Day 598 : Rosh Hashanah Dinner and of course Rosh Hashanah Cheeses as well

Wednesday evening my family gathered together for a celebratory Rosh Hashanah dinner to welcome in the Jewish New Year. So what did we have?


We started with apples and honey to ring in a sweet New Year and my mother's homemade challah. The roundness of the bread symbolizes the cycle of a year.

Then we moved on to a "quinoa aux sept legumes," a different vegetable for each day of the week -- rustic and earthy yet totally flavorful and light. The quinoa was served with a homemade matcha crusted halibut which just melted in your mouth. The crunch of the matcha crust was the perfect counterpart to the smoothness of the fish.

After quinoa, we moved onto salad and cheese. The salad was made with pomegranate seeds, pumpkin seeds, pumpkin, and of course a nice selection of greens. Both pumpkins and pomegranates are traditional Rosh Hashanah foods and in this salad they played off of one another in the most excellent savory and sweet duel. With the salad we had a selection of three cheeses all purchased last weekend at Cowgirl Creamery in Washington DC:

1. River's Edge Chevre's Mayor of Nye Beach -- the washed rind goat's milk stinker we discussed last week. Funky, barnyardy, creamy and totally unique.
2. Firefly Farm's Cabra La Mancha -- Hailing from Accident, Maryland, this cheese surely isn't an accident. Loosely based on a Spanish washed rind goat's milk tomme, this cheese is washed with b.linens creating the cheese's orange exterior hue with a bright white firm interior paste. This cheese is the perfect marriage of lactic milky, grassy citrusy notes and the rustic barnyardy-ness from the washing.
3. Old Man Highlander -- Hailing from Honesdale, PA, this firm cow's milk gouda style cheese is all smooth buttery notes, round around the edges in just the perfect way.

To go with the cheese there were red wine peppercorn marinated fresh figs and of course the homemade challah.

And lastly for dessert, a homemade almond milk date, sesame seed, nut pannacotta. Earthy and delish, not too sweet but the perfect way to end our celebratory meal.

A delish meal made with my mother's love and care -- a great way to ring  in the New Year!
Here's to a healthy and happy one for all!

Day 597 : How to Save / How to Splurge Dispatch # 31

Checked out Beecher's Cheese yet perhaps to buy last week's cheese splurge? Did you venture downstairs to the Cellar, their wine and cheese bar? Well if you haven't....I suggest you head on over between 5 and 7pm on a weekday so that you can save on your beverages!

Between 5 and 7pm you can get a $5 glass of either red or white wine or a $6 cocktail. That gives you the opportunity to splurge on their cheese selections or their mac n' cheese if you are in the mood. $15 will get you a selection of their three Flagship cheeses. So go with a friend and for under $15 each you can have a glass of wine and three great artisanal cheeses, how could you do better? That's quite the steal if you ask me...

The Cellar @ Beechers
900 Broadway
NYC

Day 596 : Cheese Spy Strikes Again

It's been quite a while since we've had a cheese spy dispatch so I thought why not change things up and bring you a cheese spy dispatch direct from Alba.

Need to brush up on your geography and not sure where Alba is?

It's in the Piedmont region in Italy and is known for their white truffle, peach, and wine production.

So what wines are they known for?

DOC: Barbera, Dolcetto, Nebbiolo.


DOCG: Barbaresco, Moscato.

Where does our cheese spy recommend?

Well folks it is the Trattoria del Peso. Only open for lunch. And only from Tuesday to Sunday. Located at Via Vezza 3, Castagnito.

What's great about it?

It's one of those locals only sorts of joints -- authentic and fresh homemade food in a casual setting. It is so popular tables turn over two or even three times during lunch.

Take a look at their cheese selections...now doesn't that make you want to hop on the next plane to Italy and get out of this miserable grey weather?


                                                          

Day 595 : SCS Version 8.0, Dispatch # 2

A little late...but this week's dosage of our SCS spotlight is here now!

For week two of Oregon and Canada, I thought we would go with a stinky, pungent, moldy, and all around fabulous blue cheese from each locale so let's get right to it.

When you think of Oregon if you are a fan of American artisanal cheeses, perhaps you think of Rogue River Creamery? I know I certainly do. Rogue River Creamery has been in existence since the 1930s crafting Cheddars that were shipped overseas to the troops fighting on the front lines in World War II. At the end of WWII, Tom Vella and the team behind Rogue River introduced a cottage cheese to the lineup and then a few years later, he decided to add a blue cheese as well. And folks from there, the rest is history. Tom Vella and his family crafted award winning blue cheeses respected the country and world over until Tom died at age 100 in 1998. The Creamery since 1998 has changed hands a few times but fret not their blue cheeses are still among the best I have had. They make six distinct types of blue cheese -- Caveman, Oregonzola, Rogue River Blue, Rogue River Smokey Blue, Crater Lake, and Oregon Blue. Of all of their selections, my favorite is definitely the Rogue River Blue. Raw cow's milk blue cheese aged for approximately a year wrapped in grape leaves soaked in pear eau de vie, this cheese is an excellent example of what Orgeon artisanal cheesemakers have to offer. Its dense and creamy punchy yet smooth and spicy, earthy, vegetal, and rustic with a sweetness to it. A delight in cheese form!

Image courtesy of http://www.roguecreamery.com/

And what of it's Canadian counterpart?

How about Baby Blue from Moonstruck Cheese located on Saltspring Island in British Columbia. Granted, Moonstruck does not have decades of history on their side like Rogue River, but the two women behind the cheesemaking operation have been producing cheese since 1998 and now make nine certified organic cheeses. Modeled on a Cambozola style cheese, part triple cream as in a Camembert and part Gorgonzola, Baby Blue is more cream and less blue. Yes there's still the spicy punch of the blue which does an excellent job at breaking up the sweet and smooth buttery creamy raw cow's milk interior. A great cheese to introduce you to the excellence of Canadian organic cheese production!

Day 594: Mussels and Cheese?

Flex Mussels opened to great fanfare in 2009. No folks it is not a gym where you can flex your biceps and triceps but a restaurant dedicated to mussels. And surely not just the classic mussels in a white wine butter sauce, they have seventeen different mussel preparations! Yes they have other items on the menu -- salads, and a wide selection of seafood and one chicken dish for those not interested in seafood. Maybe the name rings a bell because the pastry chef won Top Chef Desserts? If not and you like mussels it sure is worth a try!

I have been a few times to the downtown one which I love but tonight I went to the uptown one for the first time. What did I think about the difference in appearance? This one was homier and cozier, tucked away on a quiet Upper East Side street, this joint felt like it was geared to the weekly regulars, a true neighborhoody establishment.

I had their PARMA mussels that were served in a broth of parmigiano cream, meyer lemon, scallions, toasted garlic and shallots. A salty, creamy and savory broth to accompany the mussels that enhanced their weight but still maintain a light delicate decadence. It almost felt like the French Onion Soup of the mussel world but in a good way.

Flex Mussels
174 East 82nd Street / 154 West 13th Street NYC

Day 593: Party Cheeses

When you go to a large function, be it a wedding, a holiday party, a birthday party, or a bar mitzvah as I did last night, you hardly expect to see a table of artisanal cheeses as part of the buffet food selections. Well last night at the bar mitzvah reception, there was a slider station with a variety of sliders (both meat and fish); a carving station (also both meat and fish); a pasta / risotto to order station; a Middle Eastern station with all the classic staples hummus, tabbouleh, Grape leaves, Greek salad and more; and a fantastic cheese station.

This was not your average cheese selection with Cheddars, Gruyeres, Chevre, and maybe a blue or something of the sort. Epoisses was there, Great Hill Blue was there, the Massachusetts goat's milk round Hubbardston Blue was there, Morbier, Humboldt Fog, Bucheron, and many more. Paired with marinated figs and a selection of three jams, this was a display after my heart.

Overall a delish meal and that's a tough undertaking when cooking and serving over one hundred people. Apart from the meal, it was a lovely weekend in DC celebrating the bar mitzvah of a family member.

Day 592: When in DC...

I absolutely have to go to Cowgirl Creamery -- the only East Coast outpost of one of my favorite California creameries. Known for their fresh cheeses and bloomy rind triple creams, Cowgirl also offers a variety of local, national, and international cheeses.

On my visit there today I discovered a new cheese for me-

River's Edge Mayor of Nye Beach. It is a washed rind goat's milk cheese from Oregon. Washed in Rogue Dead Guy Ale, this cheese does not have that classic washed rind feel, smoother and nuttier on the exterior with a delightfully bright semi-firm interior paste. A rustic earthy goat's milk cheese that delights on the tongue. This is the sort of cheese that would be great to have with a group of friends and some medium bodied white wine or even a beer.

Visits to Cowgirl always allow for me to discover something new. So if you're in DC and haven't ever been, go check it out, just not on a Sunday as they are closed...

Cowgirl Creamery
919 F Street NW
Washington DC