Strata the Gourmet Cheese and French Bread Casserole!

Strata – the “gourmet casserole” It’s got all the homey, comfort food qualities of its predecessors, and a name that brings to mind layer upon layer of savory, custardy bread, melted cheeses, salty meats and seasonal vegetables.

Ingredients
¾ cup shredded Maasdam cheese
¾ cup shredded Gruyere cheese
Cooking spray
1 loaf French bread (approximately 16 thin-sliced pieces)
4 ounces Serrano Ham
1 cup (about 4 ounces) roasted asparagus*, chopped into 1-inch pieces
6 eggs
1 ½ cups milk
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper

Preparation
Mix the Swiss and Gruyere cheeses together in a small bowl and set aside. Liberally spray an 8” round casserole dish with cooking spray, and place half of the bread slices in the bottom of the dish. Layer half of the Serrano slices over the bread, followed by a layer of half of the roasted asparagus, and half of the cheese mixture. Repeat layering process, ending with a layer of cheese.

In a separate bowl, mix together eggs, milk, salt and pepper. Pour egg mixture over strata. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or preferably overnight.

When ready to bake, remove the strata from the refrigerator, and let it rest for about 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 350°. Bake strata for 50 to 60 minutes, until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, and strata is slightly puffed and golden.

Serves 8.

∗ To roast 1 pound of asparagus: Preheat oven to 400°. Wash asparagus and break off bottoms of spears. Place asparagus on baking sheet, and drizzle with about 1 teaspoon olive oil. Add salt and pepper to taste. Roast for about 10 minutes, until slightly browned and tender. If you like, pour about 1 teaspoon of fresh lemon juice over asparagus and garnish with some grated lemon rind.

Gourmet 4 cheese Mac and Cheese with Serrano Ham

Total Time 1 hour and 15 minutes (Cook time 50 minutes) Serves 6

Ingredients

6 tablespoons butter

1/2 cup flour

4 cups milk, warm

1 teaspoon dry mustard

¼ teaspoon nutmeg

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper or hot sauce to taste

Salt to taste

Dash Worcestershire Sauce

8 oz shredded Amish cheddar

8 oz shredded Asiago

4 oz shredded BellaVitano Balsamic

1 pound macaroni of your choice, cooked al dente

1 stack crumbled butter cracker (Ritz like)

2 oz shaved Serrano ham lightly fried and crumbled

2 oz Parmigiano Reggiano crumbled for topping

Directions

Heat oven to 350 degrees F.

Melt butter in large sauce pan over medium heat.  Add flour and cook, stirring for 1 minute. Whisk in the warm milk and bring to a boil, continue to whisk constantly. The mixture will thicken as the heat increases. Continue to whisk while adding the dry mustard, nutmeg, cayenne, salt and Worcestershire. Stir in the cheddar, Asiago, Bellavitano and stir until it is melted.

Pour cheese sauce over noodles and add to a 3 quart casserole dish.

Sprinkle top with cracker crumbs, Serrano crumbs and Parmigiano crumbles. Bake for 35 minutes.

Chiffon Cauliflower and Serrano Ham with Tete de Moine Cheese Flower

Ingredients for 5 glasses

1 pound (3/4 of a cup) of cooked cauliflower
¼ cup heavy cream
2 ounces Serrano ham cooked
5 flowers of Tete de Moine
Salt and pepper

In mixer put the cooked cauliflower (cauliflower cooked in salted boiling water) with the cream, salt and pepper, and mix everything until the mixture becomes slightly frothy. Check the seasoning.

In a small skillet fry the Serrano Ham and drain on absorbent paper.
Spread the cauliflower cream in glasses and put some bacon cooled in each glass. Finish with a Tete de Moine flower.

Danish Blue Cheese, figs and Serrano Ham!

Danish Blue (also known as Danablu) is a strong, blue veined cheese. This semi-soft creamery cheese is typically drum or block shaped and has a white to yellowish, slightly moist, edible rind. Made from cow’s milk, it has a fat content of 25–30% (50–60% in dry matter) and is aged for eight to twelve weeks.

Before ageing, copper wires or rods are used to pierce the formed  curds to distribute the mold (Penicillium roqueforti) evenly through the cheese. The holes can still be seen when the finished wheel is cut open.

Danish Blue was invented early in the 20th century by a Danish cheese maker named Marius Boel with the intention of emulating a Roquefort style cheese. Danish Blue has a milder flavor characterized by a sharp, salty taste.

Danish Blue is often served crumbled on salads or as a dessert cheese with fruit. In Denmark, it is often served on bread or biscuits.

Danish Blue and Esrom are the only two Danish cheeses that are PGI marked by the EU, meaning that they may only be produced in Denmark from Danish milk and at approved dairies that produce the cheeses according to the specifications laid down.

Wine to Pair with Danish Blue

Cabernet Sauvignon, often referred to as the “King of Red Wine Grapes,” originally from Bordeaux, with a substantial foothold in California’s wine races, has the privilege of being the world’s most sought after red wine. Cabernet Sauvignon grapes tend to favor warmer climates and are often an ideal wine for aging, with 5-10 years being optimal for the maturation process to peak. Because Cabs take a bit longer to reach maturation, allowing their flavors to mellow, they are ideal candidates for blending with other grapes, primarily Merlot. This blending softens the Cabernet, adding appealing fruit tones, without sacrificing its innate character.

Cheese Type: Blue

Milk Type: cow

Rennet: vegetarian-friendly

Age: 8+ weeks

Origin: Denmark

Baked figs with Danish blue cheese & Serrano Ham

Slice the figs in half, make a small indent with the back of a teaspoon then place a small amount of blue cheese (marble size) and top with a piece of prosciutto. Arrange on a baking tray and roast in a hot oven, about 425F for 8-10 minutes, but keep an eye on them! You want the Serrano to be browning and the cheese and fig to melt together nicely, you don’t want them to over bake so they end up a jammy mess on the bottom of the tray. Let them cool down slightly so your guests don’t burn their mouths and then watch them disappear in an instant.

 

BellaVitano Merlot

 

A match made in heaven! BellaVitano Gold soaked in Merlot adding hints of berry and plum to a rich, creamy cheese with nutty, fruity flavors.  This one is always the hit of any cheese tray and one your guests will be asking where you got it.  The Sartori family created the perfect marriage of flavors that will have your taste buds saying “I do”.  Add a few toasted walnuts, some thin sliced Serrano Ham and semisweet chocolates and the honeymoon never has to end.

This is a new hybrid cheese from Wisconsin that is like a rich craveable premium Cheddar, balanced by the full flavor of a Parmesan that has been aged in the perfect Merlot until the taste is an symphony in your mouth.  The sweet nuttiness of the BellaVitano with Merlot, a slice of Granny Smith Apple and a small spoon of fig jam and your mouth is begging for more.  This cheese is great naked or dressed so let your mind indulge all your tummies cravings.

Pairs with Chianti, Port and light Italian Reds or Indian Pale Ale, Sweet Cider or Dark Malty Ale. Add some nuts, dry fruits and rustic bread and you all set!

Cheese Type: Parmesan/cheddar hybrid

Milk Type: Cow

Rennet:

Age: 8 – 10 months

Origin: USA

Region: Wisconsin

Try BellaVitano with Merlot on top of your favorite bagel with Serrano Ham and a hot spicy mustard.

Timballo and Serrano Ham

Timballo is an Italian dish consisting of baked pasta with one or more other ingredients (cheese, meat, vegetables and even fruit).  The name comes from the French word for kettledrum (timbale).  Varieties of Timballo differ from region to region and it is sometimes known as a bomba, torino, sartu or pasticcio. It is similar to a casserole and is sometimes referred to in England as a pie or savory cake.

The following is our family favorite:

Timballo and Serrano Ham

(serves 6)

1 box of your favorite pasta (we use homemade)

1 pound of your favorite meatballs

Sauce

¼ pound Satori’s Balsamic BellaVitano  (flake or crumble some and grate remaining)

1 pound sliced Serrano Ham

 

Directions

If you are making this totally from scratch start with your sauce, then your pasta so it can be drying while you make the meatballs.

Once everything is assembled pre-cook the pasta to al dente.

Line the bottom and sides of a large casserole dish with the Serrano Ham, mix the sauce, pasta and the crumbled half of the BellaVitano together and pour ½ into casserole dish on top of ham. Add a layer of meat balls and more sauce, cover with remaining pasta. Pack it down and fold ham over top.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes.

Serve by  tipping upside down onto a platter, top with sauce and meatballs and grated BellaVitano Cheese.

OH MY GOD and we mean it Mac and Cheese

MY OH GOD Mac and Cheese

Ingredients

3-1/2 cups large elbow macaroni

10 oz. Velveeta cheese, cut into 1″ squares

10 oz. Bouche Amish cheddar cheese, cut into 1″ squares

15 oz. Gruyere cheese, shredded

1 cup Asiago cheese shredded

1 cup  Bellavitano with Balsamic vinegar shredded

4 oz. cream cheese, at room temp.

1/2 cup sour cream

1 cup heavy cream

1 cup half-and-half

2 eggs

2-2/3 Tbsp. flour

1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

1 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. onion powder

1 tsp. dry mustard powder

1/8-1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

1 tsp. kosher salt

Pinch paprika

1 Tbsp. fresh chives, for garnish

 Cooking Directions

Breathe Deep and Smile your family is going to love you!  You’re about to prepare the best mac and cheese ever!

Grease a 13″ x 9″ nonstick metal baking pan with 1 Tbsp. butter. Preheat oven to 350. Prepare macaroni according to the package directions, but make sure it’s al dente. (It should be firm.) Be sure to add a pinch of salt and a dash of olive oil to the boiling water while cooking. Drain pasta well and pour into the baking pan.

In a large mixing bowl, add the heavy cream, half-and-half, and sour cream; break the cream cheese into little bits with your fingers as you add it to the bowl. Add the egg, flour, Worcestershire sauce, garlic and onion powders, dry mustard, cayenne pepper; combine very well with a mixer to break up that cream cheese. It will look lumpy, but that’s okay.

Starting at the corners of the pasta dish, place and push down the Velveeta and the Bouche cheddar cubes. Work your way around and toward the middle (they won’t push down completely, but just smooch them down a bit).

Now sprinkle the Gruyere cheese evenly over the top. Gently and evenly pour that non-fat, low calorie artery-clogging (grin from ear to ear) mixture on it, covering all areas. Gently shake the pan afterwards for a sec to make sure the liquid is even in the pan.  Make little holes into areas of the mixture with your fingers. (You’re just getting some of that Gruyere down deeper below the surface.)

Sprinkle the Asiago and Bellavitano combo over the mixture and sprinkle the paprika on top. Put this piece of heaven in the oven (make sure your oven rack is right in the middle) and bake until brown and bubbly — approximately 30 minutes.

It will be creamy in the center and crustier on the top and edges. Chop some fresh chives and get those taste buds ready. When it’s done, garnish with the chives. Try not to eat part of the crusty top before you serve it, I know it’s hard so Breathe deep and try hard.

This is your ticket to a happy family.

To change it up a little sprinkle 3 oz. of finely chopped Serrano Ham on the very top just after the Asiago and Bellavitano. 

RASCHERA STUFFED BABY BELLA’S

By Chef Lippe

Raschera Cheese

In fresher cheeses, the odor is fine and delicate, becoming more persistent in aged cheese. The taste is mainly sweet, nutty, fine and delicate but slightly spicy, very savory and mainly salty in ripened products.

The flavor of Raschera also changes from season to season. Spring and summer cheeses are sweet, fresh and slightly tart. Winter cheeses are more solid and vibrant. This is because spring milk is lighter and more herbal, as the Piedmonts cows are grazing outdoors, while winter milk has a taste of hay and is a bit heavier.

Excellent table cheese served well with sweet wines and young, light bodied reds preferably from the same region for a young cheese, or a more mature wine for the mountain version or a more mature cheese

RASCHERA STUFFED BABY BELLA’S

1 pound fresh baby portabella mushrooms
8oz Serrano ham, diced or finely shredded
½ cup onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups arugula chopped 
½ cup vegetable stock
½ cup Raschera, rind removed and shredded 
½ cup white (or more vegetable stock) 
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Black pepper (to taste) 

 

Directions: 
Clean mushrooms and remove the stem from the cap. Reserve the caps, but chop the stems to add to the stuffing mixture. Preheat oven to 350 F.

Sautee onion in olive oil until opaque, about 2-3 min. Add arugula and still until wilted, about another minute. Add garlic and mushroom stems and cook for an additional 2-3 min. Add Serrano ham and grind in a small amount of black pepper.

Pour stock into sauté pan and bring to a simmer. Simmer until liquid reduces by half. Taste the vegetable stuffing to see if it needs more salt. The Serrano may be salty enough for the entire dish, so do not add salt until this point. After adjusting the salt and pepper seasoning, add Raschera cheese and mix well.

Stuff the mushroom caps, mounding up to generously fill each cap. Cover dish and bake 20-30 min until mushrooms pierce easily with a fork. Remove the lid once done cooking, then sprinkle shredded Raschera over mushrooms. Garnish with chopped parsley or a few sprigs of thyme. 

Day 3 of Blue Cheese weekend – Amish Blue Cheese

Day 3 Amish Blue Cheese

The Amish have been making cheese the same way for hundreds of years. The animals are hand milked twice a day, grass feed, are sustainably raised. The cheeses are farmer-certified rBGH free.  Because of the wonderful care given the these animals the cheese is rich in calcium, contains no preservatives or chemical additives.

We will have Amish blue cheese made from cows, sheep and goats. This cheese is great served with wine and crackers, as a dessert with fresh fruit or in dips and pasta.  Our friends at Farris Farms have some WONDERFUL  grass fed steaks that the blue cheese will taste great on. Make sure to wear BLUE for your discount this weekend.

 We have paired it with the following: Stout, Sherry, Scotch, Sauternes,  Porter, Port, and late harvest Riesling.

Serrano-Wrapped Figs

Ingredients

18 fresh figs, cut in half

1 cup Amish Blue cheese, softened

18 slices Serrano ham, cut 1/16” thick by 2” wide

1-1/2 cup arugula leaves

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

Juice of 1 lemon

1/2 cup slivered almonds, toasted

 

Directions

Preheat oven to 500° F. Scoop a small amount out of the center of each fig half and fill each half equally with the Amish Blue cheese. Put the halves back together and wrap each fig with Serrano. Bake until the Serrano begins to crisp, about 4 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside.

Whisk together the lemon juice and olive oil and toss with the arugula. Place three warm figs on each plate. Place 1/4 cup of arugula in the center. Sprinkle with the almonds and serve

Day 2 of our Blue Cheese Weekend Specials – Danish Blue

Danish Blue Cheese

By Chef Lippe

Danish Blue (also known as Danablu) is a strong, blue veined cheese. This semi-soft creamery cheese is typically drum or block shaped and has a white to yellowish, slightly moist, edible rind. Made from cow’s milk, it has a fat content of 25–30% (50–60% in dry matter) and is aged for eight to twelve weeks.

Before ageing, copper wires or rods are used to pierce the formed  curds to distribute the mold (Penicillium roqueforti) evenly through the cheese. The holes can still be seen when the finished wheel is cut open.

Danish Blue was invented early in the 20th century by a Danish cheese maker named Marius Boel with the intention of emulating a Roquefort style cheese. Danish Blue has a milder flavor characterized by a sharp, salty taste.

Danish Blue is often served crumbled on salads or as a dessert cheese with fruit. In Denmark, it is often served on bread or biscuits.

Danish Blue and Esrom are the only two Danish cheeses that are PGI marked by the EU, meaning that they may only be produced in Denmark from Danish milk and at approved dairies that produce the cheeses according to the specifications laid down.

Wine to Pair with Danish Blue

Cabernet Sauvignon, often referred to as the “King of Red Wine Grapes,” originally from Bordeaux, with a substantial foothold in California’s wine races, has the privilege of being the world’s most sought after red wine. Cabernet Sauvignon grapes tend to favor warmer climates and are often an ideal wine for aging, with 5-10 years being optimal for the maturation process to peak. Because Cabs take a bit longer to reach maturation, allowing their flavors to mellow, they are ideal candidates for blending with other grapes, primarily Merlot. This blending softens the Cabernet, adding appealing fruit tones, without sacrificing its innate character.

Baked figs with Danish blue cheese & Prosciutto

Black or green figs Danish blue cheese with Serrano ham.

Slice the figs in half, make a small indent with the back of a teaspoon then place a small amount of blue cheese (marble size) and top with a piece of prosciutto. Arrange on a baking tray and roast in a hot oven, about 425F/200C for 8-10 minutes, but keep an eye on them! You want the prosciutto to be browning and the cheese and fig to melt together nicely, you don’t want them to over bake so they end up a jammy mess on the bottom of the tray (we’ve both been there – still delicious though!). Let them cool down slightly so your guests don’t burn their mouths and then watch them disappear in an instant.

Remember to wear blue to market for your discount!