• 12 cheeses of christmas,  Accompaniments,  Aged Cheese,  Artisan Cheese,  blogging,  Blue Cheese,  brie,  British,  British cheese,  Cheddar,  Cheese,  Food,  food festival

    How to Make the Perfect Festive Cheese Plate

    In my view, whatever the question, the answer is ALWAYS cheese. And, as the weather cools and the year draws to an end, ’tis the season to be…eating as much cheese as possible. Whether it’s catering to a big crowd of friends and family, or settling in to watch Netflix on a weekend, or just because,  cheese is the ideal entertainer. I know, I’m biased. But frankly, it can be the perfect end to a dinner party, or served as a spread at any party But it’s not always easy to choose the right cheeses. So I’ve joined with Lulu Qatar and Chocolate Fish Parties to show you how easy it is to creative…

  • British cheese,  Cheddar,  Cheese,  Travel,  Wales

    Sharp Relief – Snowdonia’s Little Black Bomber

    I’ve blogged before about the lengths my friends will go to in search of new cheeses for me. My friend Rachel (yes, we have thought about forming a girl band called The Rachels) found this beauty at Waitrose on a recent trip to Dubai. Hailing from Wales,  The Snowdonia Cheese Company has been making contemporary cheese and more traditional types for several years now. This cheese is perhaps their most popular. They market it as a “cheddar with attitude” and that is very accurate. So sharp it could cut itself, it has what I call a “drawback factor”. That is “ooooooof that’s sharp”. It’s made from pasteurized cow’s milk with non…

  • Artisan Cheese,  British,  British cheese,  Celebrity Chefs,  Cheddar,  Cheese,  Cheese in Cooking,  European Cheese,  Food,  Food Trends,  French

    Cheese Release Me

    Listen, I am not talking myself up, but I have always been ahead of the curve on many things. I just can’t think of most of them now…but here is some recent proof of my sage-like abilities. Cheese, it seems, is the next big food trend of 2014. Roquefort doughnuts, Stilton truffles and goat’s cheese ganache: Chocolate and cheese set to be 2014s next big foodie trend It must be true, it’s in The Daily Mail. And on this blog.

  • Artisan Cheese,  British cheese,  Cheddar,  Cheese,  European Cheese,  Food,  Italian,  Travel,  wine

    Making the World a Cheddar Place

    They say that familiarity breeds contempt. This is perhaps why I always forget about cheddar as a legitimate contender in my own pantheon of great cheeses. I mean, it’s one of the first cheeses we come across in our lives. I remember cheddar cheese sandwiches on white bread as a child and learning to smother them in mustard. I also remember Saturday lunches, when after doing the shopping, Mum would fill the dining table with cold meats from the local deli, freshly slices tomatoes and of course, slices of cheddar. We would then make our own sandwiches on fluffy white rolls. I came across this cheddar Jones the Grocer, and…

  • British,  British cheese,  Cheddar,  Cheese,  Comte,  European Cheese,  events,  Food,  France,  French,  Media,  Middle East,  Restaurant Reviews,  Travel,  wine

    Fromage to Eternity

    As we slide (or stagger) into the business end of the year, I find myself looking for distractions. So when I got a message via the Twitter that went something along the lines of “We have a new menu Market at W Doha, there are 20 new items. There is lots of cheese”, I declare a “Distraction Action” and head westwards. And the Twitter doesn’t lie. The new menu has cheese. Lots of it. And other amazing things as well. Starting with these balls of deliciousness. Cheddar chilli fritters. Give me cheddar and add some green chilis then deep fry it? Yes please. This is what I like about cheddar,…

  • British cheese,  Cheese,  Food,  Travel,  Unusual Cheeses

    Up Hill and Down Wensleydale

    So this week just past I turned 42. Apparently 42 is not just the number after 41. It has “pop culture” significance. It is the angle of degrees at which a rainbow appears. The three best-selling music albums – Michael Jackson’s Thriller, AC/DC’s Back in Black and Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side of the Moon – last 42 minutes. Titanic was traveling at a speed equivalent to 42km/hour when it collided with an iceberg. The world’s first book printed with movable type is the Gutenberg Bible which has 42 lines per page. On page 42 of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, Harry discovers he’s a wizard. And of course….In…