Something Different: Three Different Cheese You Must Try!

Greetings, foodie friends!

With this post I want to shine the spotlight on some fantastic cheeses which I feel don't get the attention they deserve. Everyone knows such favourites as cheddar, parmesan and brie but there is a whole world of flavour out there and I want to discuss three of my favourites.

In choosing my cheeses, I have tried to pick ones which are a little unusual but not so rare as you need to go to horrendous lengths to get them. If this means you already know about them I apologise in advance for the vexatious time you might experience reading the rest of my piece. There is nothing worse than an flush-faced guide ‘introducing’ you to the path you travel down to get to work everyday.

Anyway, for those who don't know I present three wizard cheeses which you should definitely try now!

Red Leicester

A mature red leicester is a thing of beauty. Crumbly, salty and tangy, this hard orange cheese is as fantastic raw as it is melted. It tastes REALLY good melted on granary bread with pickle but can generally be used as an interesting alternative to cheddar as they are both salty and have a similar consistency whether at room temperature or melted.

Taleggio

This cheese is truly magical. Combining the strength of stilton with the consistency of a really soft camembert, taleggio is rather disconcerting to look at, surrounded as it with an orange rind sprinkled liberally with mould. Honestly, this is fine and does not need to be removed.

Tangy with pleasing herby undertones, Taleggio is a fantastic lunch cheese as it is both the perfect counterpoint to sweet fruit such as figs and the perfect complement to salty olives. It is pretty strong, so really stands out when smeared on bread or crackers even in small quantities.

Taleggio also melts surprisingly well. I frequently use it in pasta and risotto dishes, where it completely dissolves into creamy loveliness without loosing any of its strength.

Jarlsberg

Jarlsberg is a hard Norwegian cheese with a rubbery rather than crumbly texture. The flavour is exceedingly nutty and lacks the sharp tang of many cheeses, giving it a fabulous fresh quality in the eating. It is wonderful eaten raw but I also very much enjoy baking with it. Its flavour brings a clean, meadowy taste to breads and muffins as opposed to the salty heaviness or, frankly, blandness given by many other cheeses (I'm looking at you edam!).

Well, there they are, three cheese which are not in the mainstream psyche but which I just adore. But that's just me - which are your favourites? And, if you've had any experience of the above selection, what do you think of them? Leave a post in the comments below and we can talk cheese until we're blue (veined) in the face!

Recipe Time - Leek, Tomato and Taleggio Risotto

This week on The Hungry Seagull I bring you another delicious recipe created by my own fair hand  - leek, tomato and taleggio risotto.

Taleggio is a soft, intensely flavoured cheese, a bit like stilton crossed with camembert. Frequently, it is made from pasteurised milk, which is good news for us germ-freaks.

It is extremely versatile and I love it fresh from the packet, smeared on fluffy white bread, as much as I do melting it in hot dishes such as this risotto.

This recipe uses cherry tomatoes because their delightful sweetness contrasts really well with the tangy cheese and buttery leeks.

Ingredients (Serves 4):

4 Leeks

4 tablespoons Olive Oil

200g Risotto Rice

1 litre Vegetable Stock

400g Cherry Tomatoes

200g Taleggio Cheese

4 teaspoons Oregano

Freshly Ground Black Pepper

Method:

Trim and wash the leeks. I also like to remove the outer leaf but that is a matter of personal preference, you may prefer to throw it all in!

Pour the olive oil into a large pan and heat. Slice the leeks into disks and, when the oil is good and hot, throw them in to the pot.

Cook the leeks over a medium heat, keeping them moving so they do not stick to the pan and burn. When they are soft, add the rice and, stirring all the time, continue to cook for a couple of minutes.

Add the first 250ml of the stock. Still stirring, cook until the liquid has been absorbed by the rice. It is important not to cook at too high a temperature or the stock will evaporate rather than soak into the rice. Aim for a rolling simmer rather than a raging boil.

Add another 250ml of stock. Throw in the tomatoes and return to stirring to prevent the rice sticking to the bottom of the pan. After a while, the tomatoes should be soft enough to crush. Press them against the side of the pan until they burst and release their sweet juices into the risotto.

When the stock has been absorbed by the rice, add another 250ml and keep doing this until the rice is cooked. If you run out of stock, add water until the rice is cooked. It should be soft but with just a little bite.

Once cooked, add the taleggio, roughly torn up, and the oregano. Add a few good twists of black pepper - however much you like, really - and stir until the cheese is melted and evenly mixed through the risotto.

Serve immediately, preferably with a glass of white wine.

I hope you enjoy this recipe and, if you do, please let me know in the comments below!