In the scheme of things, last week was pretty draining. And I’m not talking about #whitegirlproblems, although I did learn my hairdresser is closing down. But that’s another story. Come Friday, all I wanted to do was curl up on the couch with a glass of red wine and Netflix. But my friend Alicia had other plans. She rounded up the homies for some mac and cheese and a viewing of the magnificently awful Sharknado. Margaritas, stretchy pants and a wooden Tara Reid. How can I resist? Alicia made her mac and cheese using a recipe gleaned from her friend’s blog Kitchen Thymes which involved using odds and ends of…
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Cheesed Off
According to this piece from the venerable Daily Mail, it seems that the English are opting for more exotic and cheaper foreign varieties. A strategy that can be adopted in life and love too I guess! Cheddar cheese sales crumbling
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Fast Food Notion
In spite of my complaints, my life is pretty good at the moment. I live in an interesting place, I have a great circle of friends, I have the job of my dreams and as for my love life, well my mum reads this blog. Enough said. So why I felt compelled to plunge head first into the vortex of self loathing as I did yesterday, is beyond my comprehension. You see, McDonalds, in its pursuit of ruining all is great in the world, has turned its attention to cheese. Not just any cheese, Camembert. Behold my dear readers, the Camembert Bite (also known as the Cheesy Dipper). Five small…
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Grapes and Cheese Night
Thanks to the St Regis Doha for plugging my blog post on their excellent Grapes and Cheese Night which is tonight. If you are in Doha, you can get more info here: Grapes and Cheese at St Regis Doha
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Baguette About It – French Cheese Wrapped in More Than Bread
I don’t know about you, but I love eating things that are wrapped in something else. Be it bread, pastry, cheese or even bacon. It’s like getting two tastes in one bite. Cheese has been wrapped in things besides bread (ahem baguettes) for centuries. At a recent cheese and wine night at Grand Hyatt Doha I came across this beauty – Banon à la feuille, it is an unpasteurized cheese made from goat’s milk. This pungent uncooked, unpressed cheese consists of a fine soft white pâte that is wrapped in chestnut leaves and tied with raffia prior to shipping. It hails from the region around the town of Banon in…
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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,…
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Creating a Munster
So it seems that cheeses can also have an identity crisis. I have previously written about that great American icon Muenster cheese. Little did I know it has a European cousin. Munster-géromé, is a strong tasting, soft cheese made mainly from milk from the Vosges, between Alsace, Lorraine and Franche-Comté in France. A big thanks to my friends at St Regis Doha whose monthly Grapes and Cheese night not only gives me an excuse to catch up with friends, but also fuels my blog. Munster géromé is at its best in the summer and the autumn, when it is made from milk from the haute chaumes (“high stubble”) of pastures…
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My (Goat Cheese) Tart Will Go On
Remember Cher’s character in Mermaids? Where she only fed her kids cocktail snacks for dinner? That is my idea of heaven. I love a cocktail bite, at any time of the day. This could be because of simple maths, small bites don’t have as many calories right? Being of socialite tendencies, I am an expert in the field of food on a stick or in a napkin. And if it can incorporate cheese into that equation, heaven awaits. Ahem. The following morsels were served to me at a recent drinks function at Grand Hyatt Doha The creamy goats cheese tart was literally coin sized and the pastry on the right…
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Basque (ing) in the Glory of Meatza
I’m on a diet. There are undiscovered tribes in Papua New Guinea that know this fact. I have been telling everyone about it. Even the guy who pumped my petrol the other day. “You are very glamorous madam, like a Bollywood star,” he said in response. That guy earned a BIG tip. I’ve already lost just over 5kgs in a couple of weeks thanks to tennis, kickboxing and the most un-relaxing yoga classes I have ever experienced, and being the impatient inner child I am, I want it to go faster. So, I quizzed my friend and diet buddy Brooke (check out her fab blog Babbling in the Desert) about…
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Guest Post – Be My Brebis
And so folks, we have our first ever guest post! And who better to write the inaugural one, than my friend and fellow blogger Nat. Check out Nat’s witty blog Bright Lights, Little City for more musings… Most people have to be dragged kicking and screaming to see their in-laws. But not me; mine are permanent residents in the south of France, which means that every visit is a thinly-disguised excuse to eat, drink…and then eat and drink some more. So when I mentioned to Rachel that I’d be spending a good chunk of my summer holiday with them, she saw the potential for both a guest post, and the…