Say Cheese

Remember our very first house guest? If not, meet John: roommate of Peter, purveyor of pork products, filler of our freezer, reader at our wedding, (self-proclaimed) goat cheese ninja, chef, and great friend.

After paying us a visit on his way across the country, trailer and all, he sent me an email asking if I would be willing to sample and write about some cheese. The obvious and obligatory answer in this household: 'Of course!'

About seven months ago, John started working at Haystack Mountain Goat Dairy in Boulder, Colorado. Founded in 1989, it's one of the country's first artisanal goat cheese producers and they've won all sorts of awards. This fall, the company was doing some blogger outreach as part of their marketing efforts, and John made me a cheese for words proposal that I couldn't refuse. 

John and his coworker, Laurel, didn't give me a lot of ground rules for the sampling. They wanted to know how the cheese was served, what beer or wine paired well with it, and what people said about the cheese. Naturally, this would all come out by throwing a party for it. So I did.

I set the date - one that perfectly coincided with family being in town. I coordinated and confirmed the cheese shipment. And on Sunday, I spent much of the afternoon getting six cheeses ready for their debut. At 5:00 PM, in came my panel of testers.

Bob. The satirist
Melissa. His sweet counterbalance
Kevin. The Packers fan
Jane. The cute cheerleader
Ann. The beet lover
Barb. The apricot lover
Peter. The brewer
Me. The bee

First things, first. They got a tour of the white house. Then they were corralled into the cocktail room, which was renamed the cheese room for the night.

There, they met the cheeses and their pairings:
Haystack Peak, dried apricot and Grand Ballon Sauvignon Blanc, Loire Valley, 2010
Red Cloud and New Glarus Wisconsin Belgian Red
Camembert, cherry jalapeno chutney and Amalaya Malbec, Argentina, 2010
Garlic and Dill Chevre, cucumber and Grand Ballon Sauvignon Blanc, Loire Valley, 2010
Applewood Smoked Chevre, roasted golden beets and the Brewer's home brewed Rauchbier

With the opening of the sampling, this commentary followed, most likely in a less logical order. 
Let's try the Camembert first. Spread it on a crouton and top with a little of the cherry chutney, then take a sip of the Malbec. Okay, what do you think? What do you taste?  
It's good, but cheese always tastes better when the Packer's win.
Um, it's mild.
It brings out the flavors of the wine. This is good wine. Kevin, snap a photo of the wine label.
[Click]
It's very smooth.
It's good, but I taste the wine more.  
Are any of these cheeses from Wisconsin?
Look at the bunny in the window.
Oh, remember when Uncle Dick caught the rabbit for Don?
It was the cutest, bunny. I have a picture of my Dad with the bunny actually.
Like a wild rabbit? How did he do that?
I don't know.
No, this was like a domesticated white rabbit.
So what, he caught it from a cage?
I heard a cat ate the bunny the next day.
It was a couple months after, but yeah. It was a nasty yellow Tom cat. I've been afraid of yellow cats ever since.  
Okay, let's move on to the Applewood Smoked Chevre. It's served with roasted yellow beets and Peter's very own Rauchbier.
Oh, I love this one.
Why?
The beet tastes really good.
You can taste the beet more than the cheese, I think.
Yeah, I really like the beet.
Bob, you're wearing the same sweater as Peter tonight.  
It's very creamy.
Can I have a pickle? 
Sure.
Can I go back to a cheese? I know I'm not supposed to move forward, but can I go back?
Sure. 
Subtle smoke flavor, but the beer is smokier. The beer is amazing.
Okay, next. The Haystack Peak. This goes with the dried apricot and the Sauvignon Blanc.
Oh this is good.
This is the best so far!
I get a lot of that earthy taste.
Minerals.
The apricot is really good.
The balance of the cheese, wine and fruit here is perfect. Best pairing yet.
This is the best.
Team favorite!
Wait, I liked the one with the beet.
That's just because you liked the beet.
Oh, you're right. 
I'll have another apricot. 
I like that one.
The Camembert? Why?
It's close to me.
And ...
I don't know - it keeps getting better.
You're right. It is better after it warms up a bit. 
Oh my, look at the neighbor's Christmas display going up across the street ...
When are you putting up your Christmas tree?
Well, Bob is going out of town, so I can't put it up this week.
Kevin can do it.
Huh? 
Worst day of the year: the day the tree goes up. Best day of the year: the day I take the tree to the curb.
Oh you're terrible. 
Okay, two more left. This is the garlic and dill chevre on a cucumber, in your glass keep the Sauvignon Blanc.
This is my favorite. It tastes like a really good appetizer.
It's creamy, almost like cream cheese.
I made a mistake and had the beer afterward. It was good though.
The dill is overpowering.
I'm going to have another apricot.
Alright, last one. This will be the strongest of the cheeses. The most powerful. This is the Red Cloud and its paired with New Glarus' Belgian Red.
I got this beer when Lyla was born by the way. We had time to kill while we waited to meet her, so naturally I took the opportunity to stock up on Wisconsin beers.
Did I already tell you the Packers won and the Bears lost today? Great day.
Whoa. It's pungent.
It's supposed to have hints of barnyard.
Yes, this cheese has lots of power. So powerful. So strong.
Stop, Bob.
Wow, the beer is good. Almost tastes like champagne.
You aren't supposed to eat a pickle.
Lo said you can have a pickle whenever. You don't have to wait for a pickle.
I've been eating the apricots the whole time.
Wow, the cheese is salty.
Really salty. 
It's smelly, but it doesn't taste that smelly.
Yeah, it tastes a lot better than it smells. 
The rind is gritty - kind of tastes like sand on the outside. Reminds me of the ocean. 
Wow, they were all delicious.
And such beautiful presentation.
I'm definitely going to buy some of these ...

My discriminating tasters were promised dinner, so from the cheese room we headed into the dining room, and finished the tastings with the Queso de Mano, which provided the topping for David Lebovitz' spinach cake. Next to the spinach was Thomas Keller's rack of lamb from his Ad Hoc at Home cookbook and roasted fingerlings. 

And the perfectly fitting finale - Aunt Ann's cheesecake.

So what did I learn from this experience? Well, I believe that cheese, great cheese, has an infectious kind of magic on a crowd. One doesn't have to be a verbose foodie with the most discriminating palette to find it and appreciate it. In fact sometimes, it actually takes the more down to earth person to bring a cheese tasting out of its shell and turn it into something more. The magic of Haystack's cheese and the process of tasting and enjoying it, piece by piece, smear by smear, slowed us down. It created the most lively conversation and sparked some of the best family stories. In all, the abridged dialogue captured above lasted about two hours, one anecdote wove into another, laughter compounded, and whatever stress was brought to the table, quickly disappeared. In my opinion, the best pairing to each of Haystack's cheeses is a group of great people to share them with. 
 
But for my foodie readers, the team would certainly recommend the Haystack peak, at room temperature, served with some dried apricots and a subtle Loire Valley Sauvignon Blanc. That was heaven.

Thank you for this wonderful experience, Haystack Mountain, Laurel and John. Netti, you never disappoint.

Lo.

Brunch and Brew

I never wanted the characteristic rectangular Kaufmann's box at Christmas or on my birthday - I was doomed the moment it was handed to me. Forget the wrapping paper, forget the tissue, I already knew what was underneath the Santas who appeared to me mocking me and my wish list. It was a sweater - yet another to add to my burgeoning collection of neon, chevron-printed turtlenecks that made my skin itch just thinking about the prickly wool sliding over my head. The worst side effect of celebrating the most commercialized holiday and my birthday during winter in Pittsburgh was a chest of drawers filled with classic early 90's sweaters.

Outside of the Christmas and birthday window though, the Kaufmann's box interchange was welcomed with chubby open arms. Mostly, because any box-to-Lo trade was done by my Grandma with little pay-off on my end, perhaps just a hug and a squeeze. And inside that recycled box, which most likely would have hosted a wool sweater for my Grandma, was a sampling of her treasures: A dozen sesame seed buns, two dozen Parker rolls, square upon square of her Texas sheet cake, a nut roll or her miniature cookie versions, and if I was really lucky six big bear claws - my all-time favorite pastry.

Riding home from her house, I would hold the box tightly, careful not to let it tip or slide. When no one was looking, I would rip off the pinky claw of one of those bears to sample just how amazing this batch was. For breakfast the next day, we would each get one. Far better than any choice we could make from the collection of multi-grain cereals lining our pantry cupboard, was the sweet seduction of a nut-filled, iced pastry that had my grandma's love wrapped up in it.


Yesterday, was another brew day. Well, Peter brewed and I took the temperature during various phases of the process. At my request, he made an all-grain Saison beer - a traditional Belgian farmhouse ale.

Brew days for Peter are cooking and baking days for me though, and on the docket for this event was a brunch of prosciutto omelets and my Grandma's Bear Claws - a treat that I have been craving for too long. I pulled out the recipe that I had copied down from my cousin Meghan when we visited her in D.C. this summer. There were gaps here and there in the instructions, but I took a leap of faith or two while thinking, 'what would Grandma do?' I guessed right and right again, and ended up proud of my results.

Since Macy's bought Kaufmann's and all the other unique department stores in mid-size cities, I didn't have the characteristic storage vessel to complete my project. But luckily some visitors stopped by, helping us scale down the number of leftovers. 

Later in the day, while the beer was going through a boiling phase, Peter asked what was on the menu for dinner. I again asked myself what Olga would do, and she answered Swiss Steak. So I got one of the cheapest cuts of meat - round steak - and roasted it and served it with gravy, mashed potatoes and spinach souffle. It was the perfect panacea to a weekend of hard work around the house. Even better though, was the bittersweet satisfaction I felt when my phone buzzed with a text from Meghan. She said she had showed my Grandma the picture of my bear claws and she said, 'it's beautiful.' Just like that.

Yet another chapter in the family recipe archives made and consumed. I just wish I could still share it with my Grandma.


Lo.


Swiss Steak (serves 2 with leftovers)

1 pound round steak, trimmed and cut into thin slices
1 clove garlic
Flour
Salt, pepper
Bacon drippings
1/2 an onion, chopped
1 cup beef stock 

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Rub steak pieces with garlic clove. Mix together flour, salt and pepper and cover steak with the mixture. In a medium dutch oven, heat bacon drippings. Brown steak, about 3 minutes per side. Set aside. Add onions and saute until softened, about 5 minutes picking up the browned bits stuck to the pan. Add the stock, then return the steak to the pot.

Roast at 350 F for 2 hours or until the steak is fork tender. Naturally, the juices in the pot should render a gravy that is a pretty perfect, but if you need to, remove the steak from the pot and then reduce over medium high heat until the gravy is thick enough. Serve with mashed potatoes.

***

David Lebovitz' Spinach Souffle (serves 4)

1 bag fresh spinach
1 leek
2 tablespoons butter
Nutmeg
Salt
Chili pepper
3 eggs
1 cup milk
1/4 cup Parmesan 

Use only the light green to white part of the leek. Slice thinly. Fill a bowl of water and swish leek slices around in it to clean. Drain and set aside.

In a medium saute pan, over medium heat, melt butter. Add leeks and saute until soft and transparent, about 10 minutes. Add spinach bit by bit until wilted. During the last batch, add a pinch of fresh nutmeg, chili pepper and salt. (Smell the combination now, heaven!) Set aside and let cool.

When cool, place in food processor with eggs and milk and process until smooth. (There should be green pieces everywhere though.)

Lightly butter four ramekins and fill 3/4 of the way with the spinach mixture. Top with Parmesan cheese. Let settle for 5-10 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 F. Bake for 45 minutes or until you stick a tester in and it comes out clean.

***

Bear Claws (makes 12) 
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt 
1/4 teaspoon almond extract or vanilla
2 packets of yeast
2 eggs, beaten
4 1/2 cups flour
2 tablespoons butter, softened

Filling
1/3 cup nuts (I used almonds - if I used vanilla above, I would have used walnuts)
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon almond extract (or is using vanilla and walnuts, cinnamon.)

Icing
1 cup powdered sugar
3 tablespoons milk
1/4 teaspoon almond extract or vanilla

Over medium low heat, warm milk and butter until butter is melted. Cool until lukewarm (about 100 F.) Mix in sugar, salt, almond extract and yeast. Stir well, then let sit for five minutes, until yeast is dissolved.

Stir in eggs.  Add flour in stages, until a dough forms. Knead until smooth and supple. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.

Mix together filling. Make sure the 2 tablespoons of butter is soft. On a well floured surface, roll out dough into a long rectangle, about 1/8 inch thick. You might want to break the dough into two pieces and do this twice. Spread butter all over the pastry dough. Then in the central section spread filling evenly. Fold into thirds, like an envelop, encasing the filling. Cut the pastry into about six sections, each about 2 1/2 inches wide. Place them on a bake sheet. Cut slits into each pastry and spread the 'claws' apart so they are shaped like a bear claw (ta da! thus the name.) Repeat with the second piece of dough. Cover claws and let rise until double in size.

Preheat oven to 350 F. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown on top. Let cool then ice.