Day One hundred and two : A Farmy GCF

For today's GCF, I thought I would utilize Tonjes Farm's Cowhill cheese that we sampled in our class this previous Sunday, that was paired with Wolffer Estate's Cabernet Franc 2006. I think it is always good to get our head wrapped around how we can use a cheese in other contexts apart from simply pairing the cheese with a good glass of wine.

The characteristics that stand out for me about this aged raw cow's milk cheese are farmy, barnyardy, vegetal, crumbly, buttery, full, round, and somewhat sweet. It is not a delicate and dainty fresh goat cheese, it is definitely a more full bodied cheese -- I'd characterize it as medium to full bodied. It could definitely hold up to a meat pairing, but as you all know, I don't eat meat, so I wouldn't want to presume that I could tell you what sort of meat might work best with it, but I imagine a cured meat such as a proscuitto would work excellently, saltiness paired with salty sweetness.

However for our purposes, I'd love to suggest a simple pairing for our Cowhill with sauteed onions and duxelle mushrooms and a few little other ingredients...

Let's get going! Starting off with the mushrooms -- they should be chopped finely and sauteed with madiera or wine, if you do not have madiera, thyme, rosemary, salt and pepper. Saute till they are nicely brown and cooked down. In a separate pan, saute the onions just with some olive oil and salt and pepper. The cheese, onions, and mushrooms should go on a nice flatbread, thin and crusty works best! Apart from the mushrooms and onions, this sandwich needs a little bit of balsamic mustard (take aged balsamic vinegar, the thick kind, and combine with some Maille mustard, honey mustard works best). The sweetness of the mustard will complement the inherent sweetness of the cheese when placed on the backdrop of the bread. Lastly, I would add a few leaves of baby spinach to give the sandwich a more rounded vegetal flavoring and play off the vegetal undertones in the cheese. However, if you prefer, you can leave the spinach out for a purer sandwich experience.

Heat and enjoy with a glass of Wolffer's Cab Franc. A warming, comforting and delish GCF, probably better suited to a chilly Friday afternoon as opposed to the positively balmy day we are currently enjoying! Have a good Friday evening ladies and gents!