Saturday, January 30, 2010

Chocolate and Cheese?

No, I am not talking about the Ween album, but it is a good one.
If you have ever enjoyed a Chocolate cheesecake then you have experienced the flavor combination of chocolate combined with cheese. Many chocolatiers have began to add brie or blue cheese to their truffles and some offer chocolate cheese fudge. A Chocolate cheese called Chesdale has even gained popularity in Taiwan of all places.

Why Chocolate & Cheese? Both share the commonality of milk and richness. I enjoy both with some salt and love the combination of sweet and savory. Not every cheese will pair well with every chocolate but it is fun to play and experiment. This Valentine’s Day you could pick out a few chunks of cheese and a selection of chocolates and see what tastes good to your palate. Some recommendations I have found are Pierre Robert with raspberry or prosecco ganache and salt caramels with Valdeon and Mahon. You can have your chocolate and cheese separate or combined.

I have also enjoyed a smoked gouda and nutella sandwich but it has been awhile. A few of my favorite chocolate and cheese combinations are Capri Chocolate goat log which is a chocolate chevre that is excellent for making cheesecake, a heart shaped chocolate goat cheese with bourbon soaked raisins and walnuts, and Cocoa Cardona. Let us explore Cocoa Cardona.

Cocoa Cardona is a semi-firm goat’s milk cheese made by Carr Valley in Wisconsin. The rind is rubbed with cocoa powder to infuse the creamy cheese with a subtle chocolate flavor which is balanced by the sharpness of the cheese. This cheese took 1st place at the 2004 and 2nd place at the 2006 American Cheese Society Competition. Carr Valley’s head cheesemaker, Sid Cook is one of the few certified Master Cheesemakers in the United States.

If you want to enhance the chocolate flavor, you can drizzle this cheese with chocolate syrup or honey. This cheese is like a chocolate goat cheese truffle, a rich indulgence! This cheese will pair well with Syrah, Merlot, Gewurtraminer, Riesling, Chardonnay, and Sauvignon Blanc. I have adapted the following recipe for those adventurous enough to try this at home.

http://www.extremechocolate.com/the-harsh-reality-of-chocolate-cheese.html

Chocolate cheese fudge

Ingredients
1/2 pound of Cocoa Cardona, shredded
2 16-ounce boxes of fine confectioners’ sugar
1 cup of butter
1/2 cup of cocoa powder
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1 cup of chopped nuts (pecans and walnuts work best)
Instructions
1. Spray a 9×12 pan with non-stick coating.
2. Melt the cheese and butter together in a large saucepan on medium heat, stirring constantly.
3. Remove the mixture from the heat, mix in the nuts and vanilla extract, and set it aside.
4. Mix the cocoa and sugar together in a large bowl.
5. Fold in the cheese/butter mixture.
6. Press the resulting stiff concoction into the prepared pan by hand.
7. Pat the surface of the candy with a paper towel to reduce the amount of excess oil.
8. Put the candy into the refrigerator until it’s firm.
9. Cut it into squares.
10. Chow down on the home-baked chocolate cheese goodness — if you’re extreme enough.

3 comments:

  1. That looked delicious to me but I tried it and... it did not taste melded at all. It just tasted like both. I think maybe what could taste better is adding a second sweet component that would meld well with both brie and chocolate -- the first thing that comes to mind is pears, which are delicious with both and which have a nice sweetness without being cloying. Maybe sliced pears and a gentle sprinkling of really good dark chocolate. I think when baked in the pastry this could be really nice.

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  2. That sounds good, have fun and play with your food. You might enjoy a Nutella and Smoked Gouda grilled cheese
    http://charlottescheesedreams.blogspot.com/2010/11/cheesecipe.html
    Thanks for the comment!

    ReplyDelete
  3. That sounds good, experiment and try different combinations. I think it would be great with berries. You might enjoy a Nutella and Smoked Gouda Grilled cheese.
    http://charlottescheesedreams.blogspot.com/2010/11/cheesecipe.html
    Thanks for the comment!

    ReplyDelete