It's September and starting to become more and more autumnal, despite the 80 degree freak weather we're having. A perfect time to bid a fond farewell to summer and welcome the early fall. I did so by enjoying our First Annual Welcome September Feast.
What you see here are the spoils of some lucrative cheese basket raiding from Metropolitan Market. They have a pretty good cheese selection, but all their odds and ends from tastings and custom cutting end up individually wrapped and heaped into a big basket at the end of the refrigerator section. Here you can find some glorious snippets for a dollar or two that will curb your craving and give you something new to try without committing to $14.99 a wedge.
Here are the selections chosen for the feasting:
Tintern - a Welsh soft cheddar-like cheese with chives and shallots. Very strong flavor, a known favorite of my household.
Argentine Parma - A softer version of Parmesan from Argentina. Not as crusty but still nice and salty.
Mount Tam Triple Cream - An organic, creamy, earthy cheese from Cowgirl Creamery in Petaluma, CA. Good for brie lovers, not so good for noobs.
Double Cream Gouda - From Holland, delicious, firm and creamy. A nice break from the typical smoked Gouda, as this is sans smoke.
Rollingstone Chèvre Cranberry Walnut Torta - I. Love. Goat cheese. This you know from my post Cows Get All the Glory. I try so hard not to be biased, but it was great; creamy, sweet and tangy with flecks of cranberry and little nubbins of walnut. Yummeroo.
Cornish Yarg - Come on, how can you pass up something called 'Cornish Yarg?!' I had to buy it out of principle. This one comes from the UK and is actually left to age wrapped in nettle leaves. It was pretty mild, I was expecting more body and bite from something called 'Yarg,' but overall it was pleasant.
Raspberry BellaVitano - Surprisingly my favorite of the eve. Kind of a cross between asiago and cheddar, but it's soaked in New Glarus Raspberry Tart Ale from Wisconsin to make it deliciously fruity.
Gorgonzola - A tradish gorgonzola, nice and sweet but not a dolce.
Circa 1926 Gouda - This was pretty amazing for a Gouda. It's like finding out your lame cousin you see at Christmas, who sits around and talks about D&D, is a tap-dancing one-man-band on the weekends. It was hard, but creamy, salty and sweet with a nice bite at the beginning and a smooth finish. I was impressed. Also, sans smoke. This one is a Metropolitan Market exclusive from Beemster.
Graskaas Limited Edition Cheese - Who doesn't love mystery cheese? Plus the name reminded me of the Penny Arcade strip with Lord Skaas. It was pretty delicious, mild and creamy. Another one from Beemster made with the first milkings when the Beemster cows return to the fresh spring pastures after a winter without grazing.
Point Reyes Original Blue - Another California cheese from Point Reyes Farmstead Cheese Company. Has a nice bite but doesn't leave too much of that bleu cheese sting behind. Not as sweet or mild as the Gorgonzola.
To round out our feast we had a couple of awesome loaves from Macrina Bakery; the Giuseppe and the Fresh Herb Baguette. Crunchy outsides, tender, chewy insides. Delectable. It went well with balsamic vinegar and garlic infused olive oil with fresh basil.
Plus some roasted almonds, dried cranberries, some Whidbey Wildberry Chocolate Truffle bar and a a big ol' sliced peach.
All together a fantastic feast for all 5 senses, worthy of the season! There was way too much to finish, obviously, but it should make for some tasty leftovers.
The simplicity of it all was probably one of the most delicious things about the meal; slicing a peach, chopping some basil, cutting some bread and unwrapping cheese. Voila! A beautiful celebration for the season, honoring some delicious food in the best way possible; by doing as little as possible to it.
What you see here are the spoils of some lucrative cheese basket raiding from Metropolitan Market. They have a pretty good cheese selection, but all their odds and ends from tastings and custom cutting end up individually wrapped and heaped into a big basket at the end of the refrigerator section. Here you can find some glorious snippets for a dollar or two that will curb your craving and give you something new to try without committing to $14.99 a wedge.
Here are the selections chosen for the feasting:
Tintern - a Welsh soft cheddar-like cheese with chives and shallots. Very strong flavor, a known favorite of my household.
Argentine Parma - A softer version of Parmesan from Argentina. Not as crusty but still nice and salty.
Mount Tam Triple Cream - An organic, creamy, earthy cheese from Cowgirl Creamery in Petaluma, CA. Good for brie lovers, not so good for noobs.
Double Cream Gouda - From Holland, delicious, firm and creamy. A nice break from the typical smoked Gouda, as this is sans smoke.
Rollingstone Chèvre Cranberry Walnut Torta - I. Love. Goat cheese. This you know from my post Cows Get All the Glory. I try so hard not to be biased, but it was great; creamy, sweet and tangy with flecks of cranberry and little nubbins of walnut. Yummeroo.
Cornish Yarg - Come on, how can you pass up something called 'Cornish Yarg?!' I had to buy it out of principle. This one comes from the UK and is actually left to age wrapped in nettle leaves. It was pretty mild, I was expecting more body and bite from something called 'Yarg,' but overall it was pleasant.
Raspberry BellaVitano - Surprisingly my favorite of the eve. Kind of a cross between asiago and cheddar, but it's soaked in New Glarus Raspberry Tart Ale from Wisconsin to make it deliciously fruity.
Gorgonzola - A tradish gorgonzola, nice and sweet but not a dolce.
Circa 1926 Gouda - This was pretty amazing for a Gouda. It's like finding out your lame cousin you see at Christmas, who sits around and talks about D&D, is a tap-dancing one-man-band on the weekends. It was hard, but creamy, salty and sweet with a nice bite at the beginning and a smooth finish. I was impressed. Also, sans smoke. This one is a Metropolitan Market exclusive from Beemster.
Graskaas Limited Edition Cheese - Who doesn't love mystery cheese? Plus the name reminded me of the Penny Arcade strip with Lord Skaas. It was pretty delicious, mild and creamy. Another one from Beemster made with the first milkings when the Beemster cows return to the fresh spring pastures after a winter without grazing.
Point Reyes Original Blue - Another California cheese from Point Reyes Farmstead Cheese Company. Has a nice bite but doesn't leave too much of that bleu cheese sting behind. Not as sweet or mild as the Gorgonzola.
To round out our feast we had a couple of awesome loaves from Macrina Bakery; the Giuseppe and the Fresh Herb Baguette. Crunchy outsides, tender, chewy insides. Delectable. It went well with balsamic vinegar and garlic infused olive oil with fresh basil.
All together a fantastic feast for all 5 senses, worthy of the season! There was way too much to finish, obviously, but it should make for some tasty leftovers.
The simplicity of it all was probably one of the most delicious things about the meal; slicing a peach, chopping some basil, cutting some bread and unwrapping cheese. Voila! A beautiful celebration for the season, honoring some delicious food in the best way possible; by doing as little as possible to it.
No comments:
Post a Comment