# Poll: What is your favorite cheese?



## jkath (Jul 19, 2005)

What is your favorite cheese?
*...and what is the way you love to prepare it?*

*PS  - This is a multiple choice poll - vote for as  many as you'd like, but make them your very favorites!*


----------



## middie (Jul 19, 2005)

mozzerella. i like it as is. i also scramble it with eggs and eat that for breakfast. i love it melted over chicken too


----------



## jennyema (Jul 19, 2005)

Can you agg *GRUYERE*?  I know it's swiss but it tastes so much different than emmenthaler, etc.


----------



## ironchef (Jul 19, 2005)

Don't forget about Goat Cheese or Chevre. That's my favorite.


----------



## Chief Longwind Of The North (Jul 19, 2005)

I second the vote for Gruyere.  And the pairings made this a difficult poll to answer correctly.  For instance, I love the creamy/dairy flavor of Muenster, but am not overly fond of the jack cheeses.  And I adore the Havarti but dislike the rpened cheeses in that group.  The textures of the pairings are good, but the flavors are extremely different.

To be fair IMHO, the cheeses need to stand by themselves to get an accurate read of what people like and dislike.

Even as an type of cheese, their are wildly different grades and quality.  Artisan cheeses are more robust than their mass-produced counterparts.  You can get heritage cheddar aged 5 years that bears little resemblance to the standard fair found in supermarkets.  Any poll about cheeses is almost too broad, by the very nature of the product.  It would be like asking - What is your favorite candy bar, and grouping Caramello/Reeses Peanut Butter Cups/bluberry truffle together against say, Snickers/Baby Ruth/Planter's Peanut Bar.  The first group all have a filled center, and the latter all have peanuts.  Btu other than that, each candy bar is tremendously different than their paired siblings.

I hope I'm not being too much the sour grape on this one, but personally, I just can't make the pairings work for me.

Seeeeeeya; Goodweed of the North


----------



## The Z (Jul 19, 2005)

Let's see.......

I voted in the cheddar group. I love many cheeses, but my favorites are aged (antique) white cheddars like the ones from Tillamook or Cabot:








As for how I LIKE it?  I like a cheese just about any way I can get it, but if we're talking 'top notch' cheeses I just like a nice variety on a platter with some fruit and simple crackers.


----------



## licia (Jul 19, 2005)

There are very few that I don't like.


----------



## SpiceUmUp (Jul 19, 2005)

My favorite is gruyere: here is my favorite way to eat it:
*Gougeres (The best little cheese puffs you will EVER have!)*



*A little bit about this recipe:*



*This recipe came to me in the mail, as part of an advertisement for a cooking magazine. I never did subscribe to the magazine but i fell in love with the recipe. It is so easy to make and your dinner guests will be falling all over themselves to tell you how much they love these. They taste so good that people will be sure you spent hours carefully blending the batter. It is up to you to tell them the truth or allow them to remain in the dark.*



*Ingredients:*

*5 tablespoons of butter*
*1 cup of water*
*1 teaspoon of salt *
*1/4 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper*
*1/4 teaspoon of freshly ground nutmeg **(you can use nutmeg from a can or jar but the gougeres are better with fresh)*
*1 cup all-purpose flour*
*1 cup grated gruyere cheese **(I have tried other cheeses but they just do not compare to gruyere)*
*5 large eggs at room temperature, VERY IMPORTANT, make certain they are at room temperature!*
 
*Making the Gougeres:*



*Preheat the oven to 425 degrees*



*In a medium sauce pan add the butter, water, salt, pepper and nutmeg to a boil over medium high heat. When the butter is melted, reduce heat to low.*



*Add all the flour at once and cook over a low heat while blending with a wooden spoon for about one minute until the mixture pulls away from the sides of the pan. Remove the pan from the heat.*



*Add the cheese all at once and blend until well incorporated. Add 4 of the eggs, one at a time beating each egg until it is thoroughly absorbed. Continue beating until the batter is shiny, smooth and firm.*



*Drop small spoonful of batter on to a lightly greased cookie sheet (I use a spray, like PAM) to form the gougeres. Beat the remaining egg with a 1/2 tablespoon of water and brush the tops of the uncooked gougeres with the egg wash.*



*Bake in the upper third of the oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown and about double in size.*



*You can serve these hot or at room temperature. *


----------



## Constance (Jul 19, 2005)

I voted on the blue cheese group, but I love ALL cheese! 

Kraft plastic is very low on the list, but we usually have some on hand as a convenience for sandwiches, and for the kids coming in and out who don't know any better. Really, the fat free style is just as good as any of it. It all tastes like plastic.


----------



## corazon (Jul 19, 2005)

We use cheddar more than anything in this house, but I will only buy the extra-sharp white tillamook cheddar (lucky for me, they sell it at Costco).

We are big on cheese in this house, one of our drawers in the fridge is our cheese drawer.  Personally, I like almost all the cheeses on the list and I think every cheese has its place.  Brie on warm baguette, fresh mozz with tomatoes and basil, parm on pasta, gorgonzola or goat cheese on salads...oh the list could go on and on.


----------



## texasgirl (Jul 19, 2005)

I love pepper jack!!


----------



## jkath (Jul 19, 2005)

Thank you spiceumup for the  recipe !!! 
    .                                    (karma karma karma....)



For the gruyere lovers, I'm sorry I didn't remember it, but I thought I did a pretty good job in remembering as many as I did


----------



## luvs (Jul 19, 2005)

good question, jkath. YUM, cheese! i love cheese!
i chose several.
my very favorites are french pyreness and i just discovered port salut, which is delicious, and my other favorites are havarti, gorgonzola, brie, and ricotta. and mozzarella; i love mozzarella.
i eat a lot of my cheese plain but like to use cheese lots of ways. i think it's best on potatoes, i like melting good gorgonzola melted onto my lamb chop or steak, or added to a bechamel and used as a sauce or else as a dip for tortilla chips, in baked macaroni & cheese, i use all different cheeses in my grilled cheeses, i like cheese in my salads, mozzarella in pepperoni rolls, all kinds of ways. i like the herbed chevre on CApeachio's crackers. finely-grated parm. reggiano or romano is excellent sprinkled into vegetable-beef soup. i rarely make broccoli, but when i do, i put an extra-sharp cheddar sauce on it. i put the ricotta in pasta with red sauces mainly, and get it on my pizza. i put it in a bunch of things.


----------



## *Christina* (Jul 20, 2005)

I love brie with some bread and tomato hmmm


----------



## Ishbel (Jul 20, 2005)

I love real Cheddar from the Cheddar Gorge area of Somerset (Davidstow mature cheddar is my top fave) - but also Isle of Mull Cheddar from  Scotland.  I love crowdie.

I love some of the English 'crumbly' cheeses, like Lancashire and Wensleydale - and the Welsh cheese Caerphilly.

I love English Stilton, Derby and Leicestershire cheeses.  Also Blue Vinny and Blue Devon.

I love Stinking Bishop!  (yes, I had to try it, just for the name)

I love Brie, camembert, roquefort, port salut, St Agur.

I love Danish blue and Norwegian Jarlsberg

I love Mozarella, ricotta, pecorino and parmesan.

I like Swiss ementhal and gruyere

I like some Spanish cheeses.

I love Greek haloumi and feta.

Haven't tried many American cheeses as they are not readily available in my locality.

Did I say I LOVE cheese?


----------



## TexasBlueHeron (Jul 20, 2005)

*Cheese - the main food group*

All of the above. Whew, that was easy.


----------



## jkath (Jul 20, 2005)

Blue, you sound like me!


----------



## Robo410 (Jul 20, 2005)

hankerin' for a hunk of cheese!  this time of year a selection of cheeses, a baguette, sliced beefsteak tomatoes, some olives and crisp white white, and fruit for desert...that's dinner!


----------



## kitchenelf (Jul 20, 2005)

I voted for the feta, bleu, and stilton - but I like them all.

Feta for Greek salads and the one GB posted

Bleu for pear, bleu cheese, walnut salads

and Stilton with honey drizzled on it


----------



## jennyema (Jul 20, 2005)

*Gougeres*
** 
*YUMYUMYUMYUM*
** 
*I love those!*


----------



## Chief Longwind Of The North (Jul 20, 2005)

I forgot to name my favorite and how I use it.  That would be Balderson 5-year Aged Heritage Cheddar.  The finest white cheddar I've ever tasted (admitting that I haven't been to England to taste the original).  It's an award winning Canadian cheese that is superb at room temperature served with fruit and crackers.  Though I love to also just slice off a bit and munch it.  It's soooo good, has that light salt crunch with a ballanced cheddar flavor and slightly crumbly texture.

And then theirs Gruyere...  with some sliced baraunschieger on the side.

Seeeeeya; Goodweed of the North


----------



## kitchenelf (Jul 20, 2005)

Goodweed - if you ever get the chance to try a 4 or 5-year aged Gouda please do so - the way you describe it is very similar - and this cheese can also be left out of the refrigerator.


----------



## jennyema (Jul 20, 2005)

kitchenelf said:
			
		

> Goodweed - if you ever get the chance to try a 4 or 5-year aged Gouda please do so - the way you describe it is very similar - and this cheese can also be left out of the refrigerator.


 

Yum!!! Aged gouda.  That and aged Jack are my #2 and #3 favorites.

Aged cheeses often taste entirely different from their unaged counterparts.


----------



## jennyema (Jul 20, 2005)

Anyone like Compte?


----------



## Ishbel (Jul 20, 2005)

I presume that what Americans called 'aged' is what we call 'mature' or 'extra mature'?


----------



## kitchenelf (Jul 20, 2005)

Ishbel said:
			
		

> I presume that what Americans called 'aged' is what we call 'mature' or 'extra mature'?



I'm assuming it is Ishbel - gouda is a whitish cheese - aged guda is a wonderful orange/golden color and firm but not as quite as a Parmesan.

I've never tried Compte - I will look for it next time I go to a "real" cheese shop - can you give me a description?


----------



## GB (Jul 20, 2005)

I voted for every single one other than the Kraft plastic cheese. I still eat the plastic cheese, but it just not a favorite  

As for my favorite way to prepare...There are too many to pick from. I love cheese by itself. I love it on crackers, with veggies, melted, in dips, and just about any other way you can eat it.


----------



## college_cook (Jul 20, 2005)

I love Asiago and Parm.  goes great on anything!


----------



## jennyema (Jul 20, 2005)

Compte is much like Gruyere but it's made in France.

To be caled "Gruyere" it must be made in Switzerland.

I find Compte to be a bit milder than Gruyere, although not always ....


----------



## Ishbel (Jul 20, 2005)

Thanks, Elf
I have to confess, I'm not too keen on Dutch cheeses - although they always seem to taste better in Holland!  

We seem to have a different coding system

Mild
Medium
Mature*
Extra Mature*
Vintage

*These are often 'Farmhouse' - or farm specific cheeses

(I'm sure I've missed one or more out of the system!)


----------



## licia (Jul 21, 2005)

I suppose cheddar is one of our favorites. I just bought a 26lb wheel of black rind cheddar for our family reunion. Hope it is enjoyed by everyone.


----------



## Bangbang (Jul 21, 2005)

Blue and asiago..........Yummy.


----------

