Cheese board, local wine, a crackling fire and Pandora’s Nature’s Lullaby drifting thru the living room? Yes, you must be ringing in the New Year with the Mackeys! Cheese boards are a fun and easy way to add a bit of flare and elegance to a simple night in. Just choose your favorite cheeses, add some fresh fruit, preserves or jams, olives, Italian cured meats or whatever you like and whala! A fancy charcuterie for two! Happy New Year!
My board included:
Cypress Grove Humboldt Fog Goat Cheese – this is one of my absolute favorite cheeses! It has this incredibly decadent creamline around the edge of the cheese and this fabulous ribbon of vegetable ash in the center. It’s mild, tangy, and just delightfully delicious. The Cypress Grove website recommends serving it with honey but I eat it as is and feel it needs no additional dressing.
St. Clemens Creamy Havarti Caraway Cheese – this cheese was a new try and I really liked it. It would make an amazing grilled cheese sandwich. It had just enough caraway flavor as to not overpower the cheese but still give you a good punch of that familiar rye note.
Cabot Alpine Cheddar – this is one of Amy’s favorites and it is a great tasting cheese. It’s slightly nutty much like Robusto, but with that familiar cheddar texture. It’s kind of addicting though.
Cabot Seriously Sharp White Cheddar – so cheddar is Amy’s favorite cheese so it had to be on the board. It really is a nice tangy, creamy cheddar and it’s the one cheese I always have in my fridge because of how versatile it is.
Fresh Mozzarella – this was a special request, as was the Bruschetta I paired it with. I also drizzled it with olive oil and seasoned it with a bit of salt, pepper, and fresh chopped basil. It’s a very mild, yet delicious cheese so it pairs really well with tomatoes and sweet basil.
Additions – Peppercorn Salami, Raw Broccoli and Cauliflower Florets with Buttermilk Ranch dip, Bruschetta, Poppy Sesame Seed Crackers, Almond Nut-Seed Smokehouse Crackers, and Triscuits
Just mix and match and have fun!
Smoke & Charm Farm 