I know, it’s been a while between drinks and cheeses. I can give you many reasons including illness, hysteria and related dramas. But essentially a gal needed a break from the dairy overload. I will admit, I have been cheating on cheese with Asian flavors. But here I am, I am back with a vengeance. Last week I judged my outfit far too cute for just the office, so I rounded up some usual suspects for a wine and cheesefest at Opal by Gordon Ramsay at St Regis Doha. Meeting friends for the Thursday download and judgement session at the bar, Chef Elias whipped up this special pizza which featured…
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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…
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Daylight Robiola – An Italian Christmas Affair
Technically, I should have done a Christmas post. But that would be cliched. However this post come to you courtesy of my not-so-traditional Christmas dinner at Grand Hyatt Muscat. Christmas in the Middle east can be a complicated business. It’s a work day for most people and many of us are away from our loved ones (expat orphans). So we all usually opt for a hotel catered event. This year, at the urging of GF, we took the road less traveled, leaving the extensive buffet to the families and taking an Italian adventure at Tuscany Restaurant. The feast included ravioli stuffed with fois gras, braised beef cheeks, plates of cured…
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A Pizza the (Italian) Action – Restaurant Review of La Spiga at W Doha
Given this review is based on a dinner with friends, I could start with a tired old reference to Sex and the City/Bridget Jones, perhaps some handbag innuendo and talk about frivolous gossip etc etc. But as a writer I’m not that lazy. Even if there was a “Mr Big” (or Mr. Very Small in this case), some quite attractive men and a sports celebrity at the next tables during this review. The fact is, this was a simple and fabulous dinner with friends. More Dorothy Parker than Wannabe Carrie. Anyone who has seen Sex and the City 2 in all its’ cliched and consumerist fancy will understand my aversion…
- American Cheese, Blue Cheese, brie, British, Cheddar, Cheese, Cyprus, European Cheese, Feta, Food, France, Goat Cheese, Gouda, Greece, Italy, Ricotta, Sheep Milk, Swiss, Travel, Unusual Cheeses, Washed Rind, White Cheese
Honor Roll – Huff Post Lists Best Cheeses
Every day I say a small prayer to a higher power for not being born lactose intolerant. I mean, it would have been difficult to do this blog in the first place. More importantly, what would I talk about at parties? I get asked a lot what I think the best cheese in the world is. The beauty is, there are thousands. The Huffington Post has a similar view to me, in that there is no such thing as a bad cheese. but they have also compiled a list of the 20 best cheeses (in their humble opinion). I agree with all the listed ones, maybe not the order. Check…
- American Cheese, Blue Cheese, Cheese, European Cheese, France, French, Italy, Sheep Milk, Travel, Unusual Cheeses, White Cheese
Wheel of Cheese Fortune
The thing I love about having a blog dedicated to one topic, rather than random musings (I have Facebook and Twitter for that), is that my friends near and far collect the most amazing stuff for me. This comes in the form of websites, newspaper stories and infographics like this one which came from the lovely Sarah Rabbani (who I want to be when I grow up) That’s a chart of 66 of the world’s favorite cheeses and yes, I have already pre-ordered one for the bedroom. For more information check out Pop Chart Lab or here at our friends Buzzfeed Food
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Romano Wasn’t Built in a Day
I was looking forward to a quiet evening in with a bootleg copy of Behind the Candelabra and a cheeky glass of Malbec. Hopes were ashed by a friend, who upon hearing of said glittering bootleg, invited themselves over. Not one to order in, I decided to kill two well dressed birds with one stone and use the hunk of Romano I had in the fridge. Now combining seafood with cheese is controversial. Once in a restaurant in Sydney which shall remain nameless, the waiter refused to give me parmesan for my seafood linguine as “That’s NOT right”. Well, my taste buds maybe wired differently. I had planned a simple…
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Fontina of Youth
There are few things in the culinary world that can’t be improved with a little slice of truffle. Yes, even cheese can benefit from this earthy delight. I did think for a while there that truffle – be it oil, the actually item itself or its essence – may have jumped the culinary shark a while ago. You couldn’t even buy icecream without finding a dash of truffle added. But after a self imposed truffle exile, I have come back to the fray. Thanks mainly to the unlikely combination of fontina cheese, pizza dough and black truffle. This piece of culinary crossover comes from the kitchen of Market by Jean…
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In Queso Emergency…Send Cheese
How can you not like Spain? Its economic prospects are in the toilet, yet they still live, eat and love like nothing is wrong. The Four Seasons Doha recently held a Spanish and Portugese Wine and Food Fair, showcasing the best of the Iberian Peninsula. The evening was more of a fair and included samples from selected winemakers from the region, plus tapas as well as cheese offerings. The cheese on offer was more of a tour of Europe. Of course there was the Spanish national icon – Manchego. On a visit to Madrid last year, I believe I ate this at every meal. For five days. made in the…
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The Big Cheese – Italy Arrests Mozzarella King
Apparently it sometimes doesn’t pay to be the “Big Cheese” as Italy’s “Mozzarella King” recently found out. Police in Italy on Tuesday arrested the head of the country’s biggest buffalo mozzarella cheese maker and seized assets worth 100 million euros ($US123 million) on suspicion of links to organized crime. Giuseppe Mandara, who once called himself the “Armani of Mozzarella” in an interview, is thought to have been linked to a Naples mafia clan. So much for blessed are the cheesemakers… Big cheese: Italy cops arrest mozzarella king over mafia links