Register

Time for Christmas, then!

For all refugees from the old Beeb Food Boards :-)
Chill out and chat with the foodie community or swap top tips.
NOTE: CHATTERBOX IS IN THIS FORUM

Moderators: karadekoolaid, THE MOD TEAM, Stokey Sue, Gillthepainter

Posts: 2416
Joined: Sat Aug 19, 2017 6:19 pm
Location: Barcelona

Re: Time for Christmas, then!

Postby Alexandria » Thu Dec 13, 2018 11:09 pm

Renée,

Your Christmas plans sound wonderful ..

All our best wishes for a healthy, successful and very fulfilling new year just ahead .. :chrissytree1
Barcelona, soulful & spirited, filled with fine art, amazing architecture, profoundly steeped in culture & history, and it engages all your senses, and food fancies.

User avatar
Posts: 3719
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 11:53 am
Location: near some lakes

Re: Time for Christmas, then!

Postby Gillthepainter » Fri Dec 14, 2018 9:08 am

We are like Colin and eat the white meat.
Tony's dad only wanted the leg. Like my dad too.

Joan, one particular place was at Fontenay le Comte. A Logis that was packed with local diners in their excellent restaurant.
Luckily we booked when checking in, if we'd dallied, we would not have gotten a table.

I thought the local excellent cheese I tried to remember was Comte. But have tried it since over here, and am not sure, it wasn't that special (from Waitrose).
Maybe it will be better at the new cheese shop we have.

Is there a "special" comte cheese I should be looking for? Semi hard.

User avatar
Posts: 1489
Joined: Thu Jan 14, 2016 6:07 pm

Re: Time for Christmas, then!

Postby Badger's Mate » Fri Dec 14, 2018 11:00 am

I'm not an expert on Comté, (feel free to ignore the following) but other hard cheeses vary significantly with producer and age. 'Cheddar' covers a significant range of tastes and textures . I know it hasn't got a PDO, but 'West Country Farmhouse Cheddar' has, and that is also variable, albeit less so. It also excludes some lovely cheeses that most people would recognise as cheddar, such as Isle of Mull and Lincolnshire Poacher.

Similarly Gouda is very different as an older (18-48 months) than young cheese, the flavour developing all the time. A supermarket 'mature' one might be 10 months old, more characterful than young cheese, but would be even more so at 14 months and beyond.

I imagine the same sort of argument would apply to Gruyère.

User avatar
Posts: 3719
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 11:53 am
Location: near some lakes

Re: Time for Christmas, then!

Postby Gillthepainter » Fri Dec 14, 2018 11:20 am

Yes, maybe we chose the wrong one for us, Badgers. But perhaps there are plenty of others out there that would rekindle the memory.

My personal favourite is Selles sur Cher.
First tried in France, and still absolutely lovely whenever I buy it.

Memorably bad cheese, on a cheese board at the Champignon Sauvage.
Manchego with chorizo. Noooooooo!

User avatar
Posts: 1489
Joined: Thu Jan 14, 2016 6:07 pm

Re: Time for Christmas, then!

Postby Badger's Mate » Fri Dec 14, 2018 11:43 am

That's interesting. Posh restaurants usually have got really good cheese boards. Morston Hall's is good, it was the best thing at the Lords of the Manor
. Obviously we could let Benares off (although I expect their paneer is nice :D )

User avatar
Posts: 1879
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 8:30 pm
Location: Provence

Re: Time for Christmas, then!

Postby Joanbunting » Fri Dec 14, 2018 12:14 pm

Hi Gill

As M says comte is really just a regional name but look for Fermier (farmhouse)
Also to be sure it is authentic the rind should be marked with the comte name - like Parmegano Regiano. If you like Comte you would also like Cantal and
Langioule (pronounced lieyol) Softer cheese we like include Langres, Chaource (from Burgundy) and for sheep cheese fans Ossau Iraty which comes from the Pyenees/ if you want something with a real bite/punch the famouse Burgundian, Eppoisse which in matured in marc

Cheese in France is very regional and seasonal too. At this time of year Vaccherin de Mont d'Or is at it's best for example. In this region

Then again we just like cheese!
Cooking for those you care about is the most profound expression of love - Anne-Sophie Pic

User avatar
Posts: 2993
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 12:33 pm

Re: Time for Christmas, then!

Postby Pampy » Fri Dec 14, 2018 1:49 pm

I love most cheeses - the only ones that aren't for me are manchengo, casu marzu, all goat's cheese, stinking bishop (can't get it as far as my mouth!) and a Norwegian one that is a brown colour - can't remember the name but might be something like hvarti(?).

User avatar
Posts: 1879
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 8:30 pm
Location: Provence

Re: Time for Christmas, then!

Postby Joanbunting » Fri Dec 14, 2018 3:29 pm

Know the one you mean Pampy. It looks like brown Kendal Mint Cake and tastes like sweaty socks. :vomit Our Norwegian lodger used to bring it as a gift whenever he went home. Only the aquavit he brought with it made it bearable. It's called Brunost
Cooking for those you care about is the most profound expression of love - Anne-Sophie Pic

User avatar
Posts: 2993
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 12:33 pm

Re: Time for Christmas, then!

Postby Pampy » Fri Dec 14, 2018 3:56 pm

That's the one Joan - thanks. I think sweaty socks is being kind!

User avatar
Posts: 1547
Joined: Fri Jan 15, 2016 6:16 pm

Re: Time for Christmas, then!

Postby dennispc » Fri Dec 14, 2018 5:32 pm

Thinks ... has anyone ever eaten sweaty socks? ;)

Posts: 35
Joined: Tue Sep 26, 2017 9:29 pm

Re: Time for Christmas, then!

Postby Wordsworth » Fri Dec 14, 2018 5:45 pm

I have encountered a Norwegian (?) cheese which was brown and fudgy in texture.
I think it was called gjetost or something like that.
It wasn't to my taste

User avatar
Posts: 8629
Joined: Fri Apr 27, 2012 2:02 pm
Location: Stoke Newington, London

Re: Time for Christmas, then!

Postby Stokey Sue » Fri Dec 14, 2018 7:34 pm

Best Comté I've had is from the specialist stall in Borough Market, nutty and doesn't have the tendency to go greasy some supermarket ones do

Aged kosher Gouda used to be a great bargain, but I still like well aged Gouda (UniKaas) and it is well priced compared to other premium cheeses

I think cave aged Gruyere is the one to go for, again nutty.

Current best bargain in cheese is Morrison's The Best Somerset Cheddar
Crunch, the real blow your socks off kind of strong cheddar with little crystals in it, £3 for 350g

I'm lucky, I can walk to the original La Fromagerie shop. I don't often, but I can!

User avatar
Posts: 2632
Joined: Thu Apr 26, 2012 5:58 pm
Location: Clayton-le-Woods

Re: Time for Christmas, then!

Postby Renee » Fri Dec 14, 2018 11:00 pm

Member 461, thank you very much for your kind wishes and I hope that you have a wonderful Christmas and New Year with your family. It sounds wonderful!

Pampy, I actually liked the Norwegian Gjetost cheese, which I first had at the Disney Epcot centre in Florida whilst staying with friends there. Yes, it is very fudgy! I seem to remember that it contains both goat and cow milk.

User avatar
Posts: 3719
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 11:53 am
Location: near some lakes

Re: Time for Christmas, then!

Postby Gillthepainter » Sat Dec 15, 2018 8:57 am

Fermier! Got it, thank you.
And thanks for the cheesy help too, I've written a list of all your thoughts - but not the Norwegian one!
I'm not a huge fromage eater, and like wine, don't really know the finer stuff.

Tony's gone the other way with "blow your sweaty socks off" cheese. He used to go for the very strong.
But his tastes have changed and he's a bit of a softie now.

Posts: 2416
Joined: Sat Aug 19, 2017 6:19 pm
Location: Barcelona

Re: Time for Christmas, then!

Postby Alexandria » Sat Dec 15, 2018 9:21 am

Joan,

Thank you for all your "cheese-a-holic" recommendations !! :yum :yum

The little villages of France, Italy, northern Barcelona, Girona and Lleida, and Andalusia have so many cheeses, if would take a lifetime to taste them all ..

I also was amazed at the goat and sheep cheeses in Bulgaria and the goat cheeses in Romania.

Have a wonderful wonderful Christmas Holiday Season and a healthy, successful and happy new year 2019.
Barcelona, soulful & spirited, filled with fine art, amazing architecture, profoundly steeped in culture & history, and it engages all your senses, and food fancies.

User avatar
Posts: 505
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 10:06 pm

Re: Time for Christmas, then!

Postby strictlysalsaclare » Sat Dec 15, 2018 11:13 am

As it's now the day of the Strictly Come Dancing Final (I'm a massive fan, hence my name on here!), Christmas starts tonight in our house! I have made a start on our party nibbles (last night rather than this morning), so a bit more prep later this morning when my breakfast has gone down and the dishwasher is loaded up and doing its job! then it will be the final furlong from about 4.30-5.00pm tonight.

User avatar
Posts: 1879
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 8:30 pm
Location: Provence

Re: Time for Christmas, then!

Postby Joanbunting » Sat Dec 15, 2018 12:46 pm

Clare we are both huge fans too and also looking forward to tonight. Curious that M loves it so much as that sort of thing really doesn't usually float his boat and he gets all sniffy. If he's good he might get a glass of Clive's recommended Venezualan rums while watching.

I've got a posh Mac n' cheese ready to put in the oven for supper. Of course we are an hour ahead of you and I have football to attend to this afternoon = mince pies for Pere Noel's visit tomorrow. Niether of us is a great nibbler, or chocolate eater.
Cooking for those you care about is the most profound expression of love - Anne-Sophie Pic

User avatar
Posts: 2581
Joined: Fri Apr 27, 2012 1:40 pm

Re: Time for Christmas, then!

Postby karadekoolaid » Sat Dec 15, 2018 2:26 pm

I don´t think there´s a cheese I won´t eat. I love stinking bishop, adore Pont LÉvecque, and am ecstatic about all those lovely little stinky cheeses from Normandie, wrapped in varieties of leaves!
Don´t think we´re going to see any here this year, however. because the economy has gone to the dogs. (and even they are starving).
We´ll probably just have hallacas ( a traditional "tamale" wrapped in plantain leaves) and salad.

User avatar
Posts: 3719
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 11:53 am
Location: near some lakes

Re: Time for Christmas, then!

Postby Gillthepainter » Mon Dec 17, 2018 10:50 am

I'm sure it will be stunning, Clive.

I had a lovely mince pie yesterday, at a cafe. Very light and crumbly.
Unlike the taster piece I had at Sainsbury, that was overpoweringly loaded with cinnamon.

User avatar
Posts: 8629
Joined: Fri Apr 27, 2012 2:02 pm
Location: Stoke Newington, London

Re: Time for Christmas, then!

Postby Stokey Sue » Mon Dec 17, 2018 12:29 pm

A couple of years ago Iceland luxury mince pies were voted best in all the taste tests
So we got a pack
They were vile - pastry like concrete, filling apparently flavoured with cinnamon and acetic acid
But I’ll get a good home made one tonight made by my friend

PS Iceland do have good Stollen, Kuchenmeister brand, £2

PreviousNext

Return to Food Chat & Chatterbox

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 25 guests