Project Foodie - Cheese Essentials

Cheese Essentials

Save Recipe: Harold’s Strawberries and Cream with Buttery Basil Cookies

Photo by Maren Caruso

Trying new cheeses is fun but it can also be intimidating and confusing given the amazing number of different cheeses available. Adding to the complexity in cheese choice is a concern over balancing our need (and don't kid yourself it really is a need!) for cheese with our desire to lead a healthy lifestyle by not eating too many cheeses at once! That's why Laura Werlin's Cheese Essentials is so great - it combines an informative cheese knowledge base with a guide on cheese tasting and a collection of recipes to use those cheeses. Werlin not only tells us what to expect in various cheeses but more importantly she teaches us how to taste the difference. Through her "Take-Home Tests" we learn first hand what the cheeses taste like. Eat "Take-home test" provides a list of cheeses to purchase, an accompanying food to taste them with and a bite-by-bite description of what you are tasting. Werlin also lists several alternatives for each cheese in case you can't find the specific cheeses in the "Take-Home Test". For those interested in learning more about cheese and comparing different cheeses these little experiments are great. Plus, each test could easily be turned into a little 'cheese party' where friends gather to compare cheeses.

As great as all of this is, the part I really appreciated in Cheese Essentials was the inclusion of recipes to use some of these amazing cheeses. Rather than only limiting our indulgence in extraordinary cheeses to the cheese course Werlin provides about 50 recipes for us to use these cheeses in. Some of these recipes are hers and some are from her wonderful collection of friends and colleagues including Harold Dieterle winner of the first season of Bravo TV's show Top Chef ( see recipe below). While many artisinal cheeses are so exceptional on their own you don't need to cook them, I love that we can now combine our love of cheese with our love of cooking thanks to these interesting recipes from Werlin.

The combination of knowledge, tasting tests, and recipes within Cheese Essentials creates a book that will be a welcome cheese knowledge base and cookbook for cheese lovers.

Harold's Strawberries and Cream with Buttery Basil Cookies

From Laura Werlin's Cheese Essentials by Laura Werlin, Stewart, Tabori & Chang 2007

In the debut season of Bravo TV's hit show, Top Chef, I was lucky enough to be a guest on one of the segments. I got to eat food that was prepared by the chef contestants, including Harold Dieterle-who was voted the Top Chef at the end of the season. Receiving that honor was no easy feat, but it shows what a great chef Harold is. He is also a cheese fan, and told me he particularly likes creating accompaniments to cheese. I asked him to create one for this book, and this is what he came up with. Not only is it beautiful, it is easy to make and absolutely delicious.

For the Cookies

2 egg whites
1/3 cup sugar
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/3 cup flour
2 teaspoons julienned fresh basil plus whole sprigs for garnish
2 tablespoons sliced almonds, lightly toasted

Preheat oven to 350F

In the bowl of a stand mixer, using the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites until frothy, about 2 minutes (a hand mixer works fine too). Slowly add the sugar and beat until soft peaks form, 5 to 10 minutes. Slowly drizzle the butter into the egg white mixture and mix for 1 minute. Turn the mixer to low speed and add the flour and basil. Mix just until incorporated.

Line a baking sheet with a silicon mat such as a Silpat (or use parchment paper). Mound tablespoons of the batter 2 inches apart on the sheet. Place about 3 almonds on each cookie. Bake until golden brown, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool to room temperature. (Cookies are best eaten the same day, but you can store them in an airtight container for up to 2 days. The texture may become a little chewy).

For the strawberries

¾ cup water
1/3 cup sugar
2 cups strawberries (about 8 ounces), stems removed and berries quartered
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
8 ounces La Tur cheese, cut into 8 slices (or use Robiola Bosina)

Make simple syrup: In a medium-size saucepan, combine the water and sugar over high heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture comes to a boil. Let cook 1 more minute. Turn off heat and let cool to room temperature about 45 minutes.

Measure out 1/3 cup of simple syrup. Reserve the rest for another use. Put the strawberries, simple syrup, and vanilla into the saucepan you used to make the simple syrup. Bring to a simmer and cook for 2 minutes. Turn off heat and let cool to room temperature. The strawberries will continue to release liquid as they cool.

To assemble

Place two cookies on either side of 8 dessert plates. Place a slice of cheese in the middle of the plate. Using a slotted spoon put a few strawberries next to the cheese. Garnish with a sprig or two of basil on each plate. Serve right away.

Serves 8; makes about 16 cookies.

About Cheese Essentials

Whether shopping at gourmet markets or at Costco, American consumers are seeing a growing, even dizzying, array of new cheeses. But as the number of cheeses has grown, so has the intimidation factor. Recognizing this disconnect between our voracious appetite for cheese and our often-sketchy knowledge of it, acclaimed cheese expert Laura Werlin decided it was high time to demystify the cheese-buying experience. Laura Werlin's Cheese Essentials - a comprehensive introduction in a convenient guidebook format - is the extremely useful result. Werlin's book begins at the same place the flummoxed shopper does - the cheese counter. The heart of the book consists of individual chapters on the eight styles of cheese: fresh, semi-soft, soft-ripened, surface-ripened, semi-hard, hard, blue, and washed-rind. Following Werlin's guidance, you'll soon be able to identify a cheese by how it looks - and have a good idea of what that cheese will taste like before you even take a bite.