich. No bread required – just right in our hand. Also called Cantal.

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Cheeses with Turkish Olive Paste Good Combo

From Turkish Art Exhibit

We were downtown to see an exhibit at the National Museum-Women In Arts and A Dream…but not Yours: Contemporary Art from Turkey was pretty amazing — art, politics, video (Canan Senol, Still from Exemplary, 2009, Video; 27:30 minutes) and even postcards. We stopped in Cowgirl Creamery on the way, and got these 3 cheeses — all excellent.:

  • Mona. Blended with both sheep and cow milk, Mona is nutty and sweet on the tongue with a moist but sometimes crumbly texture. Wisconsin Sheep Dairy Coop — and we don’t do many Wisconsin cheeses.
  • Roccolo has an earthy, round flavor with damp hints of forest mushrooms and an accenting tang. Directly under the rind, the cheese gets softer and slightly more golden than the dryer, flakier white center. (made it look like cake since the center was a different color.) Valtaleggio, Italy.
  • Trailhead is an aged, mountain cheese with a mellow, rich flavor. Mt Townsend Creamery in Washington State. We bought it because we’d heard good things about Mt Townsend — and now we can say good things about their cheese.
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Valentine’s Day Cheese Tray

Valentine's Day Cheese Tray
Valentine's Day Cheese Tray

The rest of the dinner created by WWT had a carrot theme (Chicken and Carrot Fricassee, Carrot Cranberry Salad, Bacony Carrots and Green Beans, Pickled Carrots, Carrot Pudding), but the cheese course was cheesy with side carrots. All from Whole Foods:

Cupid’s Choice Camembert, Old Chatham Sheepherding Company, Old Chatham New York. Tasty, and we couldn’t resist the heart-shape of this one. Pasteurized cow’s and sheep’s milk. Our sparkling our New Mexico Gruet was a good match for this.

Cypress Grove Lamb Chopper, Cypress Grove Chevre, California. We agreed: “This sheep milk cheese is buttery in color and flavor with a long, complex finish.”

Blue Castello. Denmark. “This brie-like blue cheese from Denmark is made by Tholstrup, the same company that makes Saga Blue at its factory in the United States. Blue Castello is richer than Saga Blue and is made only in Denmark. Castello is a distant derivative of Italian Gorgonzola but has a higher fat content and a milder flavor. It is a perfect blue for those who like a little blue flavor without being blown away.”

The complete menu included Chicken & Carrot Fricasse, Carrot Cranberry salad, and of course, the annual carrot pudding.

Fun addition for the party: The Cheese Tasting Party Kit: Everything You Need to Host Your Own Cheese-Tasting Party.