Tag: Spain
Have You Tried These Imported Cheeses?
Although importing cheeses is not exactly the greatest thing for the environment, it is great having so many amazing choices. Importing and exporting opens up new worlds, new realities for all of us cheese lovers. Even then, with so much choice, we can sometimes stick to the safe options and what we know; with this, we should definitely experiment and broaden our horizons.
Here are some of the best imported cheese with great variety at the same time:
Italian
Fontina
Although other countries produce their own version of this cheese, Italy’s version is definitely one of a kind, identified by its stamp. This semi-soft cow’s milk cheese has a rind that forms naturally because of the aging process, the interior color is yellow or orange-brown. The texture is different depending on the age. When it is younger, the cheese is a lot more flexible and melts well, so it is ideal for fondues or casserole dishes. When the cheese is matured, it is firmer and grates well.
Caciocavallo
This is a semi-hard cheese which is made from either cow’s or more interestingly- ewes milk. The process which is used when producing this cheese involves spinning the crafted cheese strings into pear shapes that are then cured in brine or salt for a couple days. The string is then tied around the neck to create a separate ball above the main boy of cheese. It is then aged by being hung over poles.
Spanish
Valdeon
This blue cheese is made from goat’s and cow’s milk. It comes from the Picos de Europa mountain range, being mature in limestone caves, traditionally, for at least 2 months. The flavor is tangy and earns its place on a cheeseboard or fits perfect in recipes which need blue cheese.
The Drunken Goat
I know what you’re thinking, what a strange name! However, despite all the things a drunken goat could mean, this is a goat’s milk cheese from the Spanish Mediterranean coast. This cheese has a purple rind and gets the ‘drunken’ from the fact that it is cured in red wine. See, it wasn’t what you thought and is delicious in every way!
French
Boulette d’Avesnes
From the village of Avesnes near the Belgian border, this iconic cheese is shaped into conical parcels. It is a case of the notion that if you don’t mind a very stinky cheese with a strong, spicy taste, then you will enjoy it! It is produced from the damaged whey of curds that is then mashed with spices and herbs. It is then washed every week in beer and matured for around 4 months.
Banon
Like many kinds of cheese, Banon is named after the village of origin. It was first produced in 1270 and is made from cow’s milk with a strong woody flavor to it. The texture is soft with earthy aromas. When being produced, the cheese is molded by hand before the maturing process begins. After the maturing stage, the cheese is then wrapped in dried chestnut leaves to continue maturing for a further 2 weeks.
If this delicious list isn’t enough for you to try, here are a few more options!
– Delft Blue- Holland
– Trappistenkase- Germany
– Tete de Moine- Switzerland
– Bergkase- Austria
Manchego Cheese: A True Taste of Spain
If you go to the La Mancha region in central Spain, home to the famous Don Quixote, you’ll have the pleasure of tasting queso Manchego, or Manchego cheese. Of course, you can sample this cheese in other parts of the country, and even abroad, but there is nothing like nibbling on the real thing in the land of its origin.
This cheese, which is made from sheep’s milk, and aged no less than 60 days, has got a lot of history behind it. Archeological digs have turned up evidence suggesting that this very unique cheese was being made well before the time of Christ. One of the main purposes of making cheese in the past was to persevere the milk and the health benefits derived from dairy, since refrigeration wasn’t available at the time.
These days, only very special ewes (female sheep) are used in the Manchego cheese making process. The queso is actually protected by the Spanish Government with a ‘Denominación de Origen,’ which means only certain cheeses can be labeled as Manchego cheese. For this tasty and buttery cheese to be called ‘Manchego,’ it has to come from La Mancha. Only the fatty milk from authentic Manchega ewes, which are descended from sheep that have been roaming these lands for centuries, can be used to create the cheese. And the cheese itself must be aged in local caves.
The technical cheese making process consists of milking the ewes by hand, and then putting the milk in curdling vats, where natural curdling enzymes are added to the mix. Then the cheese curd is sliced up into tiny bits and aged. If you ask any of the locals what is the most important aspect in making Manchego cheese, you’re sure to get different answers, but aging the cheese, and the special nature of Manchega ewes will be sure to top the list.
If all of the above requirements are met, you still have a choice between classic Manchego cheese that comes from unpasteurized milk, and the kind that comes from pasteurized milk. In addition to these basic distinctions, you can also select quesos of different ages. Manchego cheese is well-known for its creamy texture, but the flavor varies between the semi-cured Manchego Curado and the richer Manchego Viejo. There is even a fresh cheese, Manchego Fresco, you can buy and sample before it has completed the aging process. The best thing for you to do is to head to La Mancha and try all of these wonderful cheeses for yourself.
PURE PROTEIN
We all know that a good cheese is a very complete food, a real concentrate of all the fine nutritional qualities of milk.
Today I found out that Manchego cheese actually has such a high proportion of proteins that is in fact even richer in proteins than meat! That’s great news for all the veggies out there.
Proteins are the building blocks of life. The body needs protein to repair cells and make new ones. Furthermore, protein is also important for growth and development during childhood, adolescence, and pregnancy (and Manchego is a safe cheese for a preggo to eat!).
So now you know, next time you fancy some Manchego, stop feeling guilty about it. Yes, it might be rich in calories, but it’s good for you too!
LOW IN LACTOSE
According to recent studies, more than 40 Million Americans are lactose intolerant.
Like all hard cheeses, Manchego is naturally low in lactose. Additionally, being made with sheep’s milk – which has a lower percentage of lactose than cow’s milk – makes it more suitable for sensitive stomachs.
Furthermore, as the longer a cheese is aged the less lactose it has, and Manchego can be aged for up to 2 years, lactic sensitive people have the perfect alibi to reach for the most exquisite of all Manchegos: the most aged ones.
THOUSANDS OF YEARS IN THE MAKING
Manchego is one of the world’s cheeses with the most valuable history and heritage. That’s a well-known fact.
But, did you know that Pre-Historic men and women already enjoyed the pleasures of fine Manchego cheese?
Yes, as locals tell it, archeological remains dating back to the Bronze age show that the inhabitants of La Mancha used to make a sheep’s milk cheese with the milk of a race of sheep that’s considered the ancestor of our modern Manchega sheep. Weren’t they clever!
Of course, we don’t know what methods our ancestors used to make this natural product, but we could assume that their cheese tasted very much like ours, and that their cheesemaking methods were most probably similar too.
Next time you queue up to buy your Manchego think about those cave men & women who were already in the know. When a little pleasure survives the turn of so many centuries it must mean it’s worth passing it on!
HOW TO CUT MANCHEGO CHEESE
Ok… so you bought a whole Manchego cheese. You are all excited about the great cheese you’ve got and can’t wait to start eating it.
Now you are home staring at the cheese and wondering what would be the best way to cut a wedge out of it without destroying the masterpiece.
Have you been there? If so, here’s how to do it properly in a few simple steps:
- Cut the cheese in two halves.
- Cut a wedge out of one the halves – You should only cut as much as you plan to eat.
- Take the bottom bit of rind off.
- Cut it into slices about 5mm (1/4”) thick.
- Serve – if possible – at room temperature. Manchego cheeses taste their best at 68°
Be sure to stop in at Shisler’s Cheese House and try some Manchego Cheese and enjoy a taste of Spain!
