Ever have the experience of a movie, a book, a restaurant, a bar being built up to be something fantastic, brilliant and wonderful all rolled into one? And well it just wasn't. That surely was my experience with brocciu -- it just wasn't what I thought it would be. Instead of being a supremely creamy, fresh sheep's milk cheese somewhat like the young maquis coated sheep's milk cheese we tasted minus the herbs, this Corsican delicacy was certainly not that! Brocciu's consistency resembled feta but maybe just touch harder. However instead of having a nice balance of salt and creaminess, this was somewhat like tasting feta that had had an entire salt shaker poured upon it. I suppose that if you were prepared for a mouthful of salt, you wouldn't have been surprised. The salt I guess is good when you sweat constantly in the heat but Corsica is not hot year round. Therefore discounting that notion. However I think that this cheese could be fantastic with some nice extra virgin olive oil, thyme, Rosemary, and crushed red peppercorns or say honey lavender and maybe a little bit of a citrus spritz on top. As we tried it last night on top of almond canistrelli (classic Corsican superduper crunchy and hard biscuits), it was much more successful than plain, that's for sure!
All in all, it could probably be a cheese I could get into, definitely not love at first bite!
Now onto this week's GCF which will feature brocciu as it's star! I know you're thinking after she went on this rant about the cheese why would she decide to use it, well because it is so typically Corsican of course!!! Although not a cheese easily accessible in other parts of the world, this GCF would work with any supremely salty, young sheep's milk cheese.
Start with a nice crusty French baguette. On either side of the baguette spread honey, either raw for the health benefits and depth of flavor or nice artisanal creamy honey which similarly has a distinct depth of flavor. This natural sweetness will immediately cut the saltiness of the cheese. Next up, chop up some mint and place to the side. Place a nice slice of brocciu on your baguette and now top with your diced up mint, a little bit of extra virgin olive oil and some freshly ground black pepper and toast away. What you will get on the tongue is a sweet and savory blend of crunchy, creamy, fresh, green, and vegetal goodness!
Enjoy folks!
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