We have some interesting local cheeses in Scotland - soft cheeses from Orkney for example, as well as the better known Dunlop cheese, which despite its name, is not rubbery!
I thought I would list a few of them here for the benefit of anyone who might be visiting Scotland soon and who would like to try real, local cheeses...
I like to serve them with juicy green grapes and pears and apples, too. If I'm serving cheese to friends, I always make a batch of my oatcakes (recipe on here somewhere...!). Wonderful food.
SCOTTISH BLUE CHEESES I love Lanark Blue - which has very dark blue veining.
Dunsyre Blue - has a very sharp, clean taste
The newest Blue cheese is called Strathdon Blue - (but not as good - in my opinion) as either Lanark or Dunsyre!
CROWDIE Almost a 'cottage cheese' - made all over Scotland. It now comes trendily rolled in toasted oats...
BONCHESTER This is a wonderful cheese made in the Borders by a small dairy farmer. Well worth seeking out.
DUNLOP This is like a 'soft' cheddar.. Made on Arran and Islay but also traditionally in Ayrshire, near Dumfries and at Perth (Gowrie).
CHEDDAR (bit of a misnomer, the only 'real' cheddar is made in the Cheddar Gorge area of England...!) Scottish cheddar is often much more 'orangey' than English cheddar - and, in my opinion, slightly more 'rubbery' than the original.
An exception to the above is Isle of Mull cheddar - it's pale and tastes GREAT!
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I whole heartedly agree about the Scottish blues, they are only rivaled by blue stilton! I belong to a cheese club that offers cheeses of the world, may seem expensive but you get what you pay for! Here is the link to their Scottish cheeses:
Check out the whole site if you are a cheese lover, and no I am not employed by then LOL!!!
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Ohhhh, what a site! I'm gonna order some of those layered ones, and the veiny ones... This year for Equinox we're gonna have cakes and ale and CHEEZE!!! Thanks Shadows!
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Shadows That's a good site. The Bishop Kennedy cheese is made in Perth I believe, but the man who makes it used to be based in Edinburgh (or just outside) when it was called Howgate Cheeses.
I just adore cheese - although I have to admit that I am trying to limit my intake - my cholesterol levels are not improved by continuing to be a glutton where cheese is concerned!
We are lucky here in the UK, you can go into any supermarket and find upwards of 70 or 80 different types of cheeses from all over the world. Even in the smallest grocery shops you can find most of the more popular European cheeses such as brie, camembert etc.
I love French cheeses best (after British ones!) - a good, runny Brie cannot be bettered. Served with good French baton bread (brought over fresh every day - thank God for the Channel Tunnel! Or baked from French flour in local supermarkets) it is a wonderful snack! I also love Roquefort, Port Salut and some of the blue-veined less well-known cheeses.
I always have the following cheeses in my fridge: parmesan, pecorino and mozzarella I use them a lot in my 'ordinary, day to day' cooking as, in the main, we eat a Mediterranean diet ie very little meat and lots of fresh veg, pasta etc.
I love Swiss Emmenthal for cooking - and I adore Norwegian Jarlsberg and Danish Blue cheeses.
I love good English cheddars, from the Cheddar Gorge area. One of my favourites is a mature cheddar from Davidstow Farm. A good Welsh cheddar is Taw Valley cheddar. I adore the white crumbly English cheeses such as Wensleydale and Lancashire - both are great for cooking. I like Welsh Caerphilly, another white cheese - absolutely great when eat with thin slices of apple in a sandwich made with crusty wholemeal bread. The best apples for this are the English Cox's Orange Pippin which come into season about November time. I also love Sage Derby and Double Gloucester. Double Gloucester makes a great Welsh rarebit, as it melts down so well and doesn't get too stringy! I love Stilton, the king of cheeses. I always buy a large stilton in a big stoneware jar from Fortnum and Mason's in London for the New Year celebrations (I somehow always manage to have a reason to visit London just before Christmas, and of course, I am FORCED to shop at Harrod's food hall and Fortnums!)
One thing that I realised when typing this is that, apart from when I have visited US bases in Europe, I cannot recall seeing US cheeses for sale. I wonder if this is because we are spoilt for choice or if it is because some of the US cheeses are very similar to ours?
It is interesting that there are cheeses available in all supermarkets from Canada, Australia and New Zealand - although I have to confess, they are usually called Cheddar!!!
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Just getting back to this post!
Most US cheese is inferior in my opinion! There are only a few that I do like and these are local made by Amish and Menenite farmers! The mass produced crap called cheese here is just that ...crap!
Shadows, your a life saver!! I recently made Steak 'Auld Reekie' for my wife and self as a treat and had to substitute an American cheddar (shudders). It just wasn't the same. Well, I've been asked now to make it for some friends when they come to visit and now, thanks to that link you posted, I can get my hands on some Orkney cheeses to make the recipe proper and make their stay here that much more enjoyable.
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Mmmm...cheese!!! I love cheese. I need to get me some of this scottish cheese!!!
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Hello from Toronto Canada, Just thought I would give my opinion of a good cheese and that is, Dubliner. The little corner food mart where I live imports it for the Irish folk who live nearby. Very sharp and great with a nice dram of scotch. This is my first post here as I just found the site today. The music is very soothing sitting here as I type. Bye for now.
1/2 cups self raising flour 1oz salted butter 1 large egg 2 tbsp whole milk 4oz Mull of Kintyre or Seriously Strong Scottish cheddar 1/3 tsp salt 1 1/4 tsp mustard powder Pinch of Cayenne pepper
1. Mix the flour, salt and pepper together. 2. Massage in the butter and then slowly mix in the grated cheese. 3. Beat the egg and add in the milk; add mixture to the dry ingredients to create a soft, elastic dough. 4. Roll out the mixture on a lightly floured surface. Cut into round shapes and place on a well greased tray. 5. Brush the top with milk and sprinkle a little extra cheese and pepper on top. 6. Bake in a pre-heated oven in the center at 400 until golden brown
Addendum to above recipe ( 9/24/2005 ):
I made these again today using the above recipe with the substitution of my own ground smoked hot pepper instead of cayenne and I also added a tsp of Captain Morgan Spiced Rum to the egg and milk mixture. I aslo added 1 tbls of Mature Blue Stilton Cheese with the Cheddar! OH BOY!
That is all I can say... the whole batch was gone in less then 5 minutes!
The following photo was taken by: JoyfulCook - www.recipezaar.com
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