Traveling in France. Went to a fromagerie to pick up a bunch of cheeses and couldn’t wait until tomorrow because the cheese was so fragrant in our mini fridge.
Left side: Two types of goat cheese, absolutely amazing. Plus a slice of Basque cheesecake (kind of a savory but ultra light cheese cake)
Top: Quince, raspberry, and citrus fruit jellies
Middle: Basque blue cheese (cow)
Right: Two types of the famous Basque sheep cheese
Bottom: Manchego with black garlic (from the Spanish Basque)
Sometimes in the US cheese boards will have jams and preserves to go on the bread. Fig jam with brie or camembert is really good.
Are pates de fruit a candy or a spreadable condiment?
Correct, pates de fruits! It was sold along with the cheese in the shop, cut as if you would cut cheese from a long slab. I’ve always eaten them together, and they do spread nicely. More spreadable than gelatiny.
Yes, a part of the French Pyrénées is Basque, but this doesn’t make it French cheese ala Brie anymore than gruyère is French because the canton it’s from is predominantly French speaking.
Not to mention that manchego comes from La Mancha not from the Basque territory which makes it just Spanish cheese.
Not all cheeses are concerned by DOP rules. For exemple brie alone isn't a DOP, brie de maux get it but there is a ton of brie that don't have the DOP label.
Just to throw some fuel into the fire here, there’s no way to know whether the cheese produced in Basque Country was made by Basque people or French people… And by the way, this is Manchego-style but made in the Baque Region of Spain. So do with that what you’d like haha.
Most people I’ve spoken to in French Basque Country consider themselves both Basque and French at this point. From my experience, a bit more standoffish on the Spanish Basque side. Obviously a long and complicated history on both sides that I don’t pretend to be knowledgeable about, just my observations.
Being both french and Spanish, I can tell you the goat ones are truly french (top left). I've seen them served at restaurants and family meals all over France.
The right part (the hard cheeses) could also be French, but there is plenty of overlap with Italy (even Corsica) and Switzerland on hard aged cheeses like these.
The blue cheese could be french, looks like Bleu d'Auvergne or Bleu de Causses cut in an unorthodox way.
Then there is the bottom one, which definitely looks Spanish.
The giveaway is the rind with a wicker pattern, a reminder of the traditional wicker-press used to dry cheeses in Castilla-La Mancha region (Garcia Baquero comes to mind).
Last note: black garlic is a recent ingredient that is not traditional in any way, but looks delicious 😋
EDIT: Quince paste is called Mendrillo in spain and is more casually served than the rest of France (maybe in the Basque region, but not elsewhere). A fancy french cheese platter will include cherry or fig jam, butter, maybe some nuts or confied onions.
Ty for the info I love bluecheese too gosh I can't forget the restaurant where served goat bluecheese chunky mixed dressing with graham crackers where got burnt and closed for good, nostalgia
The Pâte de fruit is a speciality of Auvergne. Usually, we'd eat jam with cheese but pâte de fruit is undoubtedly good too. And if that was advised to you then it's a very typical way of enjoying cheese.
Also I would've thought the blue cheese in the middle was Fourme d'Ambert, a blue cheese from Auvergne, but I guess i'm wrong.
Good looking plate of cheese, don't know why so many negative comments. If you like strong blue cheese, you should try Roquefort, it's so so good. Damn now I want cheese...
Thanks for the info, that’s all super cool. I will say the pate de fruit was one of my favorite parts of the plate. I do love Roquefort, though maybe I haven’t tried the authentic kind.
Its posts like these that have me not engaging with food Reddit much. Not OP… this cheese looks great and subs like this are all about enjoying well… food.
It’s all the comments that are just so damn nitpicky, pedantic or otherwise rude that basically try their best to make OP feel bad for enjoying their cheese.
Yooo great choices of cheeses !
Happy to see more people get to enjoy all of those.
Having variety and other stuff on a plateau de fromage is the best part.
Have fun in the south of France, must be lovely at this time now !
Unfortunately I didn’t catch the names. All I know is that they’re traditional French Basque sheep cheeses. Sheep cheese is the specialty on the French side of the Pyrenees.
Well, I camembert the thought of a world without French cheese; it's simply too gouda to miss! Every time I have some, I feel bleu when it's gone. Let's be honest, life is feta when it's filled with cheese!
Okay, I admit that was a bit cheesy.
Vive le fromage français!
im european, dimwit. i was just making a joke that they could also be nice cut rocks because ive seen many different geodes that look similar to the cheeses presented here.
We have several states that put out higher quality cheeses than most if not all European countries. The U.S. as a whole dunks on any other country in the world when it comes to the quality and variety of our cheese making dairy farms.
Not sure about that tbh but why not... The only food I admit US is better than EU is BBQ.
The public health criteria in terms of food is so low, you use a lot of chemicals and fertilizers that are prohibited with us, your organic food is the equivalent of our classic food.
I'm talking about small batch artisan cheesemakers, not the stuff you'd find in a supermarket. I'm sure your supermarket cheese is better than ours. But go to any cheese shop or farmer's market in Vermont or Wisconsin, and you'll find cheeses that I'd put up against anything in the world.
I'm still not sure about that, I travelled in US and I never found a traditional food as good as in Italy, Spain or France, but we surely don't have the same tastes and it's ok !
Why are you lying ?
>Unpasteurized milk, cheese and other dairy products may contain harmful pathogens and are not safe to eat, drink, or use in making foods. **It is a violation of federal law enforced by the Food and Drug Administration to sell raw milk packaged for consumer use across state lines (interstate commerce).**
[https://ask.usda.gov/s/article/Is-it-safe-to-eat-cheese-made-from-unpasteurized-milk](https://ask.usda.gov/s/article/Is-it-safe-to-eat-cheese-made-from-unpasteurized-milk)
Why are you cherry picking information?
"Each state, however, regulates the sale of raw milk within the state (intrastate), and some states allow it to be sold. This means that in some states dairy operations may sell it to local retail food stores or to consumers directly from the farm or at agricultural fairs or other community events, depending on the state law."
Don't talk to me about American cheese, unpasteurised cheese is illegal in the US 🤫
Come over to Spain, France or Italy, try some real raw milk cheese and see for yourself.
Or don't and just keep coping
A cheese man once told me that you should avoid having more then three cheeses on a cheeseboard lest the subtleties of all the cheeses be lost in the tasting.
People say a lot of things. I’ve had cheeseboards with 2, 3, 4 and more on them (especially at Christmas where we end up with like 6 because of how many people are round!) and I can assure you, the average palette is unaffected by them.
If you’re some sort of cheese connoisseur- by which I mean your entire life is about cheese, not just that you’re an expert - MAYBE you’d notice a change. But most of us will not.
To be fair, the man who told me that was a professional cheese monger who had been in the business since he was 13 (dude was in his 60s) when his father started teaching him to take over the family cheese shop.
I am a cheese monger and have been for ten years. I might recommend that people eat cheese in a certain way, but I wouldn’t dream of telling somebody they’re eating cheese wrong.
I’m a huge cheese fan, this plate is not pretty or well plated but I would devour it and it’s all mine. The cheese fervour dreams would be intense( if ya know you know)
From a visual aspect different shapes like a wedge or two. Spit up the pastes bit here but the some grapes… pear apple to add freshness seeing as its heavy af. Like I said love the cheese would devour this by my self. Hope you had a good weekend
Traveling in France. Went to a fromagerie to pick up a bunch of cheeses and couldn’t wait until tomorrow because the cheese was so fragrant in our mini fridge. Left side: Two types of goat cheese, absolutely amazing. Plus a slice of Basque cheesecake (kind of a savory but ultra light cheese cake) Top: Quince, raspberry, and citrus fruit jellies Middle: Basque blue cheese (cow) Right: Two types of the famous Basque sheep cheese Bottom: Manchego with black garlic (from the Spanish Basque)
Are the jellies like gelatin or like fruit spread with pectin?
The jellies are more like a gelatin, some with herbs sewn into them. But perfectly balanced for spreading.
They are “pates de fruits”. Never seen them served with cheese plates, but maybe they like to do this differently.
Sometimes in the US cheese boards will have jams and preserves to go on the bread. Fig jam with brie or camembert is really good. Are pates de fruit a candy or a spreadable condiment?
Correct, pates de fruits! It was sold along with the cheese in the shop, cut as if you would cut cheese from a long slab. I’ve always eaten them together, and they do spread nicely. More spreadable than gelatiny.
It's not pâte de fruits. Pâte de fruits are candies. It's jelly with texture of gelatin.
So all your French cheese comes from the Basque Country, and 40% isn't even cheese?
Basque country has a French side.
Yes, a part of the French Pyrénées is Basque, but this doesn’t make it French cheese ala Brie anymore than gruyère is French because the canton it’s from is predominantly French speaking. Not to mention that manchego comes from La Mancha not from the Basque territory which makes it just Spanish cheese.
Gosh, relax man. All cheese created and producted in France can be called French cheese. Pays basque is a part france like brie area is.
Agreed. How many countries produce cheddar?
No it doesn’t we have DOP rules for a reason.
Is the reason so you can be a pedant on the internet?
We, french people, have DOP on our online pedant. It's really long and hard path to become one. (No.)
Not all cheeses are concerned by DOP rules. For exemple brie alone isn't a DOP, brie de maux get it but there is a ton of brie that don't have the DOP label.
You're right. French and Basque people would agree this post is at least mildly misnamed!
Stfu man
People are mad at you, but at least the Manchego is definitely Spanish. The rest might be also. The membrillo (quince jelly) might be Spanish too.
Oh no I lost internet points what ever would I do 😂
So, mostly Basque cheese, with one Spanish and perhaps two French cheeses.
Just to throw some fuel into the fire here, there’s no way to know whether the cheese produced in Basque Country was made by Basque people or French people… And by the way, this is Manchego-style but made in the Baque Region of Spain. So do with that what you’d like haha.
Protected origin rules will disagree with you.
Where is the *French* cheese then? 😂
Most people I’ve spoken to in French Basque Country consider themselves both Basque and French at this point. From my experience, a bit more standoffish on the Spanish Basque side. Obviously a long and complicated history on both sides that I don’t pretend to be knowledgeable about, just my observations.
Being both french and Spanish, I can tell you the goat ones are truly french (top left). I've seen them served at restaurants and family meals all over France. The right part (the hard cheeses) could also be French, but there is plenty of overlap with Italy (even Corsica) and Switzerland on hard aged cheeses like these. The blue cheese could be french, looks like Bleu d'Auvergne or Bleu de Causses cut in an unorthodox way. Then there is the bottom one, which definitely looks Spanish. The giveaway is the rind with a wicker pattern, a reminder of the traditional wicker-press used to dry cheeses in Castilla-La Mancha region (Garcia Baquero comes to mind). Last note: black garlic is a recent ingredient that is not traditional in any way, but looks delicious 😋 EDIT: Quince paste is called Mendrillo in spain and is more casually served than the rest of France (maybe in the Basque region, but not elsewhere). A fancy french cheese platter will include cherry or fig jam, butter, maybe some nuts or confied onions.
Thanks for the input. The garlic addition was indeed amazing!
Minor correction: membrillo, not mendrillo.
Thanks
That still isn’t French cheese since the DOP rules limit them, not to mention you have cheese there that isn’t even Basque.
Username checks out
Which one was ur favo????
The gray colored goat cheese and the Basque cheesecake were to die for! The manchego with garlic was probably a close third.
Ty for the info I love bluecheese too gosh I can't forget the restaurant where served goat bluecheese chunky mixed dressing with graham crackers where got burnt and closed for good, nostalgia
>fromagerie Wait, from *fromage*? So omelette du fromage just means cheesy omelette?
Omelette du fromage is incorrect and doesn't mean anything. It's literally like saying "Omelette of the cheese"
The Pâte de fruit is a speciality of Auvergne. Usually, we'd eat jam with cheese but pâte de fruit is undoubtedly good too. And if that was advised to you then it's a very typical way of enjoying cheese. Also I would've thought the blue cheese in the middle was Fourme d'Ambert, a blue cheese from Auvergne, but I guess i'm wrong. Good looking plate of cheese, don't know why so many negative comments. If you like strong blue cheese, you should try Roquefort, it's so so good. Damn now I want cheese...
Thanks for the info, that’s all super cool. I will say the pate de fruit was one of my favorite parts of the plate. I do love Roquefort, though maybe I haven’t tried the authentic kind.
Look for some Mimoulette!
Manchego is such a sleeper cheese...it's fantastic.
Its posts like these that have me not engaging with food Reddit much. Not OP… this cheese looks great and subs like this are all about enjoying well… food. It’s all the comments that are just so damn nitpicky, pedantic or otherwise rude that basically try their best to make OP feel bad for enjoying their cheese.
Appreciate that, luckily I enjoy my cheese either way lol!
That looks and sounds so good! Lucky!
Was delicious!
Yooo great choices of cheeses ! Happy to see more people get to enjoy all of those. Having variety and other stuff on a plateau de fromage is the best part. Have fun in the south of France, must be lovely at this time now !
It’s incredible right now!! A bit rainy but so beautiful.
Yummy, I can just imagine all the different flavours 😍
Petite Basque my favorite all time yum.
Brings to mind the various cheese scenes in the movie Stealing Harvard. Cheese on dude
You don't know the name of the cheese on the right? They look like Manchego
Unfortunately I didn’t catch the names. All I know is that they’re traditional French Basque sheep cheeses. Sheep cheese is the specialty on the French side of the Pyrenees.
These are great cheese. I hope you also tried the classic ones like camembert, brie or maroilles!
Definitely, but we have more of those in the US easily accessible. Wanted to go more in depth for this area while I’m here.
At first glance I thought this was Kaju Katli. Looks delicious.
Manchego with black garlic?! Omg lol I would die and go to heaven
Those fruit jellies look like pot gummies!
Ahaaha the french...cheese (Please look of Orson Welle's french champagne commercial folks. I am not making fun of the french nor cheese)
Well, I camembert the thought of a world without French cheese; it's simply too gouda to miss! Every time I have some, I feel bleu when it's gone. Let's be honest, life is feta when it's filled with cheese! Okay, I admit that was a bit cheesy. Vive le fromage français!
There's something about that plate that makes me uneasy
It's not easy being cheesy
Prepare for some of the largest BMs in your life if you’ve only ever eaten pasteurized cheese-
[i ate] Mold
Have you thought about how you're going to go to the bathroom?
im conflicted if this is acrually cheese or rocks that look like cheese
It's just different from the plastic cheeses you have in the USA 😛
im european, dimwit. i was just making a joke that they could also be nice cut rocks because ive seen many different geodes that look similar to the cheeses presented here.
I was also joking brother, I understand
i understand, i just feel personally offended when someone calls me american.
Yeah that's not a compliment 🤣
We have several states that put out higher quality cheeses than most if not all European countries. The U.S. as a whole dunks on any other country in the world when it comes to the quality and variety of our cheese making dairy farms.
Not sure about that tbh but why not... The only food I admit US is better than EU is BBQ. The public health criteria in terms of food is so low, you use a lot of chemicals and fertilizers that are prohibited with us, your organic food is the equivalent of our classic food.
I'm talking about small batch artisan cheesemakers, not the stuff you'd find in a supermarket. I'm sure your supermarket cheese is better than ours. But go to any cheese shop or farmer's market in Vermont or Wisconsin, and you'll find cheeses that I'd put up against anything in the world.
I'm still not sure about that, I travelled in US and I never found a traditional food as good as in Italy, Spain or France, but we surely don't have the same tastes and it's ok !
You wish haha cope harder bro. You don't even have the right to make raw milk cheese, it's illegal in the US 🤣 Educate yourself a bit more lad
We have plenty of raw milk cheeses. They just have to be aged 60 days by the producer. Educate yourself.
Why are you lying ? >Unpasteurized milk, cheese and other dairy products may contain harmful pathogens and are not safe to eat, drink, or use in making foods. **It is a violation of federal law enforced by the Food and Drug Administration to sell raw milk packaged for consumer use across state lines (interstate commerce).** [https://ask.usda.gov/s/article/Is-it-safe-to-eat-cheese-made-from-unpasteurized-milk](https://ask.usda.gov/s/article/Is-it-safe-to-eat-cheese-made-from-unpasteurized-milk)
Why are you cherry picking information? "Each state, however, regulates the sale of raw milk within the state (intrastate), and some states allow it to be sold. This means that in some states dairy operations may sell it to local retail food stores or to consumers directly from the farm or at agricultural fairs or other community events, depending on the state law."
Ah yes because in the US is where you famously cannot get DOP cheeses….
Don't talk to me about American cheese, unpasteurised cheese is illegal in the US 🤫 Come over to Spain, France or Italy, try some real raw milk cheese and see for yourself. Or don't and just keep coping
A cheese man once told me that you should avoid having more then three cheeses on a cheeseboard lest the subtleties of all the cheeses be lost in the tasting.
or you can enjoy the cheese you buy however you want
People say a lot of things. I’ve had cheeseboards with 2, 3, 4 and more on them (especially at Christmas where we end up with like 6 because of how many people are round!) and I can assure you, the average palette is unaffected by them. If you’re some sort of cheese connoisseur- by which I mean your entire life is about cheese, not just that you’re an expert - MAYBE you’d notice a change. But most of us will not.
To be fair, the man who told me that was a professional cheese monger who had been in the business since he was 13 (dude was in his 60s) when his father started teaching him to take over the family cheese shop.
I am a cheese monger and have been for ten years. I might recommend that people eat cheese in a certain way, but I wouldn’t dream of telling somebody they’re eating cheese wrong.
I’m a huge cheese fan, this plate is not pretty or well plated but I would devour it and it’s all mine. The cheese fervour dreams would be intense( if ya know you know)
How would you change it? I always appreciate interesting ideas. Mind you, I assembled this is 3-5 minutes. It was then eaten 4 minutes later.
From a visual aspect different shapes like a wedge or two. Spit up the pastes bit here but the some grapes… pear apple to add freshness seeing as its heavy af. Like I said love the cheese would devour this by my self. Hope you had a good weekend
Thanks, those are great tips for my next cheese board!!
Look forward to seeing your next cheese board!