I may or may not be obsessed with
cheese (are you, too?), so the fact that we live down the street from
Murray's Cheese, the most amazing cheese shop that ever existed, is fabulous and a little dangerous. The shop is packed with incredible cheeses, meats, chocolates, breads and ice creams, and the cheesemongers are geniuses (and give samples!).
Toby and I venture over there at least twice a week, and we're both fatter and happier for it.
So, my darlings, I'm thrilled to present this handy guide to creating the perfect cheese plate! I met with Murray's head cheesemonger Sydney Willcox to discover her tried-and-true tips, and the lovely
Jamie Beck took photos. Here goes...
Overall pointers for putting together a cheese plate:* When you invite friends over, buy one ounce per person per cheese; and stick to five to six cheeses total.
* Choose a fun variety of cheeses: different textures, countries, and all three milk types (goat, sheep, cow).
* Serve all the cheeses on one big board. You want your guests to start with the mildest and work up to the strongest, so place the cheeses in "clock order"--12 o'clock being the mildest and 11 o'clock being the strongest.
* Take the cheese out of the fridge at least an hour before serving. Cheese should be eaten at room temperature, when it's at its full flavor and texture.
* Put out a few different knives. Goat and blue cheeses crumble if you use a regular knife, so
cheese wires are the best thing to use--if you don't have one, you can use dental floss! Softer cheeses work best with a
butter knife. Harder cheeses, like parmesan, are good with a
triangle-shaped knife. Cut circular cheeses in wedges, like a pizza.
* If you have leftovers, don't store the cheese in Saran Wrap, which will make the cheese sweat and leave a plastic-y taste. Cheese is living and needs to breathe, so wrap it in parchment or wax paper, and keep it in the most humid part of the fridge (usually the vegetable drawer).
Six cheeses for the perfect basic cheese plate:
(
pictured clockwise from top)
1.
Cremont is a bloomy, rindy, mild cheese, which debuted last year in Vermont. (The name "cremont" is a mix of "cream" and "Vermont"!) The cheese has both cow and goat milk. Luscious, coats your tongue, fudge-y, cake-y.
2.
La Tur is the little black dress of cheeses! Everyone loves it. It's a mix of goat, sheep and cow--which is is pretty unusual. Flavorwise, you get a hint of all three animals--tang from the goat, lingering buttery fat from the sheep, milky sweetness from the cow. The texture feels almost whipped, like savory ice cream! At a party, this insanely popular Italian cheese will disappear first.
3.
Pyrenees Brebis. Every single person I've has ever met loves this sheep's milk cheese. It's a huge crowd-pleaser. A lot of flavor, but very harmonious. Nutty, salty, floral, semi-soft. From the southwest region of France, where there are huge herds of sheep.
4.
Cabot Clothbound Cheddar. Cabot makes lots of cheddars, but this is their artisanal (read: fancy!) line. What's cool about this cheese is that it's a partnership between Cabot and the Cellars at Jasper Hill--Cabot makes the cheese, which is then aged in the Cellars at Jasper Hill. There's actually a staff of guys (football-player size!) who flip these cheeses everyday, so they'll age evenly. The cheese is wrapped in cloth, which is a more English style of making cheese. Super strong cheddar; you get little crystals. You'll taste peanuts, caramel, earthy flavors. Eat from the inside out; then take the cloth off and then eat the rind--it almost takes like dirt, but it works so well with the other flavors. (P.S. It would make the best grilled cheese you'd ever have in your life.)
5.
Pleasant Ridge Reserve. Made with raw Jersey cow's milk in Wisconsin. Very fruity and smooth. The American Cheese Society just named it "Best in Show" for the
third time (it's the only cheese to have been awarded Best in Show more than once!). You've gotta try it.
6.
Cambozola Black Label is a very, very delicate blue cheese. Just a tinge of that mineral flavor; very buttery with a bit of a cashew flavor. A great beginning cheese for people who think they might not like blue cheeses. (Once you put it on bread and add a grape, it will mellow out, if you’re feeling timid!) Blue cheeses and chocolate also go together really well--a great balance of salty and sweet.
Pair cheeses with: Dried cherries, walnuts,
marcona almonds (I love these!), fresh grapes, crackers and French bread.
Yummy! Thank you so much, Sydney and
Murray's! Have you tried any of these cheeses before? Do you have a different favorite cheese that you'd recommend? I'd love to hear...
P.S. More
cheese-y posts!
(Photos by
Jamie Beck for
Cup of Jo)
Norwegian photographer Odin Hole Standal woke up early one morning, went outside and made giant soap bubbles. Here are his beautiful results. Look at the lovely sunrise!
My lovelies, what are you up to this weekend? Alex and I just got back from a sail, and it was awesome and invigorating (and windy!). Have a wonderful weekend; sending you all a big kiss. Meanwhile, here are a few great links from around the web...
Today's giveaway is from Pinhole Press, the online boutique for beautiful photo gifts. They're offering one lucky reader a set of personal stationery, where each card comes with a favorite photo. (Which photo would you use -- a family snapshot? A wedding portrait? Your puppy?) These would make great invitations, save-the-dates and thank-you cards, too.
The tumblr Dads Are the Original Hipsters made me laugh out loud. It features old photos of dads looking awesome back in the day, along with hilarious captions. (The photo above: "Your dad wore cycling caps before you did...")
"Your dad drank obscure sodas before you did."
"Your dad wore a knit cap before you did."
"Your dad ate local fair-trade produce before you did."
"Your dad had big headphones before you did."
"You dad was into shooting shit before you were."
"Your dad lived in Portland before you did."
"Your dad didn't give a f*#k before you did."
My darlings, what are your plans for the weekend? Alex and I are going out to a neighborhood French restaurant tomorrow and I'm thinking about wearing false eyelashes just for fun. Have you ever worn them? (Any tips?) Hope you have a wonderful weekend, and here are a few great posts from around the web...
My lovelies, happy Easter weekend! What are you up to? We're having two friends over tonight to watch a documentary, and my mom is coming for a surprise 24-hour visit tomorrow! Hope you have fun adventures this weekend and treat yourself to some chocolate bunnies. :) Meanwhile, here are a few great posts from around the web...
Mother's Day is less than three weeks away, so I wanted to share our gift (my mom is traveling so she won't see it!): We ordered her a framed photo from Pinhole Press, my friends' amazing company. You just upload a snapshot onto their website, and they print, frame and send it right to you or your mom. It's such an easy yet heartfelt gift. Thanks for inventing this, Pinhole! :)
(Top photo by Mads Teglers, via Darling Dexter; bottom photo by Roman Lysenko, via Swissmiss)
My sweets, a couple weeks ago, we figured out how to make the perfect cheese plate. But what about really those change-your-life strong cheeses? Well, Murray's Cheese helped us put together a cheese plate for brave souls that will blow your mind (and stink up your living room). The only question is: Can you handle it? :)
Overall rule of thumb: Typically it's OK to eat the rind of any cheese, as long as you can handle the stronger flavor (exceptions, of course, are cloth-bound or wax rinds).
Chinese photographer Liu Bolin is meticulously covered in paint so that he disappears into his surroundings. Apparently, it can take up to 10 hours to prepare for a single shot. Aren't his photographs mind-blowing?! You can barely see him!
My lovelies, I wanted to share my dad's 60th birthday present (just because I'm so excited about it). I made him a hardcover photo book filled with snapshots from all stages of his life. It was so much fun looking through family shots and choosing favorites, including a few he had never seen! (How hilarious is his expression in his wedding photo, by the way?) When I gave it to him this past weekend, he was so touched and couldn't stop looking through it. It was one of those truly special life moments.
What are you up to this weekend, my darlings? We're heading to a rental house in the Poconos to celebrate my dad's birthday. (We have some tricks up our sleeves!) I hope you guys have a wonderful weekend with lots of treats and not too much rain! As my mom would say, take gentle care of yourselves. xoxo
My dad turns 60 today! This is a photo of his family when he was growing up--he's the oldest of six kids, and you can see him at the top (in his rad roll-neck sweater).
I may or may not be obsessed with cheese (are you, too?), so the fact that we live down the street from Murray's Cheese, the most amazing cheese shop that ever existed, is fabulous and a little dangerous. The shop is packed with incredible cheeses, meats, chocolates, breads and ice creams, and the cheesemongers are geniuses (and give samples!). Toby and I venture over there at least twice a week, and we're both fatter and happier for it.
Overall pointers for putting together a cheese plate:
Six cheeses for the perfect basic cheese plate:
Yummy! Thank you so much, Sydney and Murray's! Have you tried any of these cheeses before? Do you have a different favorite cheese that you'd recommend? I'd love to hear...
Since Alex and I are giving our bedroom a makeover, we've been thinking about new artwork. Well, this is genius: Amber took her a snapshot of clouds and then blew it up on glossy poster paper for $30. Then she framed it in an IKEA Ribba frame. The whole project cost less than $60, and it's gorgeous! Double thumbs up! I'm super inspired.
My darlings! What are you up to this weekend? This week, Alex and I went to the insane play Sleep No More. It felt almost like a haunted house: Everyone in the audience had to wear white masks, and you wander silently around a four-story warehouse in Chelsea. The whole warehouse is designed to look like the setting of Macbeth, and it's incredibly elaborate--from children's bedrooms to a detective's office to a moonlit graveyard. You go up twisting staircases, open creaky doors, explore empty rooms, open drawers and rifle through papers, feel your way down dark hallways...it's really spooky! I made Alex hold my hand the whole time and only freaked out once when there was a strobe light. Now and again, actors will come into the room, and everyone will watch them, until they dart off again. It was, as Alex would say, "a trip." (New Yorkers, you can read more here if you want to go!) Anyway, hope you have a fun weekend, and here are a few great posts from around the web...
