Hirtenkase A Great German Mountain Style Cheese

I took a Rhine river cruise in Germany with my family and enjoyed it immensely. While on board ship the topic of Oktoberfest was brought up several times by our fellow shipmates. German beer was the focal point of most of these conversations but I was surprised to hear several people rave about German cheeses. Now being a cheese monger I am always looking for new and exciting cheeses to sample and hopefully to import back into the US. Our host and guide, after hearing our cheese conversation provided us with a truly great cheese named Hirtenkase which translates loosely as shepherd cheese.

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Details: Hirtenkase is produced during the summer months in the Allgau Mountains of Germany. The dairy farmers in this region allow their cows to eat only fresh mountain grass during the summer and hay during the winter, no silage, therefore they produce a very high grade of milk. This system of pure grazing and cheese production is similar to the one employed by Swiss dairy farmers. Hirtenkase can truly be considered a great mountain style cheese and can proudly stand next to Gruyere, Emmentaler and Fontina Val D'Aosta. 

Flavor: When aged it has a hard outer rind and the interior paste is hard and flinty with an orange tint. It has a slight citrus/ apple aroma and nutty and butterscotch flavor that lingers on the palate, I personally think that it has a much deeper flavor than French Comte 

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The Hirtenkase cheese that is produced in the summer starts arriving in small quantities beginning in late September and its availability ebbs during late March, so now would be a great time to search it out. Hirtenkase is a great table cheese and can be served with grapes , figs, dates and nuts. Also try shaving it over a salad for a nice appetizer, melted over vegetables or for fondue. Check out this link for a great Hirtenkase recipe .

As for wine pairings serve it with a good Merlot or any big red German wine . It also goes well with good hearty German beers during Oktoberfest.

8 Quick Gourmet Panini Recipes

Panini

What is a panini you may ask. Well it is really just a grilled sandwich, but it can become much more if you put some thought into its ingredients. The limits are only the ones which you impose on yourself. Try a goat cheese with sliced fruit panini for a midday snack. There is no end to the possibilities! Now for just for a few basics for making a panini.
Ideally I would suggest that you purchase a panini grill or panini press as it will make your life easier if you plan to make paninis more than just a few times. Frying them on a skillet works but can become a bit messy when trying to flip them over and the cooking time will be a bit longer.

When selecting a panini grill try to find one where you can regulate the heat and the pressure on the sandwich. Also look for one that will allow you to take off the grates so clean up will go smoothly.

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Try to use a bread like ciabatta, a French baguette or thick crusty Italian bread cut down the middle. The idea is to have just enough bread so that your ingredients don't squirt out or that your bread is so thick that you only notice the bread. Then brush on a bit of olive oil on the outside of the bread before you grill it, add your sandwich ingredients and grill away!

Here are a few of our favorite paninis try them if you like or start creating paninis with your own ideas.

Set Your Grill at 375 degrees and just enough pressure to compact the slices of bread. For the following combinations feel free to use any type of bread you like.

1) Roasted Ham, Sonoma Dry Jack Cheese spicy mustard

2) Serrano Ham, Idiazabal cheese, and sun dried tomato pesto

3) Madrange French Ham, organic Morbier cheese, and Dijon mustard

4) Herbed Salami, Ossau Iraty cheese and basil pesto

5) Soppressata, Pecorino Tuscano cheese, and roasted red pepper pesto

6) Finocchiona, Taleggio cheese and cilantro chutney

7) Herbed Salami, Pecorino Tuscano cheese, and sun dried tomato pesto

8) Mozzarella, tomato, avocado, romaine lettuce and roasted red pepper pesto

Brindamour A Wonderful Herb Covered Sheep's Milk Cheese

Brindamour

Brin d'Amour

Brindamour is an herb covered sheep's milk cheese produced on the island of Corsica. It is also known by the name Fleur du Maquis (flower of the maquis) which references the ubiquitous brambly underbrush that covers the island. This cheese is Corsica's most famous cheese and is made entirely by small independent farms and dairies. It is transported in bulk to the major markets on the French mainland for distribution around the world. Brin d'Amour is usually made from unpasteurized sheep's milk but the cheeses you will find in the United States will almost always be the pasteurized version due to its short aging time. These versions are usually called Fleur du Maquis . Both versions are very good so this is not a major issue.

Details: Brindamour is a rindless cheese that is densely covered with dried herbs which impart their flavors to the cheese. It is shaped into round edged squares or round disks that weigh about 1.25 to1.75lbs each. The types of herbs used varies by the producer but they are always locally grown. The most popular herbs being used are rosemary, thyme, and savory, in addition to juniper berries, and coriander seeds. 

Flavor: When Brindamour arrives in the US it is young and has been aged for about two weeks. The inner paste will be pure white, soft and moist but not wet and will have a mild flavor. It can be bought this way, but many cheese sellers let it age for one to two months to develop its true flavor. At one month the interior paste will be bone white and a bit runny and will have taken on a nutty sheepy flavor. If you find Brin d'Amour with faded and dried out herbs it will feel harder because the interior paste has thickened. At this point it will be close to two months old and will have lost most of its moisture. The flavor will have evolved and will now be much stronger but not extremely sheepy and the herb flavor will be more pronounced. This is a great cheese at this stage. 

The entire cheese is edible but the coating of herbs can be tough to chew through so just scrape them off. You may see spots of mold on older versions but they can easily be scraped off. 

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When shopping for Brindamour ask your cheese retailer approximately how old the cheese is so you can get the age that you want. Remember all stages of ripening are wonderful and you may want to try them all to see which ones you prefer. This is a hearty cheese but ask for a sample to see if the age is right for you. Do not be turned off by the faded color of the herbs or specks of mold, as noted above this is a natural process of aging and it will give you an indication as to how old it might be.  NOTE: You may also find another Corsican cheese like Brindamour named Niolo, it is not very common but a few really good gourmet cheese shops may some in stock.

Serve Brindamour at lunchtime as a salad course that contains olives, tomatoes, ripe fresh peppers and savory greens. This is also a great table cheese served with a glass of wine.

Wine Pairing:  Sharp earthy reds from Corsica like Sciacarello and Patrimonio if you can not find them look for similar reds from France and Italy.