Category: New Zealand cheese

Bloomy rinds, Cheese geekery, New Zealand cheese, Review, Uncategorized10 Comments

Beautiful Brie – raw versus pasteurised?

Lucy from Life and Cheese

  With their velvety outers barely containing their silky centres, both Bries were sexy. I was pitting a French raw milk Brie de Meaux against a Whitestone Lindis Pass Brie to answer the cheesey conundrum – raw or pasteurised cheese? I wanted to understand the difference because they both look the same. The same chalky rind, the same oozy centre. I wanted to know is it worth the fuss and the double price tag? Back to the basics – pasteurised or raw Most of the cheeses we eat are made from pasteurised milk which has been heated up to 75° C (167° F) … Continue reading Beautiful Brie – raw versus pasteurised?

Blue cheese, Cheesey recipe, New Zealand cheese8 Comments

Cheese canapés for cocktail parties

Lucy from Life and Cheese

Ah cheesey friends I have been in a conundrum, a cheese conundrum – what does a curd nerd to take to a cocktail party? I couldn’t recall 007 eating anything with his Martini and Audrey Hepburn certainly just seemed to smoke. But I wanted to make some sophisticated cheese canapés to hand around. A bit of research later and a whole new world opened up. So over the next few weeks I’ll share a few easy canapés to grace any cocktail party. Cocktails are intense with strong flavours, so I wanted canapés that could stand up to high alchohol beverages. I … Continue reading Cheese canapés for cocktail parties

Australian cheese, Cheese Mongers, New Zealand cheese5 Comments

Cheesemongers – finding and talking with these cheese heros

Lucy from Life and Cheese

Stepping into the cheese cave at Richmond Hill Cafe & Larder is like stepping into an Alladin’s cave. Stacked on shelves, lolling on slabs of wood and marble, crowding into every nook and cranny is a panolpy of cheeses. Earthy, subterranean smells enveloped me and I felt cheese to the bone. I felt transported to France and loved it. Richmond Hill Cafe & Larder This was my second cheese stop in Melbourne and like La Latteria it had friendly staff and generous tastings. I could have whiled away hours in that cave, with cheesemonger Nadia slicing, smearing and slivering me … Continue reading Cheesemongers – finding and talking with these cheese heros

New Zealand cheese, Review, Wine and cheese15 Comments

Buffalo mozzarella and Insalata Caprese – heady fragrant joy

Lucy from Life and Cheese

There is a reverence to the way my friend Kate breaks Mozzarella di Bufala. The same gentleness of hand, sense of purpose you see in a priest breaking bread. For fresh buffalo milk mozzarella is indeed a special cheese and in this post I want to understand why. First of all though you have to banish all memories of those rubbery gourds of commercial mozzarella, vacuum packed and available in the supermarket. The only similarity is that both are stretchy when heated. One is pizza cheese, mild and factory produced, the other is an Italian icon, a national treasure, made … Continue reading Buffalo mozzarella and Insalata Caprese – heady fragrant joy

Cheesey recipe, Goat, New Zealand cheese, Wine and cheese8 Comments

Goats cheese and kiwifruit – strange but true…

Lucy from Life and Cheese

Goats cheese and kiwifuit? With basil? On toast? OK Madame Fromage, Cheese Courtesan from Philadelphia, you got me tempted. What an unexpected pairing of our national fruit, and by an American, this combination turned out to be a revelation! A hot looking canapé, simple and fairly inexpensive, it’s bound to become a staple this coming summer. Just smear fresh goats cheese on bruschetta, add a slice of kiwifruit and a jaunty spring of basil. Easy as. Pair with a G & T or a chilled Sav. Delicious. I used Meadowcroft Chevré, a New Zealand-made, French-style, fresh goats cheese made by … Continue reading Goats cheese and kiwifruit – strange but true…

Cheese Mongers, Cow, New Zealand cheese, Review2 Comments

Mt Cargill Tudor- a Southern man of a cheese

Lucy from Life and Cheese

Life’s getting better in Wellington, partly because of the cheese mongers who are popping up across town. Last weekend I met Sally from Evansdale cheese. She’s one of the growing band of cheese lovers bringing small-scale, artisan and imported cheeses to the Capital. Alongside our emerging market culture, there’s been a real increase in the range and quality we cheese folks can find. You’ll find Sally every second Saturday at Thorndon’s Hill St Market with her Otago-made Evansdale cheeses. This is an intimate little market where there’s time to stop and talk to the stall holders and even better, time … Continue reading Mt Cargill Tudor- a Southern man of a cheese