![]() The kids love it because little layer of ash down the middle makes it look like a piece of cake. I don’t think I’ve been to a party in the last decade where this wasn’t on the cheese board. It’s a tangy, but not too tangy goat that’s chalky in the middle and creamy around the rind. ![]() For the kids, it’s a good introduction to stinky. Point Reyes Blue – Award-winning blue from the family-run northern California dairy farm. La Tur (pictured, above) This is an airy, mild cow-milk-goat blend - probably too mild for hardcore cheese afficionados, but kids will eat it like it’s cream cheese. You can find most of these at Murrays, Dean & DeLuca, or Whole Foods. Cause when you’re at the point that we’re at, you just want to buy a bunch of crowdpleasers - cheeses that are somewhere between Kraft twisted bi-color sticks and aged Stilton, things you don’t have to cook or carve or stick toothpicks into - and then be done with it. These days, it’s more like we have friends over or we have what you might just call “giant family playdates.” All of which is to say that the cheese plate has never been more vital a move in the married-with-children culinary repertoire. In fact, we don’t use the word “entertain” anymore. We don’t do the amuse bouche anymore when we are entertaining. Before kids we weren’t afraid of the adjective “hot” before the word “appetizer.” I think when we lived in Brooklyn - when the girls were as distant on the horizon as the suburbs were - we might have even served a chilled avocado and cucumber soup as an amuse bouche for our friends Jeni and Ben. Here’s a cheat sheet to help you keep your eyes on the prize.Before kids we were mushroom-stuffers and tomato-scoopers. Hard cheeses, like gouda, can be pre-sliced with a sharp knife and fanned out on the board to make them more manageable.Įven if you just choose a couple different cheeses - say a Manchego and a soft goat cheese - you can add a homemade touch by drizzling garlic- and rosemary-scented olive oil on the chèvre ( recipe here) For warm, delicious olives, rinse off the brine your olives are packaged in and warm them in good quality olive oil (look for a cold pressed, extra virgin olive oil that’s a rich green color) with red pepper flakes, lemon rind and a bay leaf ( recipe here). I also like to “mess up” the cheeses a little, so people aren’t afraid to jump in. A good mix would be their 1,000 Day Gouda, mini Basque, Manchego Anejo, Blue Stilton or any of their Toscano cheeses. If you’re shopping at Trader Joe’s, most of the cheeses are packaged under their brand. Andre triple cream cow’s milk brie and Mimolette (an aged raw cow’s milk cheese), aged gouda, Manchego or Pecorino Toscano. If you’re shopping at a good gourmet grocer, look for Humboldt Fog goat cheese, Laura Chenel chevre, St. And even if you’re not a fan of veiny bleu cheese, there’s nothing like a wedge of creamy gorgonzola dolce and a glistening square of honey comb to get your appetite stirring (which are delicious eaten together, by the way). And be sure to vary the textures, some should be creamy and runny and others firm and grainy. Start by choosing a variety of cheeses from different milks (cow, sheep and goat). Book club? Check! Cocktail party? Check! Retro cheese and chocolate course after a dinner party? Super double check! The key to keeping things both interesting and delicious? Mix it up… There’s nothing easier than unwrapping some cheese and sticking a knife in it, but let’s show some effort, shall we? A well-appointed cheese board, with all the sweet and savory nibbles and condiments to accompany it, can sustain a chatty cocktail crowd for hours. How To Pull Off the Ultimate Cheese Board Here’s what Marcia has to say about pulling off the ultimate cheese board…. Avenue from time to time with recipes, busy mom menu prep and entertaining tips. I’m a huge fan of Marcia’s and am stoked that she’ll be joining L. She recently started her own cooking website, Smart in the Kitchen, which focuses on helping busy moms menu plan with new crowd pleasing recipes for the entire family. She’s written recipes for Cooking Light and has also done freelance writing for Robb Report and Parenting Travel magazine. Marcia is a food writer and cooking instructor who also works full time as a mother of three. ![]() Today, we’re stoked to collaborate with one of my favorite Houston chefs, Marcia Smart. Hey y’all! If you haven’t had enough decadence in your life post-Valentine’s, allow us to add a little more.
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