In our last post, we provided you with six simple gift ideas for the coming holiday. Today, we’ll get a little more specific – a little, er, cheesier, if you will. You see, the perfect gift is often hard to find. But for some, any gift is perfect – as long as it’s edible. And what do we eat more than anything here at Penn Mac? Well, cheese, of course! So, in this post, we’ll look at three gift ideas for all of the gourmet cheese lovers among your friends and family. It’s not too late to make the undercarriage of your Christmas tree a little more cheesy. Let’s have a look, shall we?

Gourmet Cheese Sampler

Obviously we’re going to begin with the obvious. Woo for redundancy! Anyways, one way to add a little flavor to the skirt of your tree is by gifting cheese itself, in the form of a gourmet cheese sampler! Now, there are a lot of great pre-made cheese samplers out there, one of which will surely fit your target’s taste. However, don’t rule out creating your own basket of assorted cheeses. This is one way to make the gift more personal and customized to your target’s individual preferences. It’s never a bad idea to get a little personal with gifts – especially those with which you hope to make a lasting impression.

Gourmet Cheese Guides

Assuming that the person that you’re buying for has a steadfast passion for cheese, it’s likely that they’ll appreciate a comprehensive guide to all that the world of cheese has to offer. A guide can offer insights into various wine & cheese pairings, detailed histories of some of the world’s finest cheeses, various recipes in which different cheeses can be used, etc. Our pick of the litter is Cheese Primer by Steven Jenkins, a passionate guide for the passionate cheese eater. Another plus? Well, it’s pretty easy to wrap!

Gourmet Cheese Accessories

If you know that your giftee has a vested interest in preparing and serving cheese, you might consider buying them any number of gourmet cheese serving accessories. From specially made cheese knives to traditional wooden cutting boards, it’s always good to have a nice set of cheese-serving utensils. And hey, it’s a gift. If they don’t necessarily have the need to use them, they’ll be compelled to do so anyways! Who knows; serving accessories, like anything, can grow on an individual. Before long, those “random cheese knives that Uncle Joe bought me” will become a household favorite, adding Christmas cheer to the most mundane of cheese plates.

Well, those should get you thinking! If you have any other great gourmet cheese gift ideas for this Christmas (and those subsequent), feel free to throw them our way in the comment section below! Remember, it’s never too late to pull something awesome together – even if it means the rest of your presents smelling like cheese! Have a good one!

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If you’ve followed Pennsylvania Macaroni Company in any way (be it visiting us in the Strip, liking us on Facebook, or following us on Twitter), you’ve probably come to an early, informed conclusion that the title of this post is not a friendly reminder of the decorum for this year’s family Christmas photo. While it is nice to smile for the camera, we’re not in the business of directing photo shoots, so we’ll leave that to those who are. We are, however, in the business of cheese! All kinds of cheese, in fact! From our delicious holiday Italian cheese sampler (December’s Sampler of the Month) to popular domestic and foreign varieties, when it comes to being curd-sick, we’ll get you cured!

Source: http://colormegreenanew.blogspot.com/

Anyways, onto the underlying reason for this post – to inform you of a few types of cheese that really “hit their peaks” during the winter months.

Piave

We begin with Piave, a delicious cow’s milk cheese from the Piave River Valley region in Belluno, Italy. This sweet, often dense cheese typically hardens as it becomes more aged, making it ideal for grating. It pairs well with various contemporary Italian meals and is complimented nicely by a shimmering glass of Chardonay or white wine.

Asiago

Aged Asiago cheese is an absolutely tremendous choice throughout the holiday season. Like Piave, it becomes relatively firm with age and can be used grated over soups, salads, pasta dishes, what have you. If you’re looking for something that has more of a bitter taste, Asiago is the way to go!

Source: http://www.examiner.com/

Toscano

Unlike the first two, Toscano, produced in Tuscany, is a ewe’s milk cheese. When aged (as it likely will be in winter), it is used similarly to both Piave and Asiago as a grated cheese. Throughout Italy, Toscano is one of the more popular parmesan alternatives.

As you may have noticed, these cheeses are all of the aged variety. This isn’t merely a coincidence, believe it or not! It’s typical of some cheese types to reach maturity during winter – these three being among them. If you’re preparing a gourmet Italian dish this holiday season, strongly consider using one (if not all three) of these cheeses as a grated topping! We can promise that you won’t regret it! Remember, you can purchase all three of these cheeses (with the addition of Pecorino Sicilian) in our December Sampler of the Month! Once you try them, let us know what you think!

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Last week, we discussed how to make cheese fondue, a delicious cheese dip that goes well with fruit, veggies, bread, what have you. Today, we’ll take a look at a popular recipe for homemade nacho cheese, which some might call “poor man’s fondue.” One of the many benefits of being a lifelong Pittsburgh sports fan (other than six rings, three Cups, and some distant World Series titles) is the food that typically accompanies sports-watching gatherings. Super Bowls are so common in these parts that many families have special recipes set aside for the ever-so-frequent occurrences. Heck, there’s even a restaurant in Pittsburgh called “Souper Bowl”. Anyways, one of my favorite “sports food” traditions is that of homemade nacho cheese and nachos. They’re great when you’re at the game – yes – but they’re even better in the comfort of your favorite La-Z-Boy. It’s time to step up your catering game for football Sunday. Let’s get started.

Source: http://nortonfamilyrecipes.blogspot.com/

Ingredients – They’re What You Need!

These ingredients will yield the most delicious nacho cheese dip you’ve ever tasted! If you’re looking to add a little personal flavor, though, feel free to add ingredients as you see fit! Some diced peppers can really add some kick to the mix! If you’d like to grate your own cheese for the sauce, we recommend trying our Fiery Spiced Cheddar Cheese – a perfect compliment for nachos.

-1 medium-sized saucepan
-1 whisk (preferably wire)
-1 cup of grated sharp cheddar cheese
-1/4 teaspoon of salt
-1 cup of milk
-2 tablespoons of flour
-2 tablespoons of butter

Directions – Let’s Get Cookin’!

Alright, so, we begin by melting our butter in the medium saucepan at low heat. When the butter has melted (which shouldn’t take long), add your flour and whisk away until you’ve obtained a nice melted butter-flour blend. Now, it’s milk time! Go ahead and dump your milk into the mixture and stir incessantly until it’s nice and thick. Once the contents have thickened, add your grated sharp cheddar and salt. Again, get that saucepan a stirrin’! Stir away until the cheddar has melted completely. You’re almost done! Gently whisk, whisk, and keep whisking until you’re more of a whisker than the hairs on your feline’s face! Okay, maybe not that much. A good barometer is thickness. Make sure all of the ingredients have combined nicely to form a cheesy, thick sauce. And that’s it! Your cheese sauce is ready for dipping – the rest is nacho problem!

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I’d like to put an emphasis on being careful when you pour the nacho cheese from the saucepan into your dish for serving. This stuff is meant to be served hot, which can spell some ugly burns if you aren’t careful. Something else to keep in mind: If you’re serving directly from an electric sauce container, keep the heat on extremely low or turn it off altogether. My friends and I have had plenty of forgetful moments and left the heat on throughout the duration of a televised sporting event. Needless to say, this results in a pretty nasty mess, including (but not limited to) the ruin of a relatively expensive electric container, a far less than pleased parent, and worst of all – burnt nacho cheese. So, yeah, be careful!

Hope you enjoyed this recipe! Do you have any great “sports food” recipes? If so, send them our way! If we like ‘em, there’s a good chance you’ll see them on the blog!

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