Grafton Village Maple Smoked Raw Milk Cheddar

Tag-Raw Milk, Lightly-Smoked Vermont Cheddar

Picked this up at Schnuck's (which I've been hitting up a lot more recently, looking for tasty/interesting cheeses).  I can't remember the exact price, but I think it was between $16-18 a pound; something great that both Schnuck's and HyVee have started doing is to slice up their wheels into increasingly smaller pieces, making it possible to try a variety of exotic cheeses without breaking the bank.  This is a pale butter color, and smells sweet and buttery, like a baby swiss, with a light, pleasant smokiness.  Very mild (much milder than your typical smoked Gouda, for example) with a smooth texture.  Light smoke flavor, along with complex, delicate flavors.  Not at all sharp. 

 

Overall, this is really nice.  Probably best to enjoy on its own or with butter crackers, as any full-flavored wine or beer might easily overpower it. 

Quickes Oak Smoked Cheddar

 

 

Tag--English cheddar aged between 12-15 months, smoked naturally over oak chips. 

 

Dark butter hue, with some crystallization from the age. Light brown edges, from the smoke.  No artificial flavors.
 

Rich, pleasant cheddar and natural smoke aromas.  Dry, relatively heavy texture, much like an aged Parmesan, but without the crystalline mouthfeel.  Dry, natural smoke and wood flavors along with mellow, slightly sweet cheddar flavors.  Overall, this is quite pleasant, but more mellow than I anticipated from the aromas.  Definitely has a bit different smoke character than the smoked cheeses I’m used to (typically cheaper smoked Goudas).  This tastes more natural, earthy, and woody than any others. 

Around $19.99 a lb. at World Harvest.  We love English Cheddar and smoke cheeses, and so we had to try this.  This is fantastic on its own, and would likely pair well with mild breads and malty sweet beers (perhaps a milder Strong Scotch Ale) as well. 

 

 

At the price, it’d have to be a small piece, but I’d definitely buy this again. 



Tintern Cheese

Tag—Creamy, Welsh cheddar cheese with shallots and chives.  From Monmouthshire in eastern Wales. 

Ivory colored, bright green wax, small green flecks throughout

Creamy texture, but surprisingly sharp.  I guess from the combination of a cheddar-style cheese and shallots, I was expecting something savory and a bit sweet.  However, the chives bring a sharp, herbal edge here which, to me, just slightly overpowers the rich creaminess of the cheese. Don’t really get much of the shallots, and the actual chive flavor is fairly mild.   

Around $18.99 a lb. at World Harvest.  Was looking to try an herbed cheese, and decided to try this over the more familiar (and one of our favorites) Cotswold.  It’s (for me) a bit much on its own, but with a nice porter and some (just slightly sweet) rustic beer bread, it’s still pretty nice. 

Likely wouldn’t buy again.

Personal-Size English Meat Pies (seriously awesome)

     Jess and I made this a few weeks ago when her grandparents were here to visit, but I haven't had time to post until now.  Suffice it to say, this is one of our favorite things we've made in a long time.  It seems like I'm always longing to be back in North Yorkshire and Northumberland and nothing takes you back faster than a) a good English ale or b) good English pub food.  This recipe is an example of the latter, though it pairs wonderfully with the former!

 

     To begin, make up a recipe of the Cornish Pasty crust used here (though remember to note the changes to the ingredients listed in my directions).  Instead of making pasties, we rolled the dough out into small circles a bit larger than the diameter of the widest part of a large (i.e. 6 to a tray) muffin/cupcake pan.  Gently but firmly press the dough down the sides of the muffin tin and smooth out, so that an equal amount of pastry remains around the edge on all sides.

 

 

     Next, it's time to make the filling.  For six of these (really, with sides, you can serve one of these per person and be about right; they're pretty rich), you need:

 

     -8 oz. steak, chopped into small, equal-sized pieces (easier to do this if steak is partially frozen)

     -1 large yellow onion, finely chopped

     -1 tsp crushed garlic

     -1 tbsp olive oil (extra-virgin or regular)

     -6 to 8 oz. of Red Leicester or English Cheddar, chopped into same size pieces as the beef 

     -1 tsp dried thyme

     -1/2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

     -1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

 

Begin by gently sauteing the onion, crushed garlic, and thyme in the olive oil until soft and lightly golden.  remove from the heat, add your balsamic vinegar and Worcestershire sauce, and stir well to combine.  Add these ingredients to the steak and cheese, stiring well to combine.  Pile about 3/4 of a cup (so it just comes above the rim of the cup) into each muffin cup, and crimp the tops together lightly with a bit of water to help them stick. 

 

 

Oven times will vary a bit, but bake for about 20 minutes at 400 degrees, before lowering the heat to 350 and baking another 40 minutes.  You want the crust to be lightly golden to golden brown and, most importantly, the beef inside to be fully cooked.  Let sit for a few minutes before serving.  The result?

 

 

Serve with just a touch of horseradish cream and some balsamic glazed green beans with onion and bacon, and you've got a kockout meal.  Pair this with a slightly sweet, nutty, or caramelly English Real Ale for the perfect paring. 

 

 

Perhaps the biggest surprise of all is that these hold over very well until the next day.  Simply fully cook them and let them cool for a bit before placing them in an airtight container in the fridge overnight.  The next day, heat them (lower heat, slowly) in the oven until warm through, and serve!

 

This is definitely something we'll come back to for special occasions!

Chocolate Zucchini Cake--Low Sugar (if high fat) Recipe

    

     Sure, it sounds gross...chocolate...zucchini...cake, but it's delicious, I promise.  This is something my mom made every summer when I was growing up, with fresh zucchini from my dad's garden.  It's sweet, but not overly sweet, and has a slightly rougher texture that gives it a certain rustic charm.  We made this cake this weekend for a church gathering, and decided to swap out the sugar for Splenda, since Jerry is a diabetic, and can't ever eat any of the desserts people bring.  I also decided to make it in loaf pans (1 regular and 2 small) instead of the usual angel food cake pan, so that I would have a couple of small loaves to take to school with me this week.  At any rate, here's the recipe. 

 

     -4 eggs

     -3 c. sugar (we subbed Splenda)

     -1.5 c. vegetable oil

     -3 oz. Chocobake unsweetened pre-melted chocolate

     -1.5 tsp. vanilla extract

     -0.5 tsp. almond extract

    

     -3 c. all-purpouse flour

     -1.25 tsp. baking soda

     -1.25 tsp. baking powder

     -1 tsp. salt

     -.25 tsp. cinnamon

 

     -3 c. finely shredded zuchinni

     -0.5 c. chopped dates

     -0.5 c. chopped pecans

     -0.5 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips

 

     To begin, beat the eggs until foamy and very light in color.  Gradually add the sugar until well blended, and then add the oil and mix well to combine.  Next, stir in the chocolate and the extracts.  Then, add the dry ingredients.  Note, the dough here will be very dense and friggin difficult to stir with a spoon.  I recommend using the dough-hook on your Kitchenaid-style mixer if you have one; it worked pretty well for me.  Add the remaining ingredients and mix well.  Pour into ungreased pan of your choice (10" angel food cake pan or large loaf pan works well) and bake at 350 for around 75 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  These can be tricky to get out of the pan without them sticking, and I'd recommend running a knife or spatual around the outside to help get them out easily.  Cool completely, then slice.  *Note: this is awesome frozen or chilled*

 

 

 

     *Thoughts- 

         -While the Splenda version was good and cut way back on calories, I don't think the flavor was

           quite as robust as with regular sugar; next time I might use half sugar, half Splenda.

         -There is a ton of fat in this recipe; I'm going to play with it and see if I can't swap some of the

           vegetable oil out for applesauce or other ingredients (a nice rich stout, perhaps?)

         -I'm thinking this same basic cake, but with less oil, a rich, strong imperial stout (I'm thinking

          maybe Goose Island's Bourbon County?) and some holiday spices might. be. delicious.  I'll

          have to try that at some point!

World-Class Baked Steak Fries

 

     If you say something is 'world class', you better bring your A game, but we've made these several times now, and have finally perfected the recipe!  Baked fries, while not exactly good for you, are far better health-wise than their deep-fried counterparts, and they're much easier to make in the average kitchen as well.  Simply take 2-3 medium-large white potatoes, scrubbed briefly under cold water, and cut them up into steak-fries.  In a large bowl, pour 1-2 tablespoons of canola oil over the potato wedges and toss well with a long-handled spoon of some sort.  This recipe serves two, and so one tablespoon of canola oil is not too bad at all, with only 14 grams of fat; split two ways, that's not much at all.  The thing is, sometimes, 1 tbsp isn't quite enough to get the fries good and crispy, so my suggestion is to go with 1.5-2 tbsp and just make the rest of your day a little bit healthier in other areas.    After the wedges are coated well with oil, sprinkle liberally with Emeril's ESSENCE, which can be picked up at any grocery store, or made at home with the recipe here, and a touch of cayenne for a kick if you so desire. 

 

Fries prior to baking

Place on a large cookie sheet in a single layer, and bake at 480 for approximately 30-35 minutes, shaking the pan and tossing the fries every 8-10 minutes or so.  After 30-35 minutes, cut the heat, and let them coast just a bit longer.  These bake up nice and crispy on the outside, but just slightly firm on the inside, just like the fries you might get at a high-end steakhouse!  Sprinkle with a bit of grated parmesan or parmesan blend (we used HyVee's Parmesan/Romano blend and it was awesome).  Serve with whatever dipping sauce you prefer, and enjoy.  We may never eat steak with baked potatos again!   

 

 

Pumpkin Ale Beer Bread (with a twist)

     Today was another church potluck and, since the weather was so amazing this weekend, we decided to try to do it outside at Nancy's house.  Jessi and I wanted to do something new, but something that was also suitably fall-ish.   Oh, and I had some leftover Schlafly Pumpkin Ale from last year which, while still good, needed to be used up so's I can get a sixer of the fresh stuff from down the street at Prairie Home General Store (who now stocks a small amount of good beer and wine)!  At any rate, these factors conspired together to produce today's treat: Pumpkin Beer Bread!

 

Possibly the best pumpkin ale out there!

     The original recipe upon which mine is closely based, is found here.  To be honest, I had planned to make this recipe exactly as is (except to possibly add chopped pecans or walnuts), because it looks just about perfect, but in my rushed state I overlooked the fact that we didn't have any whole-wheat flour.  Come to find out, we also didn't have any nuts (at least other than peanuts, which would not make a very good pumpkin bread), since I used the last of the walnuts in the bacon-banana bread.  Well, church was in a little over an hour, so I improvised.  I'd heard that chocolate makes a good companion to pumpkin and (after having tried this combination in a martini...more on that later) I decided I'd try it here as well. 

 

The finished product...

     In the end, I followed the original recipe, but with a couple of changes.  First off, I used all all-purpose flour, because it's all we had.  Also, I added 3/4 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips to the batter.  The original recipe called for baking at 350 for around 60 minutes.  I upped this to 360 (I was, as per usual, late for church) and it finished perfectly in about 57 minutes.  Flipped right out of the pan (greased with cooking spray) and people really seemed to enjoy it. 

 

Good, but that's a whole lotta chocolate...

     We'll likely make this again.  I'm dead sold on using Schlafly Pumpkin Ale for this.  After all, it's one of if not the best pumpkin ales out there, is local, and is readily available.  Also, since it's slightly stronger than the average pumpkin ale (8% abv) it lent a slightly alcohol/fruity/molasses flavor to the finished product that was very nice.  If we make this again with the chocolate chips, we'll probably drop the amount down to 1/2 a cup or maybe even a touch less.  I was going for pumpkin bread with a hint of chocolate; this came out as a chocolate/pumpkin bread.  If that's what you're going for, keep the 3/4 cup of chocolate chips, but it was a bit much for us.  Also, next time around, we might try the original recipe (i.e. w/some whole-wheat, or maybe even barley flour), but add some toasted pecans or walnuts.  At any rate, this was a solid recipe that we'll definitely be returning to!