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There’s a New Cheese Lady in Town!

There’s a New Cheese Lady in Town!

One of the great surprises of pitching a tent in West Michigan was finding a cheese store, nay a Cheese Lady, which far surpasses all found in the multiple world capitals in which I have lived. I know that seems hard to believe, but I’m here to tell you it’s flat out fact. Even Paris, with its iconic Androuët, home to one of my greatest meals ever, pales in comparison to The Cheese Lady. If it were the Cheese Olympics and I was the Russian judge – ok, not her, she’s a bit mean – the American Judge, I would give Androuët a stingy 5.8. The Cheese Lady, a solid 10. Any quality cheese monger will have an extensive variety – The Cheese Lady carries some 150 cheeses from around the globe, with about 20% quality domestic cheeses. And sure, sure, sure, all respectable joints will include raw milk cheeses – something that was off limits in the US until relatively recently. TCL has raw in every category, including goat which is a bit rare. The big difference however is the Midwestern hospitality. Just imagine, if you will, a French monger shouting his most disdaining Mais No!!!  But just in case variety, raw milk, and hospitality aren’t enough, Kathleen Fagan Riegler, the original Cheese Lady, wears a beret. Mais oui!!! I can feel my gruyere melting already.

Beret-Wearing Cheese Lady in front of the chalkboard with all the listingsKathleen spent nearly two decades on the road peddling le fromage for a big Chicago-based importer. Tired of the road, she set herself up at the Muskegon Farmer’s Market and sold out each day. Kathleen loves the market: the energy, the diversity, the passion of both growers and customers, and I think even quite possibly annoying people like me who ask way too many questions. She loves us all. She also has a real gift for connecting with her customers and sharing her knowledge and enthusiasm. Because of the farmer’s market, she developed a mentality and sensibility that focuses on sharing. Very few shops taste cheeses with their customers. Fewer still cut to order. This gift of sharing and generosity trickles down throughout the entire staff. They all totally embrace the living nature of cheese and the fact it varies from day to day, quick to point out whether this wheel needs immediate consumption or can wait a week. Customer service as it was intended!

Sampling Cheese - hand cutting half wheel with a cheese plane and offering a tasteTalk about right place at the right time! Kathleen was there to ride the wave of consumer interest in increasingly more intense flavors and America’s (even West Michigan’s) growing fascination with all things cheese. What you can’t help but notice is the SISTERHOOD at The Cheese Lady that Kathleen has created. You business types might call this a franchise, but I assure you, it is so much more. This is a family of Cheese Ladies and the newest addition (sisters are scattered across Michigan from Traverse City to Kalamazoo) has been there since the beginning, right at the flagship store. Shelley Essebaggers Lewis. She approached Kathleen in the earliest of farmer’s market days when the first tiny store was coming into focus, and Kathleen assured Shelley she would never be that busy. Six stores later, Kathleen is THAT busy. The time has come and Shelley is now the newest (official) Cheese Lady. Kathleen’s goal is to be an increased resource to “The Sisters” and continue to source new products and learn and share. This move allows more time to visit and coach all the sisters. And Shelley is both ready and excited to officially take over the flagship that she has managed for years. Run right over and pick up some of the yummy cheese that I recently sampled and give her a big high five. The future of The Cheese Lady Muskegon is bright and tasty.

Kathleen Riegler and Shelley LewisI spent the morning with them during a blizzard a few weeks ago. Winter cheeses, great for recipes and cooking, were on the menu. We cracked a couple huge wheels and I was surprised (probably shouldn’t have been) that the flavors were so nuanced and nutty. I sometimes clump cooking cheese into a category less flavorful. Never again. Not on my watch. These cheeses would be great in French Onion Soup, Fondue, Gratins, Omelets and Mac & Cheese (recipe coming very soon – thinking about making it Saturday, with a nod to pimento cheese jazzed up with peppadews).

Big Wheels The cheese lady cutting large wheels of cheeseFirst up was a Cave-Aged Gruyere from Switzerland – a raw cow’s milk cheese. The aging creates crystals giving the cheese a light crunchy texture and deep nutty taste. The wheels are a whopping 80 pounds. Super delicious and a fantastic candidate for best grilled cheese ever!

Fontina Fontal is a staple in North Italian pantries. It’s a perfect melting cheese. The Lady likes to use it in mac & cheese to make the cheese sauce creamier. I suspect it will be going in mine! Cheddars have a tendency to separate when heated, so a cheese like this will keep the sauce from breaking.

Next up was Emmental, the classic “Swiss” cheese, which bares zero resemblance to the sliced stuff you get hanging on a rack at the supermarket. Emmentaler has a protected origin designation so that the integrity of true Swiss Emmentaler can be maintained by its stringent standards. The wheels often weigh upwards of 150 pounds. Emmentaler is a brined cheese, so there is a slightly salty taste. Pure perfection.

Specialty Cheeses - some of my faves; wheel of cypress Grove Midnight Moon, Fontina and label from Pleasant Ridge ReserveAnd then we finished off with some Pleasant Ridge Reserve. Yum. One of Wisconsin’s most awarded cheeses, Pleasant Ridge is a raw milk cheese, made from the milk of a single herd, fed and managed using natural “Old World,” hand-crafted practices. As the cheese ages, its flavor becomes more complex and concentrated and is both musty and mushroomy. Often eaten as a table cheese, it is also an excellent recipe cheese.

#BestMorningEver

I\'ll take that to go! Stacks of freshly cut wedges of cheese

While not on that day’s menu, I did have to squeak in a taste of truffled Gouda.  Melkbus is a raw milk Gouda made on small dairy farms around the Netherlands. Each style is numbered – this was #149, a buttery unpasteurized Gouda with Italian black truffles added to the curd before pressing.

O. M. G.

Melkbus #149 - Truffled Gouda - 1/4 wheel and a large web

I am 100% sure that The Cheese Lady has upped my food cred among colleagues, friends and family alike. There are certain people that likely only invite me for Christmas because I come with a clown-car-sized suitcase filled with The Cheese Lady treasures. I can’t tell you how many guests (it’s a lot) visiting each summer bring coolers to stock up. Some even throw tantrums if we miss the opening hours. I’m pretty sure we should start some kind of petition to get Cheese Ladies Everywhere. I know I could use one on my NYC corner. Right now. My then-12-year-old cousin said she was pretty sure there should be one or two in every state, right before proclaiming The Cheese Lady as “my idol”.

Cheese in the Spotlight: Two rather disturbing stories have surfaced in the media this week. One I reject wholesale – a GQ piece saying that cheese can be addictive. They say it like that is a bad thing? I know for a fact that cheese is good for you – hence the expression cheesy goodness, although there is a high probability that I invented that expression myself. Still. Just sayin. Isn’t cheesy euphoria what we live for? The only part of that post that I do embrace? A retouched photo of Scarface with 20 kilos of uncut Colby.

20 Kilos of Uncut Colby - riff off Scarface with Al Pacino looking at highly addictive cheese of many flavorsAnd then there is the distressing news about wood pulp in our cheese. Well, not in my cheese. Unfortunately NBC Nightly News filled the story with B-roll of beautiful cases of hunks of cheese. They went so far as to create an infographic showing what the acceptable 4% level looks like on a wheel. That’s not where the cellulose (anti-caking agent) is found – it’s in the little green shakers of “parmesan”.  (They also report that some of those shakers have zero parmesan – all cheaper cheeses AND wood pulp). So another reminder to read your labels. And while you are checking out ingredients, check out expiration date. I can pretty much guarantee you that the cryovac Manchego or feta at the supermarket will have expiration dates from 6 months to a year out. Remember that bit about cheese being alive? Not so much when sealed in plastic. Just go already to The Cheese Lady where your lovely, breathing, creamy, runny, tasty, smelly, gooey piece of dairy heaven is cut to order and wrapped in French cheese paper. Have I made myself clear?

Kathleen Riegler and Shelley LewisCourtesy of The Cheese Lady…some 30 second appetizers:

  • Manchego, Pear Preserves & Marcona Almonds
  • Eurocreme Stuffed Peppadews
  • Dried Figs Stuffed with Gorgonzola & Honey Drizzle
  • Taleggio & Tart Cherry Preserves
  • Mascarpone & Lemon Curd on Oatcakes
  • Fresh Chevre, Quince Chutney & Toasted Coconut

Toasted Baguette Toppers

  • Iberico & Olive Tapenade
  • Feta, Prosciutto, Honey & Fig
  • Raclette & Cornichons
  • Burrata & Artichokes
  • Valdeon Bleu & Creamed Honey
  • Irish Cheddar & Pear Jam

My Mac & Cheese recipe is coming soon! Stay tuned!! It’s National Drink Wine Day so I think you know what you gotta do! Giddy up.

If this is wrong, I don\'t wanna be right, Cheese board with goat cheese with cran chutney, brie, pears and other cheese with crackers and cheese wafers© Copyright: KatyKeck.com 2016. All rights reserved.

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Roasted Vegetable Napoleon

Roasted Vegetable Napoleon

roasted beet, goat cheese soufflé terrine topped with zucchini and summer squash

Beets and goat cheese are a match made in heaven. Adding the goat cheese to roasted potatoes elevates this root vegetable appetizer to a whole new level of sublime.

Ingredients

Vinaigrette

  • 1/4 cup fresh beet juice
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 1 1/2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 1 clove of garlic, roasted at 350oF for 20 minutes, peeled
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon pepper

Napoleon

  • 1 pound beets, scrubbed
  • 1 pound baking potatoes, scrubbed
  • 3 ounces of soft herbed goat cheese, cut into bite-sized chunks
  • 1 Tablespoon butter
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon white pepper
  • 1/3 cup milk, warmed
  • 1 medium zucchini, thinly sliced
  • 1 medium yellow squash, thinly sliced
  • Olive oil

Directions

Make the vinaigrette:

Place all the ingredients in the blender and blend on high until emulsified. Keep refrigerated until ready to use.

Makes about ½ cup.

Make the napoleon:

Roast the beets and the potatoes at 400oF until a fork inserts easily, about one hour. When cool enough to handle, peel both.

Press the roasted potatoes through a ricer, or mash by hand. Using a handmixer, begin to whip the potatoes, while adding the goat cheese, butter, salt and pepper and slowly drizzling in enough milk to reach desired consistency. Taste and adjust seasonings.

Thinly slice the beets and set aside.

Brush the zucchini and yellow squash with oil and grill or sauté until golden, about 1 – 2 minutes per side.

In a 3-inch ring, stack the vegetables by layering the beets, then the whipped potatoes, and finish with a layer of alternating rounds of zucchini and yellow squash. Repeat, to create 6 vegetable stacks.

Transfer the napoleons to an ovenproof dish and keep warm at 200oF until ready to serve.

To serve, place the warmed napoleons in the center of the salad plate and scatter the salad mix around the outside edge. Drizzle the beet vinaigrette from the end of spoon over the greens.

Serves 6

Island Ceviche with Tropical Fruit

Island Ceviche with Tropical Fruit

Island Ceviche with Tropical Fruit

Taste the Tropics.  Lime-cured fish, spicy jalapeños and tropical fruit.  It’s a fruity fresh twist on a traditional recipe.

Ingredients

  • 1/2 pound medium shrimp, shelled and deveined
  • 1/2 pound bay scallops, trimmed of muscle
  • 1/2 pound salmon fillet, cut in ½ “ pieces
  • 1 diced red pepper
  • 3 scallions, sliced on diagonal
  • 1 minced jalapeno
  • 1 cup lime juice, or enough to cover
  • 1 Tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 Tablespoons orange juice
  • 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
  • 1/2 mango, diced
  • 1 pink grapefruit, cut in sections and diced, juice reserved
  • 1 orange, cut in sections and diced, juice reserved
  • Salt and pepper

Garnish: Fried Plantain Chips

Directions

Blanch the shrimp in boiling water, for 1 – 2 minutes, until no longer translucent. Drain and refresh in cold water. Cut into 1/2″ pieces.

Combine shrimp, scallops, salmon, red pepper, scallions, jalapeno, and lime juice. Refrigerate, covered, for 2 – 3 hours, stirring occasionally.

Drain off most of the liquid. Whisk together olive oil, orange juice, and cilantro. Pour over fish and add mango, grapefruit, orange and their juices. Season with salt and pepper. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Garnish with fried plantain chips

Serves 10-12

Warm Thai Peanuts

Warm Thai Peanuts

Warm Thai Peanuts on square white tray

The perfect balance of sweet and heat.  These nuts incorporate the sassy tastes and bold aromatics of Thai cuisine.

Ingredients

  • 8 cups of raw peanuts
  • 1 Tablespoon olive oil
  • 3 shallots, peeled and sliced thinly crosswise into rings
  • 3 cloves of garlic, peeled and slivered lengthwise
  • 6 kaffir lime leaves, broken into small pieces
  • 2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
  • 2 Tablespoons butter, melted
  • 2 Tablespoons fresh lime juice
  • Zest of two limes
  • 2 Tablespoons brown sugar
  • 1 Tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons kosher salt

Directions

 Preheat oven to 350o F.

Spread peanuts on two half-sheet pans and roast for 25 minutes, shaking the pans and rotating about half way through.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil over medium-high heat.  Sauté shallots and garlic until golden and slightly crispy, about 8-10 minutes.  Add the lime leaves and red pepper flakes, and cook an additional two minutes, stirring. Transfer to a paper towel and cool until crispy.

When peanuts are golden, transfer to a mixing bowl to cool slightly.  If desired, rub between two cloth towels to remove skins.

In a small bowl, stir together the butter, lime juice and zest, brown sugar and salt.  Drizzle over the peanuts.  Stir in the crispy shallot/garlic mixture.  Serve warm.

The nuts can be warmed again in a 300o F oven for 10 minutes.

Makes 8 cups

Asian Marinated Beef with Peanut Dipping Sauce

Asian Marinated Beef with Peanut Dipping Sauce

Thai beef satay on mango salsa bed with peanut dipping sauce on black plate

This spin on a Beef Satay incorporates a marinade and a dipping sauce that both can be used in a myriad of ways.  Use the marinade on pork, chicken or even fish and dip away in the peanut sauce with vegetables, eggrolls and dumplings, or use as a dressing on Chinese chicken salad.

Ingredients

Marinade

  • 1/4 cup grated ginger
  • 8 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 Tablespoons hoisin
  • 2 Tablespoons black bean garlic paste
  • 1/4 cup soy sauce
  • 2 Tablespoons molasses
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
  • 1/2 cup sesame oil
  • 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
  • 1 pound beef tenderloin, trimmed

Dipping Sauce

  • 14 ounce can coconut milk
  • 1 cup roasted peanuts, coarsely chopped
  • 1/4 cup lime juice
  • 2 teaspoons minced shallots
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/2 cup peanut butter
  • 1/4 cup soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon chili garlic paste (sambal oelek)
  • 1/4 cup rice vinegar
  • 1/4 cup sesame oil
  • 1 Tablespoon chopped cilantro

Directions

Make the marinade: Combine all marinade ingredients and marinate beef for one hour or overnight in a non-reactive pan, covered, in the refrigerator.

Make the dipping sauce: Heat coconut milk in a saucepan until reduced by half.  Transfer to a mixing bowl and whisk together with remaining ingredients.  Store in the refrigerator.

Remove meat from marinade and pat dry.  Sear in 1 teaspoon sesame oil in a hot sauté pan until well browned.  Transfer to a roasting pan and roast in a 450oF oven until desired doneness, about 15 minutes more for medium rare.  Remove from the oven and let rest 10 minutes.  Carve into thin slices and thread onto skewers.

To serve, fan out the skewers on a serving tray atop a bed of red & yellow diced peppers and sliced scallions. Accompany with a bowl of dipping sauce.

Serves 6-8, as an appetizer