Calling all Cheeseheads!
This Summer, grab your family and start enjoying the flavours that we all have been yearning for. Those sweet crisp flavours are beautifully accentuated with cheeses. Experience creamy to crumbly and everything in between. And WHEW it’s been hot out there! Add the humidity into the mix and it doesn’t make you want to be in the kitchen! Let’s have an easy meal with cheese that can be tossed on the BBQ and paired with a cold drink and call it dinner. I’ve chosen a few of my favourite summer cheeses to get you through the next heat wave and beyond.
Our Fresh Mozzarella & Burrata is flown to us from Italy, you can’t get any fresher than that! Let’s face it – burrata is not a diet-friendly cheese. But the dreamy concoction of mozzarella and cream is a foray into flavour and texture that we find hard to resist. These fresh cheeses give an impactful statement to your dishes. It is not only delicious on salads, but try in a summer risotto or grab the whole gang and start making up pies! BBQ’d Pizza Pies that is! This creamy cheese is perfect to accompany any topping from prosciutto & peaches to arugula & pesto. This is a fun way to get creative, and enjoy that beautiful Italian cheese!
Goat Chèvre is typically found on salads in the summer. Berry salads are a hit with some chèvre sprinkled on top to add some creaminess. The goat milk defiantly adds a stronger flavour to any dish, but sprinkling it over pasta is a beautiful way to enjoy this, either on hot pasta or in cold pasta salads! The traditional substitute would be feta if goat cheese isn’t to your taste.
Blue cheese will always have a special place in our dishes! It is versatile and blues have so many different textures from crumbly to creamy! It pairs wonderfully with any protein on your BBQ this summer and adds that extra kick that will elevate any dish. Try Smashed Burgers with blue stilton, Pizza or flatbread with pear and gorgonzola, you won’t be disappointed!
Halloumi (from Cyprus) is a tasty cheese that has a high heat point, so can be grilled! It’s irresistible when it's warm and squidgy - not to mention, you get those lovely crispy bits around the edges. The texture is squeaky and the cheese can be marinated before grilling to add that extra crust of flavour. Try this on your next vegetable skewers and marinate in lemon and basil for a light flavour to accompany any protein. Great fried, baked and BBQ’d!
Saganaki is another high heat cheese from Greece. Typically served fried, It crisps on the outside and melts on the inside. It is usually served flaming with ouzo or wine with crusty bread. It would be a great cheese to serve at your next camp fire on your cast iron pans! This would make a nice fire treat with honey and ripe peaches or cherries.
A nice double cream Brie is always a show stopper. Traditionally baked or enjoyed on a cheese board, Brie has a way of getting our senses going! It is a fan favourite and we couldn’t agree more! Brie in a chicken quesadilla is a game changer with some cranberry to add a bit of sweetness. Summer pot-luck? Add some double cream brie into a few layers of your scalloped (au Gratin) potatoes, your friends won’t be able to get enough! Try Brie Brûlée atop a crostini with your favourite preserve, fruit & nuts sprinkle on the sugar of your choice and brûlée it to a golden colour, it is to die for!
Here are a few more ideas to get you inspired for your next cheesy cook-up:
Baked goat cheese dip
Goat cheese Croquettes
Dates stuffed with blue cheese
Warm figs and Burrata
Halloumi Burgers
Halloumi Fries
Halloumi “Croutons” in your salad
Blue Cheese dressing
Stuffed blue cheese mushroom caps
Quiche with blue cheese
What will you create this summer?