Cheese: A Few Of My Favorite Things

Brent Delman (The Cheese Guy) has, for years brought us some of the finest cheeses in the kosher world. Over a month ago I picked three of them I had not seen before…

…and cholov Yisroel too!

The creamery that makes the Mild Cheddar has thoroughly mastered the art of cheddaring. Aged under 6 months, the distinctive Cheddar taste is very much present but it is not that strong that it would overpower anything it’s mixed with, rather it will nicely enhance it with a slight hint of butter. I used it in a salad with kale, onion, cherry tomatoes, and the combination was delicious!

The Gruyere Style Vermont Mountain Cheese made a truly great French, French Onion Soup. Scrumptious! It’s got a unique nuttiness and earthiness.

Pepper Jack was never one of my favorites… until now! It was spicy and yet creamy, full of flavor, in spite of the spiciness.

As usual, The Cheese Guy‘s selection of cheeses does not disappoint, that leaves me with no choice but to try their selections of pasta, crackers, jam, chutney, conserves and specifically that Heirloom Apple and Vermont Maple Syrup Butter… Just writing it makes my mouth water!

CS

 

Three Superb Imported Cheeses

This past Sunday, I run into Brent Delman (TheCheeseGuy.com) at a kosher foodie bloggers meetup, having met him before, having interviewed him on my radio show and having him sponsor our Shavuos contest for this year, it was natural we would get into a conversation. Of course, it centered on… you guessed it… cheese! We spoke about his latest cholov Yisroel offerings: Scamorza, Aged Havarti and Bastardo del Grappa.

The Scamorza is a new product and the one I had wasn’t even been labeled yet, it also did not make it to the photo above, because (I shamefacedly confess!) it did not last long enough for me to remember to take the picture for this post. It was originally made only from buffalo milk, though today it’s made from from whole cow’s milk (sometimes mixed with small amounts of sheep or goat’s milk). It’s basically a slightly salty type of mozarella, though smoked (in a smoker with cherry wood chips), unlike other smoked cheeses the smoke is not overwhelming. Rather, it’s balanced perfectly with the natural flavors. Creamy and with a somewhat nutty taste.

Aged Havarti (pictured above) is a cow’s milk cheese with a supple, elastic texture, with a sharp, intense tangy flavor tempered with creamy butter notes.

Bastardo del Grappa (also pictured above), used to be made with sheep, goat and cow milk mixed together, hence the name “Bastardo.” Today, it is produced by mixing cow’s milk from the previous evening and letting it settle during the night, with the milk from the morning. It’s got a strong flavor, with sweet notes and is slightly aromatic.

My favorite is the Scamorza and I can’t wait until I find it  in a store near me, meanwhile, I’m more than satisfied with the other two pictured above.

CS

3rd Annual Shavuos Contest!

We are proud to announce our 3rd Annual Shavuos Contest. Last year’s prize (a beautiful basket of cholov Yisroel N&K cheeses), went to Pessy Haskelevich in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn; the year before that Brachie S. from Lakewood took the top honors and also received a great selection of cholov Yisroel N&K cheeses. Both times Brigitte Mizrahi, from Anderson International Foods graciously supplied the prizes.

This year Brent Delman from The Cheese Guy.com is supplying the prize:

Photo by: Brent Delman, The Cheese Guy

Two winners will be selected and each will receive a basket consisting of: Italian Montaggio and Pecorino Romano, Pepper Jack, Mild Cheddar, Monterrey Jack and Aged Havarti as well as a jar of honey and a jar of Swiss Hero preserves. All cheeses are cholov Yisroel.

The last date for entries will be May 25th (the Friday prior to erev Shavuot which will start on Motzey Shabbat) at 12:00pm. We will choose the best dairy recipe using cheeses as one of the ingredients. We’ve had some great entries in the past, be creative and send us your best. Winners will be announced on June 4th, the first Monday following Shavuot.

You may enter multiple times if you believe you have more than one possible winning entry. We can’t wait to sample those recipes!

Please send us your recipes to:

kosherscene@gmail.com

CS

This Evening’s Radio Special

On March 4th, Costas Mouzouras and his staff from Gotham Wines & Liquors (2517 Broadway; New York, NY 10025 – Tel: 212.932.0990) held their 9th Annual Kosher Wine Extravaganza, featuring 300 wines and liquors, at the West End Institutional Synagogue in Manhattan’s Upper West Side.

Costas Mouzouras - Gotham Wines and Liquors

Shiki Rauchberger, Chief Winemaker for Teperberg 1870 Winery, started the private tasting, he introduced us to several selections which are already on the market and some which will not be available until shortly before Passover 2013.

Shiki Rauchberhger - Teperberg 1870

There were some very interesting wines, Shiki selected, wines that clearly showed why Teperberg 1870 is one of Israel’s top wineries.

A partial view of the Teperberg bottles we tasted...

Costas followed Shiki‘s presentation with his own. He demonstrated new wines and old favorites (we will write about them…), he also gave us some very interesting pointers on how to appreciate wine.

We then proceeded upstairs to the general admission area where we met old friends, made new ones, tasted superb wines from all over the world, as well as a great selection of cheeses from Anderson International Foods and some delicious chocolates from Chocolate Works NY. In the center there was a table laden with dips, salads and crackers as large tables laden with wines circled the room.

This is the third extravaganza presented by Gotham Wines that we attended, and frankly, they keep getting better and better!

Please tune as in this evening at 8:00 pm (Eastern Standard) on BlogTalkRadio.com for a special pre-taped show with Costas Mouzouras, winemakers, food purveyors, and more. Listen in to learn about the latest wines for this Passover.

In case you missed it you can listen to our archived show with Brent Delman, from The Cheese Guy.com. Brent regaled us with his knowledge of cheese while being in an informative but entertaining manner.

Please tune us in this eve, we’ll be waiting for you!

CS

A Conversation with Brent Delman, The Cheese Guy

This evening at 8:00 pm (Eastern Time), we will be talking with Brent Delman, from The Cheese Guy.com. Brent graduated from George Washington University about two decades ago with a degree on International business, but in recent and in recent years he branched off to focus primarily on cheese.

Brent Delman, pressing cheeses curds in Ohio...

As he puts it, his cheeses are “a blend of creativity and flavor – a colorful fusion of my Eastern European Jewish heritage, the ethnic Italian neighborhood that I grew up in and my proximity to Amish farm territory. In collaboration with farmers and artisan cheese makers, I produce small batches of handcrafted cheeses based on my own recipes and formulas – I make sure to taste every batch.

…While most of my cheeses are produced domestically at family owned dairy farms, I do produce some cheeses abroad in Italy – made in the finest Italian tradition in small dairies that dot the countryside. Make sure to try our Pecorino Romano cheese aged over 18 months – it’s the best of the best!”

Fresh mozzarella being made at the creamery outside Rome, Italy.

He just returned from a trip abroad where he found new exciting cheeses, and new creameries to produce them.

Meanwhile, in case you missed it, please listen to last week’s show A Conversation with Ari White, from Gemstone Catering. Don’t forget to tune us in this evening at 8:00pm (Easterm Time) at BlogTalkRadio.com. Having met Brent at a wine tasting a couple of weeks ago, I can assure you this will be a interesting and informative show.

CS