The Seasonal Magazines display features two magazines dedicated to cheese - Cheese Connoisseur and  Culture: The Word on Cheese. Each of these magazines is celebrating it’s first anniversary of publication. I love cheese, but I had no idea there were magazines dedicated to it or that it could be considered a lifestyle. The message from the Publisher of Cheese Connoisseur is entitled "Cheese As a Lifestyle". She writes eloquently about this “lifestyle” magazine, but sums it up well by saying Cheese Connoisseur is a “magazine for people who like to eat cheese.”  

 

This particular issue of Cheese Connoisseur  is subtitled "My Table to Yours – A Selection of American Cheesemaking Gems", and the centerfold features a number of cheeses from all over the country and provides a website for each featured cheese. You may have missed the winners of the The American Cheese Society Annual Contest this July, but never fear, they are in the article “And the Winner is….” Other articles feature bacon, olives, champagne and chocolate each of which pair well with cheese. Insecure about which cheese to pair with what? Don’t worry Cheese Connoisseur knows and can point you in the right direction.  If you are traveling to Portland, Oregon or Parma, Italy and want to make cheese part of your trip there is information and addresses of cheese stores.  There are a number of actual cheese recipes including baked brie with kalamata olives and roasted garlic which was delicious and easy to make.

 

Culture: The Word on Cheese  is also celebrating their one year anniversary of publication. The vision of the Culture founders was to “make an editorial home for these disparate cheese folks (cheesemakers, cheesemongers, and dairy loving consumers)".  The teaser line at the bottom of the cover quotes a Tennessee chef saying , “Our menus grow out of what’s in season and the different stages of the sheep’s lactation.”  Again, I never gave milk or cheese or any dairy product a thought in terms of their mother’s lactation schedule, but I might now.  

 

“From Beach to Boulevard: A Cheese Lover’s Guide to Miami and South Florida” is the travel feature.  The recipes in this issue look delicious and sophisticated, but not too difficult. The Peppered Pear and Goat Cheese Scones and the Winter Squash, Mushroom and Gruyere Strata are on my weekend menu. If you are looking for a new party theme Culture has on  article on throwing a raclette party – bet that’s a party you haven’t yet tried. Raclette is a traditional Swiss dish which includes melted cheese and potatoes in which each person serves themselves melted cheese.

A combination raclette and Winter Olympics party may be on my calendar for next weekend!