4 Year Aged Gouda

I wandered into one of our local cheese shops after the farmer's market this morning (my most favorite Saturday morning routine) and my eyes went directly to the in-process cutting of their most aged Gouda wheel.  Sold.
The older the Gouda gets, the more complex the flavor profile.  This 4 year aged has a mild nutty flavor one moment, and a caramel sweetness in the next.  It really is like cheese-candy.  Usually I'll just have it on it's own (no bread, no accompaniments.)  It's a great addition to any cheese board and always on mine.

Epoisses

Gooey, stinky, messy... these are the first three adjectives that come to mind when describing Epoisses in my own words.  
This French cow's milk fromage is recommended to be eaten immediately after purchase.  It is so strong it'll undoubtedly stink up your fridge, your kitchen, your HOUSE.  But its tanginess and creaminess (almost more like a paste) is so delicious, I guarantee you will consume it in one sitting.
I'm still in my honey-drizzle phase so I eat my Epoisses with it, but you don't need anything to accompany this one.

 I love my honeypot.  You can get one too, right here.

Humboldt Fog

Have I told you about Humboldt Fog yet?  I feel like I have... 
This cheese is not to be missed.  Humboldt Fog is a goats milk from Cypress Grove Creamery in Humboldt County, California.  Its distinguishing layer of vegetable ash in the middle makes it easily recognizable, and I've noticed that even people who aren't huge goat cheese fans still gravitate towards this one.  It's still tangy, but a bit milder than most chevre, and the outer edge under the rind is so creamy and runny (think: brie) once the cheese is ripe, it's the best of two worlds.

Here are a few pictures of the wedge I enjoyed (...in its entirety... by myself...) last night.

Ludobites Ham and Cheese Sandwich...Soup.

If you know me, you know one of my (our) favorite things to do is eat good food.  And our favorite place to practice this pastime is at a pop-up restaurant (the original pop-up restaurant), Ludobites.  (Click here to read a little more about Ludo, and his and his wife's creation of the now-famous pop-up style restaurant.)  
Anyway, when he released a Ludobites cookbook this fall featuring many of our favorite dishes I snapped it up, and it took me until this weekend to find the time to take it for a spin.  
The first try was with our absolute favorite of all dishes, the Ham and Cheese Sandwich Soup.  It was laborious, and holy hell at the calories -- I was slightly horrified as I watched myself add all of the butter, cream, and ham into the pot -- but the final product was decadent, delicious and such a luxury to enjoy on the bitter cold afternoon we were having.

If you're interested in this recipe, get a copy of the Ludobites Cookbook on amazon.

That is emmentaler cheese baked over the top of the homemade rustic croutons, before being drizzled with browned butter and guinness foam.  Mmhm.

Rosemary and Goat Cheese Sweet Potatoes

Here's a quick and easy (and healthy!) side dish (or quick lunch for 2).  It's a classic rosemary roasted potatoes recipe, but switched with sweet potatoes for the health benefits, and adding goat cheese before serving for my own benefits.  So good!

You need:

2 sweet potatoes cut up into bite sized pieces (I keep the skin on)

2 oz goat cheese (crumbled)

2 sprigs rosemary, chopped
Olive oil for drizzling
Salt & pepper for seasoning

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Preheat oven to 400
Slice potatoes, toss in olive oil, chopped rosemary, salt & pepper.
Lay on baking sheet and bake for 20-25 minutes, until potatoes are crispy.
Transfer to serving bowl and toss with goat cheese crumbles.

Four Cheese Grilled Cheese

Happy 2013! 
I hope you had a wonderful, safe and joyous holiday.  Matt and I had an amazing whirlwind trip back to New England, splitting time between both of our families and loved every second.  Unfortunately we brought a lovely (ie: nasty) cold back with us, so it's been a couple days of recovery before we head back to work tomorrow. 
In efforts of consuming as many hot liquids as possible, I figured we could at least have a tasty grilled cheese to accompany our soup this afternoon.  I didn't have as much cheese as I thought, so I figured combining a few and calling it a fancy "four cheese" would suffice.
It.Was.Amazing.  Even when making something as simple as a grilled cheese sandwich,  it's fun to mix things up and see how it turns out.  This one was a success:

Four Cheese Grilled Cheese:
Since I'm going to go ahead and assume you know the basics of making a grilled cheese, I'm only listing the cheese layers for you:
Goat cheese (spread across the bottom piece of bread)
Sharp Cheddar (orange) 
Extra Sharp Cheddar (white)
Asiago
Plus a little sprinkle of pepper before placing the top slice on to grill (if I was ambitious I would have added some rosemary, too).  

Mmm.