Cheese

Fare and Square

Author: Kirsten K., Breakfast, Food, Food & Drink, Nostalgia, Recipes, Savories, Sweets

Fare and Square 1When I was growing up, Sunday mornings meant church with the family followed by a breakfast of my father’s famous waffles. Sometimes he would make pancakes, but I preferred waffles, fresh and hot from the iron, spread thickly with peanut butter (don’t knock it ’til you’ve tried it), and dripping with maple syrup. As my father got older and my sisters moved away, this tradition faded, but I never lost my love for waffles. I would make them regularly myself were it not for one obstacle: cleaning the waffle iron. Despite the directive to simply “wipe with a damp cloth,” I am a clean freak and nothing will suffice but using a soft scrub brush and some mild dish soap to get every little nook and cranny,* all the while trying not to let water leak into any of the electrical parts. Way too much trouble.

Fare and Square 2Being a night owl, I only go out to breakfast under duress, but I like to order a Belgian waffle when I do. There’s something about the structure and precision of those crisp, sturdy squares, which make perfect receptacles for puddles of melting butter and hot syrup (and ease the pain of getting up at the crack of dawn). A few years ago, I ordered cheddar waffles for the first time and had a conversion experience. Salty, sweet, and savory, they were definitely “scrub-worthy,” but I never exerted myself to make them at home.

A short time ago, Kirsti made some delicious cheddar waffles, which ignited my determination to finally get out the old waffle iron. Before I did, I noticed a jar of cornmeal that had been sitting on my shelf for a while. I don’t like when foods linger in the pantry or fridge, and I try to use up staples while they’re still fresh, so I searched for recipe ideas using cornmeal. Lo and behold, many of the results that popped up were for cornmeal waffles. Now I had a decision to make (and I hate making decisions!): cheddar or cornmeal? I wasn’t sure I had the stamina to make waffles twice in a brief period of time. Then it hit me—cheddar cornmeal waffles!

Fare and Square 3I am clearly not the first person to have had this idea based on the number of recipes I found online, but all of them had a string of ingredients and little extras added in like toasted nuts, corn kernels, bacon, and/or jalapeños. I like to keep things simple, so I found this straightforward recipe for Savory Cheddar Waffles and merely substituted one cup of cornmeal for a cup of the flour.

I whipped up a batch and they came out of the waffle iron extra crispy with the pungent, earthy aroma of cheddar hanging in the air. Even soaking in maple syrup, they maintained their crunch from the cornmeal. I put the extras in the freezer, then popped one in the toaster the next morning. It came out hot and crisp, as if made fresh that very day. This recipe is a winner! As I set to the task of cleaning the waffle iron, I asked myself, “Was it worth it?” I didn’t waffle on the answer: “Definitely.”

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SCRUB-WORTHY CHEDDAR CORNMEAL WAFFLES (adapted from Chowhound)

Fare and Square 4Ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup yellow cornmeal†
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. kosher salt
2 large eggs
2 cups whole milk
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
2 cups (about 5 oz.) shredded Irish cheddar cheese, such as Dubliner‡

Directions:
Mix the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl and whisk until there are no lumps. In a second bowl, whisk eggs lightly until just broken up. Add the milk. While whisking constantly, slowly pour in the melted butter and stir to combine. Add the cheese and mix thoroughly. Pour the cheese mixture into the flour mixture and stir just until the flour is incorporated.

Heat your waffle iron to medium according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Once heated, fill it with batter, close the lid, and cook until the steam starts to diminish (my waffle iron has a light that tells me when the waffles are ready, but you can open the top and peek for doneness after a few minutes). Transfer waffles to a plate or wire rack.§ Repeat with the remaining batter. Makes about 6 Belgian waffles or 10-12 regular waffles.

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*My waffle iron has a nonstick coating, but I still need to use oil to prevent the waffles from sticking. I’ve read that you should season nonstick cookware, but I simply can’t bring myself to put it away when I can still see beads of oil between the squares. No.

†I used one full cup of cornmeal, because that’s what I had in my pantry, but the flavor was fairly strong in the waffles. If you want to reduce the amount of cornmeal in the recipe, simply increase the flour accordingly so that the total flour-cornmeal mixture equals 2 cups (e.g. 1 ½ cups flour plus ½ cup cornmeal). I would not use more than one cup of cornmeal in this recipe.

‡I went for broke and grated the full 7 oz. block of Dubliner cheese into the batter. Life is short!

§If you want to keep the waffles warm after they come out of the iron, preheat your oven to 250°F and place the waffles on a wire rack that’s been set on a baking sheet in the center of the oven.

That’s My Jam!

Author: Kirsten K., Dessert, Food, Food & Drink, Recipes, Savories, Snacks, Starters, Sweets

That's My Jam 1I have a problem with condiments. It’s not the taste (although, don’t get me started on relish), it’s the loitering. As a single person, a bottle of ketchup can sit on the door of my refrigerator for months. And yellow mustard? That’s once or twice a year, tops. Spying the partially used bottles every time I look in the fridge is almost as upsetting as watching the contents wash down the drain when I finally decide to dump them.

Jams and jellies tend to go faster, but they can still overstay their welcome—with one notable exception. Jimmie’s Chipotle Pepper Jam is so delicious that I have trouble keeping it on the shelf. It is, quite possibly, the most swoon-worthy thing I have written about on this blog to date.

That's My Jam 2My good friend Mika, a pastry chef and foodie extraordinaire, turned me on to this sweet and spicy spread several years ago when she discovered it at a local farmer’s market. While the label recommends serving the jam as a condiment or glaze for meats, we at The Swoon Society like to spoon it atop baguette slices that have been heaped with Saint-André triple-crème cheese. If you serve this as an appetizer, be prepared for guests who are too full to do more than pick at the main course.

Not content to take a supporting role, the fiery, smoky flavor of Jimmie’s Chipotle Pepper Jam shines when paired with simple foods. For an unexpected treat, heat a little of the jam and pour it over vanilla ice cream. The casein protein in dairy products helps to neutralize the spiciness of the chipotle pepper, while the cold ice cream cools the fire. (Vegans can enjoy Jimmie’s on non-dairy cream cheese and coconut milk ice cream, but these foods do little to soothe the burn.)

That's My Jam 3Uncle Berch’s Foods only sells Jimmie’s Chipotle Pepper Jam in packs of three, four, or five jars, but don’t let that discourage you from trying it. You will tear through those jars and find yourself ordering more to give away to friends, family members, co-workers, and neighbors alike. Keep some on hand to use as host/hostess gifts, but make sure to always hold back a jar or two for yourself, or you’ll inevitably dip into your stash.

I’m not sure who this Jimmie is (or Uncle Berch either, for that matter), but he knows his way around a pepper. In addition to the original, he makes three other Chipotle varieties, as well as versions with Red Fresno Chili, Habañero and Ghost Pepper. The label quotes Jimmie as saying, “It’s easy to make things hot. It’s hard to make it taste good.” You can’t exactly set it to music, but his flavors completely rock. Jam on!

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Jimmie’s Chipotle Pepper Jam

 

Saint-André triple-crème cheese can be found at Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, and many gourmet cheese shops.

La Brie en Rose

Author: Kirsti Kay, Entertaining, Food, Food & Drink, Recipes, Savories, Snacks, Starters, Sweets

There are some universally acknowledged foods that go together: chocolate and peanut butter, strawberries and champagne, French fries and ketchup, brie and rose petal jam. Haven’t tried brie and rose petal jam, you say? Well, ma chère, let me school you, because this taste sensation is going to change your life.

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Homemade rose cupcake

If you haven’t noticed yet, I am partial to anything rose flavored. I had my first encounter many years ago at the famous Hollywood ice cream shop Mashti Malone’s. The moment I tasted their rosewater ice cream, I was forever hooked on anything rose. I bought some rose extract and started adding it to frosting, cocktails, ice cream…my husband wasn’t thrilled, but I was! Rose, rose, rose! And more rose!

One day, I stepped into a local Armenian market in my neighborhood. I love finding treasures in tiny ethnic markets; you always find something delicious that you never heard of. La Brie En Rose 2When I saw the rose petal jam on the shelf, I honestly did swoon with delight. There were a few different types. Some were very light-colored with nearly transparent petals that floated inside the jar like clouds. Some were bright pink and thick. And others were somewhere in the middle. I bought one of each.

Once I got the jars of jam home, I wasn’t sure what to do with them. I tried some on toast, but it was way too sweet and, even though the rose flavor was balanced and floral, toast was not the right foil. I tried making rose macarons, and used the rose petal jam as the filling. They tasted amazing, but the jam oozed out of them, making a rose-flavored mess.

La Brie En Rose 3Around this time, fig jam and quince paste was all the rage on a cheese platter. One day, as I was preparing my same old platter, the brainstorm hit. The moment I had my first cracker, brie, and jam bite, I knew I had found appetizer nirvana. The sweetness of the jam complemented the creamy richness of the cheese perfectly. Add the crunch of a cracker to that and, mon Dieu, you will be hearing angels singing Edith Piaf and your mouth with will be swirling with a bouquet of delicate and buttery flavors. You will have no other choice but to repeat this process again and again until all the jam and cheese are gone.

Rose petal jam is now a frequent guest on my cheese platters. I would put it on every platter, but I feel bad for my poor husband, who wishes I were obsessed with peanut butter or hot sauce instead. It also makes a great hostess gift. I prefer the darker jams, as they seem to have a more intense rose flavor, but you really can’t go wrong.

Give your heart and soul to me, o’ rose petal jam, and life will always be la vie en rose.

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Rose Petal Jam

 

You can find many different brands of rose petal jam at Amazon.

 

Fig Hash or The Proper Way To Eat An Appetizer, In Society

Author: Kirsti Kay, Entertaining, Food, Food & Drink, Recipes, Savories, Snacks, Starters, Sweets

Fig Hash 1The proper way to eat a fig, in society,
Is to split it in four, holding it by the stump,
And open it, so that there is a glittering, rosy, moist, honied, heavy-petalled, four-petalled flower.

Then you throw away the skin
Which is just like a four-sepalled calyx,
After you have taken off the blossom with your lips.

But the vulgar way
Is just to put your mouth on the crack, and take out the flesh in one bite.

(From Figs by D.H. Lawrence)

Figs are mysterious. A black teardrop with a dirty secret. Little orbs with a musty aroma and a strange but lovely flavor. They are the sex bomb of the fruit world. They also happen to be my secret weapon when I have a summer party.

We used to live in a house with a big fig tree. Our first year there, I was so excited to see the little green nubs appear early in the spring and watch them grow for many months until, around the end of July, the tree exploded with black, heavy, ripe fruit. In the span of a few days I had dozens of figs in the kitchen and I wasn’t sure what to do with them. Even though I loved cooking and baking, I had never eaten a raw fig. I was intimidated, but excited to
fig-ure it out. (See what I did there?)

Fig Hash 2One day, Kirsten and a few other friends were coming over for a late afternoon hang out. I was going to cut up a few figs and put them on a cheese platter, but there were so many of them. I ended up quartering a bunch of those little beauties, putting them on a plate, crumbling blue cheese on top, drizzling honey over and topping them with some chopped pistachios. Fig hash was born! It was a huge hit. People would invite me over and then sheepishly ask if I could bring fig hash. Or, when I had friends over and the fig hash came out they would say, “Ohhh, we were hoping you were making that!” When we moved, we passed the recipe on to the new owners as sort of a legacy.

Fig Hash 3A platter of fig hash is not a dainty plate of crudité. It’s more like a gorgeous, sexy mess of sticky deliciousness. You could pass appetizer plates and forks and dish it up, but we normally open a bottle of rosé or sauvignon blanc, sit outside and dig in with our hands like savages.

When we moved into our new house a year ago, one of the first things we did was plant a fig tree. Just a few days ago, we got our first ripe fig. I could eat it in the proper way, splitting it in four, delicately tasting its glittering, rosy honey. But I think I will put my mouth on the crack and take out the flesh in one bite, the vulgar way.


FIG HASH

2 baskets of fresh figs (green or black, about 12-15 figs)
3 oz. blue cheese, crumbled
Honey (about 2 TBSP)
2 TBSP roasted unsalted pistachios, chopped

Quarter the figs and put them on a platter. Sprinkle the blue cheese over the figs, drizzle with honey and top with the pistachios. Eat properly or vulgarly – your choice.

Rosé, That Flirty Minx

Author: Kirsti Kay, Food & Drink, Spirits, Wine

That Flirty Minx 1If champagne is the friendliest drink, then rosé has to be its flirty cousin. Its pink color is irresistible, especially in a pretty glass on a warm day. Rosé is actually made from black-skinned grapes whose skins have had less contact with the juice than red wine.

I love shopping for rosé. There are so many different hues, from very pale pink to almost fuchsia, and they usually have lovely bottles too. I don’t typically like the bright pink rosés. The paler ones seem more sophisticated, more delicate, more…French. And they usually have a more refined, drier taste that is perfect for a warm spring day with some runny cheese, some ripe pear and a crusty baguette.

That Flirty Minx 2Recently, I came across Gérard Bertrand Côte des Roses Rosé and it hit all those notes for me, but the pièce de résistance was the bottle. First of all, it has a glass stopper instead of a cork. I have a soft spot for the glass stopper. Several years ago, Kirsten searched high and low for wine with a glass stopper for a birthday gift for me. She came over, all triumphant, with the gift in a bag and my dog jumped up on her. She dropped the bottle and it broke. We both just stood there in horror and watched the wine ooze all over my lawn. I saved the glass stopper, though, and I still have it. Glass stoppers prevent cork taint and are a gazillion times more elegant and fun than the screw top. I wish more wineries used them. But the best part of the bottle is that the bottom is a perfect rose in bloom—gasp! I don’t know who this Gérard Bertrand is, but I would like to be friends with him, s’il vous plaît!

The wine is everything you want a rosé to be: crisp and dry with a delightful aroma and the perfect blush color. Kirsten and I finished the bottle last weekend with some double cream brie and crackers. It flirted with us pretty hard. I’m sure there will be a second date.

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Gérard Bertrand Côte des Roses Rosé

 

Gérard Bertrand Côte des Roses Rosé is available at BevMo.