Hello Friends,
I’ve been doing a lot of cheese sampling for the new Florence inspired sandwiches that I’m offering at my Tavern at the Mission and yesterday I looked at the cheese drawer in my fridge and realized it was overflowing with orphaned bits and pieces of leftover great cheeses.
There was a proud heel of Parmigiano, hardened like an old soldier, a smidge of Rogue Creamery Smokey Blue sitting all by itself in the corner, some silky, sexy Stracciatella, a chunk of aged and, lo and behold, my queen of all cheeses….Taleggio. They were all just sitting there like mismatched guests after a dinner party, wondering if there is anything that becomes of them when they are past their prime, but not past their purpose.
I then remembered a little trick that I used at Chat Noir when we had lots of leftover cheese from the charcuterie and fromage plates we used to serve. It’s a clever way of extending the life of cheeses invented by the frugal French when they are blended all together with a little white wine, brandy or even and eau de vie, which is a is a clear, colorless fruit brandy that is produced by fermentation and double distillation.
So, there I was, a benevolent rescuer armed with my bad ass Breville food processor, also given to me as a gift by someone very special, along with a little leftover Reisling and a thimble of Brandy…and so the ‘After Party’ began. No pecking order necessary…they were all willingly just tumbled together in the bowl. When wine and brandy were splashed on them, I could swear they perked up and brightened now knowing their ultimate destiny was about to be realized.
Then a couple herbs joined the party…chives and thyme leaves along with a whisper of garlic…and suddenly, the whole mixture becoming a lush, velvety spread with the swagger of a French Grand-mere who knows exactly what to do with leftovers.
This is FROMAGE FORT…the triumphant second life of forgotten cheeses, reborn in their after life as a bold, boozy, utterly irresistible
spread. I also was long on some of the herbed Schiacciatta bread used in my sandwiches that I had wrapped and tucked in the fridge not knowing what their future was until now. A few minutes in the air fryer and I was enjoying one glorious culinary marriage.
A humble redemption story….starring my fridge.
You’re Welcome
David & Tino
