It is rumored that Emperor Antoninus Pius who died in 161BC, died from eating too much Banon Cheese.

What makes this unpasteurized  goat cheese so special you ask?  It is the way they make it and it has been made this way for a very long time.   The cheese was first made by a couple in the village of Puimichel near the town of Banon in the region of Alpes-de-Haute Provence.

The unpressed curd is placed in an earthenware jar and seasoned with salt and pepper and doused with vinegar and eau de vie, a clear fruit brandy then left to ferment. The cheese will last for years becoming stronger with time. The cheese when young taste sour and chalky, but let it age and you have a little piece of heaven. After a few weeks the young cheese is wrapped in chestnut leaves to continue the ageing process.

How can you tell a good Banon Cheese? By the color of the leaves. Dark green or brown are the best.  It is very soft and creamy with a fruity and slightly nutty taste and a pungent aroma. The taste and texture change with age.  The rumor says that if you taste this cheese during the month of May while in France at the Banon Cheese festival you will forever yearn to return to Banon.

You can be certain when purchasing Banon cheese from France that you will always get a similar product. The French, who awarded Banon the AOC, or term of controlled origin in the 2000s, regulates the production of the cheese. This means that only certain cheese meeting the French standards for the production of Banon cheese, may be called so. The French regulate all aspects of how, where and when Banon can be produced and labeled within their country.

The word Banon is pronounced ban-awh. The final n as in many French words is not pronounced. You may also find Banon cheese called Banon à la feuille, translated as cheese of the leaf or cheese with a sheet. It is sold in small rounds that are traditionally wrapped with chestnut or grape leaves to enhance the flavor of the cheese and keep it moist, which hastens the production of molds adding even more flavor as the cheese ages. As it ages, the cheese becomes more creamy in texture and richer in flavor, providing a somewhat fruity tasting cheese. Banon cheese is usually served as an hors d’oeuvre or with fruit and wine.

 By Chef Lippr

Raw-milk cheese is made with milk that is unpasteurized. Since 1949, the US government has forbidden the sale of cheeses made from unpasteurized milk unless the cheese is aged at least 60 days. The 60-day ban is meant to protect consumers from potentially harmful pathogens. After 60 days, the acids and salts in raw-milk cheese naturally prevent listeria, salmonella, and E. coli from growing.

Some cheesemakers believe that using raw milk creates more flavorful and more healthful cheeses. Many cheesemakers believe there is no reason to be fearful of raw-milk and no reason to wait 60 days to eat cheese made from it.  Our raw cheeses have been aged to comply with the 60 day waiting period or longer.

In terms of nutrition, the difference between organic cheese from grass-fed and the cheese from grain-fed animals you find in most stores and restaurants is as opposite as two different forms of the same food gets.

Though cows, sheep and goats are naturally grass-feeding animals, 85-95% of all dairy animals are raised in confinement on a diet of grain, particularly corn, because it is far more cost-efficient. Because this grain-based diet is highly abnormal and disruptive, it changes the pH in the animals. This then sets up an environment and terrain in the animal for many abnormal physiological conditions in the animal which can increase the need for the use of antibiotics. Further, to promote faster growth and more excessive milk production, many of these dairy animals are fed a variety of growth hormones. All of this makes for the severely unhealthy dairy products that you’ll find on virtually all grocery store shelves.

Cheese from grain-fed animals is very high in the omega-6 fats that most people get far too much of and can lead to a variety of diseases. Meanwhile, it is quite low in the omega-3 that most people are dangerously deficient in. It is also very low in “conjugated linoleic acid,” or CLA, that people need.

This cheese from grass-fed animals, on the other hand, is:

• One of the few foods that contains a perfect balance of omega-3 and omega-6 fats, a ratio ideal for your health
• Very high in “conjugated linoleic acid;” in fact, it contains five times more CLA than dairy from grain-fed animals!
• Considerably higher in beta-carotene, vitamin A, vitamin D, and vitamin E than cheese and other dairy from grain-fed sources.
• High in the healthy calcium and protein your body needs

The reason this cheese is higher in all the vitamins (it’s four times higher in vitamin E, for instance) is in part because fresh pasture provides more of these nutrients than grains. Another reason, is because animals on a grass diet naturally produce considerably less milk than those fed grain.

These modest yields of milk from grass-fed animals are part of the reason almost all agribusiness has shifted to grain-feeding (greater yield = more money for them), but the dairy from grass-fed animals is a great blessing for you.

Dairy producing animals only have a limited amount of vitamins to transfer to their milk, so what people get with grain-fed dairy is a drastically watered-down product in terms of vitamins. With cheese from grass-fed animals, you are getting a considerably higher concentration of vitamins — and the omega-3, and the CLA — in every bite.

Raw cheese has 500% more CLA than cheese and other dairy products from grain-fed cows is alone an incredibly compelling reason to make it your dairy of choice!

The cows that are grass-fed and graze on 100% organic grasses — meaning grasses that are not treated with pesticides, herbicides or other chemicals — in un-crowded pastures are happy cows. There are no tight quarters and food competition as with grain-fed cows, meaning the cows are unstressed, which also translates to their milk’s health value is higher.

Furthermore, their pastures include various “weeds” that are actually like medicinal herbs to the grazing cows. They can, in effect, pick and choose the grasses they naturally need for their optimal health, and therefore their milk’s optimal health. In addition to the dramatically high level of nutrition the resulting cheese provides, being raised in this entirely natural state also results in a much better tasting cheese. You will immediately notice that the flavors are more pronounced than any cheese you’ve tried before, and the texture is also far smoother and more pleasing to your palate.  The Amish Cheeses we carry have been made the same way for generations.  The Amish community does not believe in feeding grain, or giving growth hormones to its animals. The cows are let out to graze in large pastures in the mornings and can munch on grasses and “weeds” to their hearts content.

We currently offer a line of Raw Amish cheese that includes cheeses from cow, goat and sheep in many degrees of hardness.  From soft and creamy brie type of cheeses to aged cheddars that are full of flavor and creamy on the tongue.

Stop by and get a taste of cheese made the way cheese should taste and compare it to your favorite store bought cheese and see if you can tell the difference.

Basic Guidelines

• Mild, hard cheeses complement a wider range of wines than soft, ripe, or mature cheeses do.
• Overall, white wines go better with cheese than do red wines.
• Sweeter whites tend to be more versatile than drier whites when paired with cheeses.
• Tannic red wine (red wine with dry, rich notes) suits the hardest cheeses best. 

Select the cheese, then match the wine

Consider the characteristics of the cheese in selecting the complementary wine.

• Texture — Softer cheeses coat your palate, preventing you from fully appreciating the flavor and body of many wines.
  Solution: Choose white wines, which feature a characteristic, refreshing acidity, and thus provide a palate-cleansing effect when paired with soft or creamy cheeses.
• Sweetness — certain mild cheeses have a sweet flavor — and make dry wines taste acidic and tart in their company.
  Solution: Choose a semi-dry, sweet or dessert wine.

Classic combinations

These classic wine, cheese and olive combinations have withstood the test of time:

The right pairing of wine with cheese, or combination of wine, cheese and olives adds a touch of elegance to any gathering. Try some of these combinations and discover your own favorites. Salude!

Don’t worry! Moldy cheese happens even to the best of us.

As a child my granny would tell us to just cut the mold off, which for some cheese is acceptable and some not so acceptable. So how do you tell the difference between good mold and bad mold?  Here are some tips to help you keep your cheese at its best.

Now that you have found us, and know that you can get your favorite cheese fresh each week it is best to buy only what you can eat in a week. Cheese is a living, breathing organism and there are lots of things that influence the taste and quality.

Tips for keeping your cheese fresh:

1.      Tasting your cheese before you buy it is key. Smelling your cheese is actually a key to enjoying the taste.  Trust your instincts. There is good bad smelling cheese and bad bad smelling cheese. If it sends shivers of disgust down your spine, like the thought of eating worms then don’t buy it. Everyone has different taste so only buy cheese that you find pleasing.

2.      However, really bad smelling cheese can taste DIVINE! So take a taste, if you like it then go ahead and get it.

3.      Fresh and soft cheese have a short shelf life and have to be treated different than hard cheese. For soft cheese if it smells like sour milk then it is best to toss it out.

4.      Mold on cheese rind is called Bloom and is a good thing. What you need to look for and avoid is a slimy, pinkish mold this is bad. Some cheeses with bloom will even give off an ammonia scent this is a natural part of the aging process.

5.      Some cheeses are best eaten as soon as you get them home. Only because there smell will proliferate in your refrigerator. Limburger and Sweaty Goat cheese are examples of these cheese. These cheese can last for weeks but the taste will decrease over time.

6.      Aged cheese like Parmigiano Reggiano and Fontina have been aged to the extent that ensures their durability. They have low moisture and there is not much that you need to worry about with these types of chees. In some cases age actually heightens the flavor.  Greenish-blue molds are good and just need to be scraped off.

7.      Blue cheese will only become stronger in taste with age. It is up to you to taste and see if you like the age.  An old blue cheese will never hurt you only your taste buds.

8.      The best way to store cheese is with cheese paper. Yes they make a special paper just for cheese storage. The next best thing is parchment paper with plastic wrap. This way your cheese is protected from the plastic and your refrigerator is protected from your cheese. NEVER wrap your cheese in just plastic alone.

9.      Store your cheese in the warmest part of your refrigerator. Cheese is alive and cold temperatures limit the important bacterial activity of your cheese and will affect the taste.

10.  Bring your cheese to room temperature for the best tasting experience.

Ubriacone is a traditional, Italian cheese made in northern Italy’s Veneto region. Affectionately called “drunken cheese”, it is bathed in gallons of red wine along with skins, seeds, and leftovers from the wine making process  to extract the unique sweet, delicate aroma of the wine and complex flavors.

An unpasteurized cow’s milk cheese, Ubriacone is matured for a minimum of 2 months but rarely for over a year. Upon maturity, it develops a soft and supple texture, which ages to become firmer and crumbly, similar to a Parmigianino. Seasonally produced, the best season to avail the cheese is from late fall through early summer. The cheese has a flowery aroma and smells of heavenly red wine.

I have added the sweetness of this wine flavored cheese to my favorite cheese cake recipe for a very addictive dessert that will have your guests begging for more!

Ingredients:

8 eggs

2 cups sugar

½ cup flour

½ cup heavy cream

1 teaspoon pear extract

3 pound of ricotta

1 cup crumbled Ubriacone cheese

½ cup sweet wine such as Adytum Honey & Pear Mead

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Beat eggs with a mixer until foamy. Add the sugar while beating eggs continuously with the mixer. Once the sugar is dissolved, beat in the flour, followed by the heavy cream, one by one, add in the pear extract, ricotta, Ubriacone and the wine.

Butter and flour a 9” springform pan. Pour in the mixture and sprinkle the top with cinnamon. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes, check to see if done with a toothpick, Once toothpick comes out clean, shut off the oven and leave the cheesecake in there to settle for 10 to 15 minutes more.

Once cool (this will take a few hours), sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve.

Before I moved to Florida I use to think it was funny to hear the weathermen say “it’s a chilly 65 degrees” but now that I have been here a while I know that yes even 65 can be chilly and today it is only going to get that warm all day! So today I am making my cheddar soup with this wonderful Balsamic cheddar cheese from Satori, it is sweet, nutty and fruity tasting that pairs well with porter beer and dark breads. Once you taste this you will crave it even on the hottest days!

Cheddar Soup
1 cup celery minced
1 cup carrots minced
1 1/2 cups onion minced
1 1/2 sticks (6oz) butter
2/3 cup flour
1 tsp. Dijon Mustard
3 cups Vegetable Broth
12 oz. smoked porter beer
3/4 cups milk
4 cups shredded Sartori Balsamic cheddar cheese
minced chives for garnish

1) In a skillet on Low/Med – cook carrots, onions and celery in butter until tender (about 15 minutes). Season with salt.
2) Add flour and mustard to the skillet and whisk until incorporated and smooth.
3) Add Veggie broth and beer, cook and stir until thickened.
4) Puree in a blender, then return to skillet.
5) Stir in milk and stir for about 6-10 minutes, then add cheese and cook/stir for about 10 mins. (Add more liquid as desired) *Can be frozen to heat and serve later*

Pumpernickel Bowl (in Bread Machine)
Place ingredients into bread machine in this order:
1 2/3 cups Water
2 1/3 cups Bread flour
1 cup Wheat Flour
1 cup Rye Flour
3 Tbls. Molasses
1 tsp. salt
2 Tbls. Vegetable oil
4 Tbls. Cornmeal
2 tsp. Instant Coffee
2 Tbls. Unsweetened Cocoa
2 tsp. Active Dry Yeast

Turn Bread machine to Basic Dough setting. When dough is finished, remove, cut and measure dough into 3/4 oz. sizes. Using fingers push each dough piece into small round balls, and pinch together on the back side. On floured board, twist each ball seam side down to make a smooth bottom. Place each dough ball on a parchment lined baking sheet (about 2 inches a part), cover and let rise for about 1 hour. Glaze each dough ball by brushing with an egg wash (1 egg beaten with 1 Tbls. water). Bake in a preheated oven set on 350F for about 10 minutes.
Remove to cool on pan.

To prepare the “bowl”, snip off the top of each baked bread ball and using the kitchen shears, carefully, cut out a bit of the inside bread. Be careful to not cut through the bread.

The Bread bowls may be filled now, or freeze them for filling as needed.

TO FILL:

Pour the warmed soup into a squeeze bottle with a medium opening. Turn the squeeze bottle over each Bread Bowl and fill almost to the top with soup. Garnish with snipped chives.

These are easy to reheat in the oven, if your guests are late.

Asiago is one of my favorite cheeses to work with and this one from Wisconsin with Rosemary and Olive Oil is the best I have tasted, so I added it to my risotto with a little lemon and MAGIC happened!

Ingredients:

2 green onions/shallots

1 stalk celery

1/4 cup unsalted butter

1 Tablespoons olive oil

1-1/3 cups risotto rice (preferably Arborio from Fratello Sole)

1 quart vegetable stock

1/2 lemon, zested and juiced

1 tsp. minced garlic

1 egg yolk

6 Tablespoons grated fresh Parmesan (I used ½ Parmesan and ½ Rosemary Asiago cheeses)

4 Tablespoon heavy cream

white pepper

Sea salt to taste

Directions.

In a mini food processor, finely chop the celery and green onions/shallots.

In a deep pot, heat half the butter, the olive oil, and the celery/shallot mixture until softened, about 5 minutes, stirring so that nothing sticks to the bottom of the pot.

Mix in the rice, stirring to coat the rice with the butter and oil.

In another saucepan, heat the stock and keep it warm and simmering.

Pour a ladleful of stock into the rice mixture and keep stirring until all stock is absorbed.

Add another ladle of stock, stir again.

Repeat this process until the rice is cooked to ‘al dente’.

Use your judgement with the stock — you may not need it all, or you may even have to add some hot water beyond 1 quart.

Mix the lemon zest into the risotto.

In a small bowl, beat the egg yolk, lemon juice, Parmesan (and Asiago), cream and pepper.

When the risottos still has a little ‘bite’, remove it from the heat and add the bowl of lemon juice, egg, cheese mixture.

At this point, I also added the garlic.  Add the remaining half of the butter. Salt to taste.

Check your seasoning and make adjustments.

Special of the week… St Patrick’s Day Irish Cheese…Cheddar with Port wine or  Porter Beer or  Sage and we can’t forget the whisky soaked one! Oh how I love Saint Patrick’s Day!

Irish Cheddar Cheese with Porter Beer, Cahills Porter, is made by blending the cheddar curds with dark brown porter beer, resulting in a beautiful outstanding marbled cheese. The flavor of porter beer alone is rather strong, but in combination with the cheddar, the beer flavor is mellowed and the cheese flavor is deepened.

The cheese is made from pasteurized cow’s milk and a vegetable rennet is used, so an appropriate cheese for vegetarians. The entire wheels is dipped in a wash which makes cutting easier.

Imagine this cheese as part of your cheese board, a wonderful sight and also a great flavor addition. It goes without saying that this cheese pairs well with various beers.

Sage Derby is a cheddar type gourmet cheese made using leaf sage for flavor, and colored using chlorophyll (plant coloring) to give a green marbled finish. The finely chopped sage leaf gives a subtle extra flavor. Sage Derby is matured for around 12 weeks as per mild cheddar.

In the seventeenth century, the custom of adding sage to Derby cheese began. Sage was valued for its health-giving properties; it was good for the digestion and thus Sage Derby was born. Sage Derby was originally consumed at harvest time and Christmas.

Sage Derby, one of the oldest British gourmet cheeses and one of the original additive cheeses; is unique with the sage being added during the manufacturing process and not at a later stage. Certainly an interesting and colorful addition to any festive cheese board or buffet.

A Vintage Irish Cheddar mixed with Red Wine has a rich sharp taste with strong presence of wine. This gourmet cheese also has fine looks, the cheese is marbled with the red wine, resulting in a wonderful cheddar that will do justice to you cheeseboard.

Infused with the robust flavor of whiskey, this creamy Aged Cheddar now has unique undertones of the smooth, woody and nutty taste of pure Irish Whiskey. This tasty combination is the perfect compliment to your cheese platter and is also a wonderful gift item. It goes well on sandwiches, pasta and pairs well with dark Ales.

Visit our web site at www.fratellosole.net for our locations this week.

Serrano ham is one of Spain’s favorite meats. When you walk into any tapas bar, restaurant or little shop you will see the hams hanging from the wall or a wall decorated with the ropes from the ham. I have included the recipe for one tapa and pictures from many others. It has also become a favorite at my Farmers Market stands.

I hope you have fun making and eating these!

Chef Lippe

Ham and Chicken Stuffed Endives

Left over chicken

Serrano Ham

Alioli

Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions

Slice the bottom inch away from the endive, remove the 6 largest leaves and arrange on plate.

Spoon 1 teaspoon of alioli along the bottom of each leaf.

Arrange shredded chicken on alioli and top with Serrano ham

Drizzle with good olive oil and server with tomatoes and fresh bread.

Enjoy the rest of my many uses of Serrano Ham or better yet come and visit our market stand and try a taste!