Say Cheese!

How to impress your guests with the perfect artisanal cheese plate

From the LifeMInute team

At your next holiday bash, stun your guests with a sophisticated spread of delicious cheeses. Don't know where to start? We turned to Whole Foods Market's Global Cheese Buyer Cathy Strange for her expertise on creating the perfect cheese plate.

One cheese the connoisseur is excited about is a Brie from Normandy. "It's grass fed and a really great product because the animals get to graze out on this truly luscious grass, and a lot of those components, especially the beta-keratin, comes through in the flavor of the cheese." Try a sour cherry spread to go with it; the acid in the cherries really brings out the Brie's buttery notes.

To cleanse the palette, Strange suggests true champagne with Brie. "It just flows and brings out all the exciting complexities," she says.

Speaking of champagne, Whole Foods Market has a Champagne Cheddar they created with a partner in the United Kingdom. The cheese is matured and infused with champagne. "You get some nice aromatics, fruity, yeasty and the flavor is creamy and delicious," says Strange.

Fruit also goes perfectly alongside your cheese. Strange says fresh figs are great, and one of their most popular cheese accompaniments is a delicious fig spread. "A perfect item for cheddar and it really highlights those creamy components," she says.

And you don't have to ask "Where's the wine?" because Whole Foods has its own wine department. Strange suggests sparklers to go with the cheese, including Prosecco from Italy and Cava from Spain. Salud!

Meats also are a tasty choice to serve up with cheese. Try prosciutto, cured meats and also fermented meats like sausages. To make sure those delicate cheeses don't fall apart, put them atop plain wafers, flatbreads or bread in flavors that won't overpower the cheese.

But what is Strange's favorite pick? A blue cheese from Rogue Creamery produced by David and Cary in Central Point, Oregon. "It's a raw milk produced cheese with hazelnut overtones that are creamy, savory, and has smoky bacon characteristics," she says. It's perfect with fresh pears, walnuts and even drizzled honey on top. Anyone else hungry yet?

For more information about pairing wine and, of course, cheese, go to wholefoodsmarket.com.

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