What is your Favourite Cheese ?

The kids (and therefore me). Are currently addicted to a vampire box set thingy on Netflix, I quite fancy being a vampire lol and I'm pretty sure human blood would be low carb, especially you lot....slurp

Dusk Till Dawn was a great Vampire film, but not for kids. Salma Hayek can bite me any time she likes. Good grief that Women could revive a week old corpse.

You guys make me laugh  

Getting back on topic

This is a great cheese , but very pungent.
It is high up on our cheese choice list!

Berthaut Epoisses De Bourgogne
£6.22 (250g pack), waitrose.com
This unpasteurised cows-milk cheese from the Côte-d'Or is pungent but delicious and was reportedly Napoleon's favourite.

It comes in at number eight on this list here ...
http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/features/the-10-best-french-cheeses-6260294.html?action=gallery&ino=8

All the best Jan

"Sometimes things are just meant to be together, like Sundays and roast dinners or Thelma and Louise.

For as long as we can remember, cheese and wine would also have been at the top of the list but not anymore.

Just like in any breakup, we immediately ask: WHO THEN? Or in this case, what?

Well, it turns out, that a delicious chunk of brie is actually better suited to the comfort of a hot cup of tea rather than the seductive nature of vino, reports Stylist.

*Digestives drop from mouths everywhere*

Food expert Rachel Safko explained Forbes that: 'Like wine, teas have varying degrees of tannin along with a natural astringency: a dryness and feeling that isn't quite bitter or sour, but more like the pleasant tartness and pucker you might get from tasting a lemon or pomegranate.

'Cheese – in its infinite glory – offers a nice balance to that astringency.'

But don't start hacking at the cheddar just yet, take some time to consider the fledgling relationship first.

Rachel advises that you think carefully about which cheese would work best with your tea of choice.
 
For example, she recommends brie with a 'crisp, lemony first flush Darjeeling' while green-tea lovers may want to opt for a creamy goats cheese instead of a Custard Cream.

The traditional 'builder's tea' lovers amongst us may want to stock up on a creamy blue cheese, such as gorgonzola or stilton because Safko advises that 'the salt and creaminess in [these cheeses] play off the sweetness and darker depths of the tea'.

We'll probably need a while to let this shocking news sink and so won't be throwing away the biscuit tin just yet but we're starting to warm to the idea of an afternoon cheese break. Though we're unlikely to be dunking our Dairylea anytime soon... "

Above words and picture from here
http://www.msn.com/en-gb/foodanddrink/foodnews/revealed-the-best-drink-to-pair-with-cheese-%e2%80%93-and-it-isnt-wine/ar-AAn7UZi?ocid=spartandhp

All the best Jan

mo1905 wrote:Cathedral City seriously strong mature cheddar......'nuff said :-)

Cutting up some mature cheddar to go with a nice glass of wine before dinner, I was reminded of Mo's comment.

And he's right - you can't beat a nice strong mature cheddar  

Cheers

All the best Jan

We are really enjoying Halloumi Cheese at the moment ... even a few slices cooked in the pan can make for a lovely LCHF snack!


Halloumi is a firm, slightly springy white cheese from Cyprus, traditionally made with sheeps’ milk, although these days mass-produced varieties often use cows’ milk.

In texture, halloumi is similar to a firm mozzarella, making it a popular ingredient in Middle Eastern cooking. Unlike mozzarella, however, it has a strong salty flavour, particularly when preserved in brine.

Buyer's guide:
The best halloumi is made from sheeps’ milk, and will come from Cyprus, although these days you can even find varieties made in Britain.

Storage:
Halloumi will keep in the fridge for many months if left in its original packaging, complete with brine or whey. Once opened, submerge in salt water and refrigerate.

Preparation:
In the Middle East, halloumi is usually fried or grilled to take advantage of its high melting point. Although halloumi can be eaten straight from the packet, some chefs recommend soaking it in buttermilk for a day or two before preparing, to give it a richer, less salty flavour.

Why not have a look at this recipe idea here
http://thelowcarbdiabetic.blogspot.co.uk/2017/03/halloumi-is-to-be-enjoyed.html

All the best Jan

I'd never even heard of Halloumi until my first holiday to southern Cyprus where I had it everyday as a starter in the local taverns where I became seriously addicted to it! Anyone who hasn't tried it fried or grilled yet really should I reckon.

Sounds good, I'll look out for it

Paul1976 wrote:I'd never even heard of Halloumi until my first holiday to southern Cyprus where I had it everyday as a starter in the local taverns where I became seriously addicted to it! Anyone who hasn't tried it fried or grilled yet really should I reckon.

Spotonski Paul, cut a piece off the block about 8mm thick as in Jan's pic and fry in a tiny nob of butter. Gold and crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, tangy and salty, like you we have become addicted to it.

It's the phat I tell ya

Strange, I tried to find this after you mentioned it before, without any luck. I'll have another go.

There are various sheep and goat cheeses in the cheese shop and even some in the Co-Op, just not halloumi.

chris c wrote:Strange, I tried to find this after you mentioned it before, without any luck. I'll have another go.

There are various sheep and goat cheeses in the cheese shop and even some in the Co-Op, just not halloumi.

"I tried to find this after you mentioned it before, without any luck"

I told you moving to that old fort off the Suffolk coast to get away from the nutter antis was a bad move.  

Busted!

Actually I might take a trip to a nearby town which has a Waitrose, see if they stock it and also load up on President butter which also seems to have gone from the Co-Op to make more shelf space for some crap margarine.

I moved into one of these

https://www.landmarktrust.org.uk/globalassets/2.-old-website-images/property-images/m-to-r/martellotower/holiday/dsc_7850a.jpg

so the dieticians couldn't tunnel in and steal my butter, cheese and pheasants. So far so good.

chris c wrote:I moved into one of these

https://www.landmarktrust.org.uk/globalassets/2.-old-website-images/property-images/m-to-r/martellotower/holiday/dsc_7850a.jpg

so the dieticians couldn't tunnel in and steal my butter, cheese and pheasants. So far so good.

LOL !

Have you had any luck in getting some Halloumi

All the best Jan

Not yet, but i did buy some more sausages. Cumberlands and Gloucester Old Spot, just so I don't get bored. I still have a big wedge of Vacherin Mont d'Or while it's still available but I might drop by the cheese shop tomorrow, and look in the Organic Shop too, I don't think I tried there.

Success! I now have Halloumi! I'l be trying frying some later. Organic shop came up trumps. They have some good things carefully concealed among all the Holy Health Grains.

The Cumberland sausages, not so much. The ones from my usual butcher are brilliant, these from the farm shop had far too much wheat (rusk). I'll be sticking to the Gloucester Old Spots and one or two others that don't. I don't recall it in the Cumberlands I used to buy Oop North either - there they came as a whole length rather than twisted into links. Lots of black pepper is the usual seasoning.

Just one of those things with all the butchers and farm shops, they all have their own recipes for speciality sausages. The butcher has excellent venison and wild boar sausages but some from a different village butcher were quite unspecial, there was apple in the wild boar.

Most of said butchers and farm shops also have a different selection of cheeses. I guess Halloumi just isn't popular, or well known, around these parts. Various other sheep and goat cheeses though I don't actually know any goat farms or places where the sheep are milked

OK I tried the halloumi fried in butter as Eddie suggested. Yes it is a bit delicious! Reminds me a bit of the Irish cheddar that became unavailable in the way it goes golden. I used to love that grilled on toast back in the day, and more recently baked over Bolognese sauce.

So I also tried adding halloumi chunks to the Bolognese type sauce - bacon, mushrooms, multicoloured peppers, chillies, garlic, olives, ground beef, paprika, oregano and tomato puree fried in EVOO and then simmered with water until done.

That was so good I just had it again!

Next I'll try frying it in the EVOO.

"So I also tried adding halloumi chunks to the Bolognese type sauce - bacon, mushrooms, multicoloured peppers, chillies, garlic, olives, ground beef, paprika, oregano and tomato puree fried in EVOO and then simmered with water until done."

You've (Literally) given me food for thought there Chris,that does sound like a delish combo.

Just whatever you do don't have the pasta! Generally I have it with seasonal green veggies instead - runner beans are best but asparagus or purple sprouting broccoli are also good. Today I had it with a SMALL portion of rice because I'd been walking a lot and didn't have many other carbs all day - I needed something to soak up the fatty juices.

I also do it with cheddar baked on top, but I think the halloumi just beats it. More Research Required.

 So pleased you were able to get some Halloumi ... enjoy !

I recently got some more plus some good old mature cheddar, always good to have some handy in the fridge!

All the best Jan

And now I just found it in the Co-Op, must have been a temporary shortage when I looked before.

Shock, horror

Hoping to get some Halloumi for the Easter Weekend our local Sainsbury didn't have any on the shelf, so I bought some melon and prosciutto ham ... yes, I know it's not cheese, but it is a delicious combination and low in carbs too !

Back to Cheese - we do have some nice St Agur blue cheese in the fridge though

All the best Jan

Oh interesting, so maybe the Halloumi shortage wends its way round the country from one supermarket to another. I'll buy some more before it goes away again then.

Back in April 2017 (previous post here) Chris was talking about a shortage of Halloumi.

It really is a great cheese but what about this news

Halloumi Shortage Looms As China Falls for Cheese

A shortage of halloumi cheese looks likely as farmers in Cyprus struggle to cope with the ever-increasing rise in demand, coupled with its newfound popularity in China.
The salty, rubbery cheese, traditionally made from a mixture sheep's, goat's and cow's milk in the tiny European island, is growing in popularity worldwide after being a staple of the Mediterranean country's diet for centuries.

However, farmers have expressed concerns they cannot keep on supplying enough of the cheese following a protocol allowing the export of dairy products to China being signed between Agriculture Minister Costas Kadis and Minister of the General Administration of Customs of China Ni Yuefeng, reports Cyprus Mail.
If China, a country not traditionally known for its love of dairy products, continues to gain a taste for the cheese, it could spell problems for worldwide supply. Halloumi, which can be used in salads, burgers or as a meat alternative at a barbeque, is already popular among the country’s middle classes.

“It’s difficult enough servicing demand in the UK, Germany, Sweden, Denmark and Australia,” dairy farmer Alexis Pantziaros told The Guardian from his farm outside Larnaka, in South Cyprus. “If the Chinese learn about it too, it will become impossible to keep up.”
“There just isn’t enough milk,” Pantziaros explained. “In summer, when temperatures get up to 42 Celsius [107 Fahrenheit], the animals produce very little. It’s very difficult to get them pregnant. In such heat, they don’t even want to eat.”

Pantziaros said he has been forced to import sheep from Italy and Denmark just to keep up with the demand.
John Pittas, export director for halloumi supplier Pittas Dairy Industries, told the Financial Mirror that the U.K. is already experiencing a supply shortage as they struggle to keep up with demands from supermarkets, especially during the summer months.
“Twenty years ago, we would be sending a few hundred kilos per week, whereas we now are sending a couple of containers,” he said.

“Whenever temperatures go up, exports for the UK and Sweden fly through the roof.”
According to the BBC, the U.K. now consumes more halloumi than any other European country outside of Cyprus.

“Not all of us have sheep and goats, and to meet standards you need them to make it,” Andreas Andreou, director of the industry department at Cyprus’s chamber of commerce, told The Guardian.
“It’s only logical that if we go on like this there won’t be enough to go around.”

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/foodanddrink/news/halloumi-shortage-looms-as-china-falls-for-cheese/ar-BBPC7ye?ocid=spartanntp

All the best Jan

Following the recent news that there may be a shortage of Halloumi Cheese  I came across this article


Halloumi Shortage Alert: Here Are Four Other Cheeses To Try

A nationwide halloumi crisis could be upon us as a growing taste for the cheese in China means Cypriot suppliers are now struggling to keep up with demand.

The quantities of halloumi (which is so popular in the UK because it can be grilled without melting) that Cyprus can turn out are increasingly squeezed as customers all over the world develop a taste for the salty cheese.

Producers were already were already finding it hard to meet summer requirements across northern Europe and had to do an emergency restock of British supermarkets. And now they have another market to think about too.

Cyprus has signed an agreement that paves the way for halloumi exports to the Chinese market of three million cheese-eating customers, a fact that is only going to further dwindle the existing stocks.

Exports of halloumi have increased from about 6,000 tonnes in 2013 to 26,000 tonnes this year. With Britain responsible for about 9,000 tonnes a year.

“I don’t know if this is a curse or blessing,” Yiannis Pittas, the founder and owner of Cyprus’ biggest halloumi producer, told The Times: “But we’re struggling to cope with the unprecedented global demand.”

If the farmers and producers do continue to meet demand this could potentially mean empty shelves. So what should you eat instead? Try these four cheeses as an alternative to your favourite.

Paneer - is a fresh cheese common in the Indian subcontinent. Made from curdling cow’s milk with a vegetable-derived acid (like lemon juice), it has the same solid consistency as halloumi (and looks the same to the naked eye). Although it has the desirable non-melting properties of halloumi, it isn’t as salty and flavoursome so it works better in curries or with sauces rather than dry.

Kefalotyri - is a Greek cheese made from sheep or goat milk rather than cow. It also has a high melting point so you’re not going to turn your grill into a hot mess. Once cooked kefalotyri has a creamier texture than halloumi and packs a salty punch (but with a bit less tang).

Queso Para Frier - which in Europe it might be harder to come by Queso Para Frier (roughly translated to ‘cheese for frying’) as it is a staple in Mexico and central America. Appreciated for the same qualities as halloumi (holding its shape when heated) it also forms that delicious golden brown crust while maintaining an unmelted interior.

Manouri (or feta) - this Greek cheese is probably the least similar to halloumi in that it is more crumbly and semi-soft so probably wouldn’t fare too well on a hot grill (unless you love washing up afterwards). But it does work well when baked in the oven – pop it inside some tin foil. If you can’t find manouri then baked feta does the job.

Article from here
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/foodanddrink/foodnews/halloumi-shortage-alert-here-are-four-other-cheeses-to-try/ar-BBPEsgi?ocid=spartanntp

All the best Jan