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Celebrate alfresco dining with British cheese
10 May 2010
Celebrate alfresco dining with British cheese this summer
Your perfect alfresco dining experience
With the warm weather well and truly here, the British Cheese Board has put together a few top tips for creating the perfect alfresco dining experience. Alfresco feasts wouldn't be the same without a wedge or two of your favourite British cheese, and our expert guide below demonstrates how you can make British cheese the star of the show this summer.
Cheese salads
British cheese is great as part of a healthy salad to accompany the rest of your picnic food! Whether it's a Wensleydale and Cranberry Waldorf Salad or Shropshire Blue with Orange and Spinach, the British Cheese Board has some great recipes for quick and easy salads that make the most of the wonderful produce available this summer. Why not try this warm chorizo and goat's cheese salad with raspberry vinaigrette from Gary Rhodes:
GARY'S WARM CHORIZO AND GOAT'S CHEESE SALAD WITH RASPBERRY VINAIGRETTE
For the Salad
100g-200g (4-7oz) mixed or single variety salad leaves
2-3 spring onions, thinly sliced
225g (8oz) British goat's cheese, broken into chunks
300g (10oz) chorizo sausage, peeled and cut into 1cm (1/2 inch) thick slices
Method
· Simply whisk together 4 tablespoons olive oil, 2 tablespoons raspberry vinegar, a pinch of caster sugar, and ½ teaspoon Dijon mustard if desired. Season with salt and pepper.
· Mix together the salad leaves and spring onions and gently toss with the goat's cheese.
· Heat a large frying pan with a drizzle of olive oil. Fry the chorizo, turning, for 3 to 4 minutes. Spoon the sausage into the salad, whisk any fat released into the vinaigrette and drizzle over the leaves
More ideas
· A little natural yoghurt can be sprinkled over the salad for a creamier finish.
· A few fresh raspberries can also be added to enhance the flavour of the vinaigrette.
BBQ ideas with a difference
Barbequing has to be the ultimate alfresco dining experience. For a starter with a difference, make a tasty British Brie fondue. Wrap a whole small British Brie in foil and heat it on the barbecue until it's really soft. Unwrap it, make a cut into the top and enjoy it with some chunky vegetable crudités or bread sticks. If you are bored of all the usual kebab combos try a new vegetarian option Hot Cheddar Kebabs which are so good everyone will want to eat them.
For the traditionalists out there nothing beats a good old homemade burger, lovingly prepared over charcoal. Don't ruin it by slapping in a slice of gooey-looking processed cheese - choose a beautiful slice of British cheddar and you will really taste the difference. For those with adventurous taste buds, there are hundreds of other mouth watering cheeses to complement your burger - like a colourful farmhouse Red Leicester, a mild sweet young British Brie, or a slither of creamy Blue Stilton.
Lastly, for a side dish with a difference, and a little bit of Mexican zing, try toasting these Mexican quesadillas on the BBQ until they are golden brown and the cheese has melted.
Al fresco cheese board
If you're planning a picnic during Alfresco Dining Week, taking a selection of British cheeses with you means you can create a quick and easy cheese board. With over 700 named British cheeses, you won't be short of choice, but for the ultimate cheeseboard, select different types and textures of cheese, including hard, soft and blue cheeses. Serve with natural ingredients - these traditionally include grapes, apples, tomatoes, parsley, celery or pickles, but don't be afraid to unleash your imagination!
Matching drinks to cheeses
The perfect alfresco experience wouldn't be complete without a refreshing drink to wash it all down, and while pairing wine with cheese might be the traditional option, the British Cheese Board has come up with some top suggestions for matching beers with cheese too. An oak-aged beer like Innis and Gunn goes superbly with a Farmhouse Red Leicester, and a fresh and fruity beer like Dark Star Sunburst tastes great with West Country Farmhouse Cheddar! There are lots more suggested pairings on the British Cheese Board website: www.britishcheese.com
There are over 700 different named cheeses produced in Britain, and a variety of different textures and styles. You can find out more about the different categories of cheese available on the British Cheese Board website at: http://www.britishcheese.com/cheese