Yes, Say Cheese!

With busy work schedules more often than not we find ourselves short on time when preparing a dinner party. I recently discovered that a cheese and fruit platter can make quite an interesting starter. But I wasn't quite sure about creating one on my own. Would pears be good with gorgonzola or mango chutney work with goat cheese?

Ana Cerqueira, the retail manager and cheese specialist at jones the grocer on Shaikh Zayed immediately came to my rescue.

"Each cheese comes with its own set of characteristics and can be paired with fruits and other accompaniments depending on this," Cerqueira explained to me. "The best way to create a platter would be to choose cheese of different texture and taste — from soft to blue to hard. There is no set pairs so play with what you have. Chilli crackers and fruit pastes will taste good with most cheese. But if your main meal has been spicy maybe you'd want to start or finish your food with something lighter like fruits or charcoal crackers with cheese".

So, there are three kinds of cheese - soft, hard and blue?

"That's an easy way to differentiate. But there are actually some 2,000 varieties of cheese in the world. While the French split cheese into five families, the Americans have about 40 types. It mostly depends on the milk used, maturation period and the consistency. Most are made with cow's milk, goat's milk, buffalo milk and then there are those made from mixed milk, whether the farmer wants to make white or yellow rinds and how pungent. You can have fresh cheese, cave matured, smoked, spiked, etc. For example, the 18-month parmigiano will have a different taste than an 8-month matured one. The flavour of the cheese also depends on the region it belongs to. We shouldn't forget cheese was made to extend the shelf life of milk and its nutrients," she says.

So what should I include in my cheese platter?

"I feel a cheese board should stay on the table from the beginning to the end of the meal, and not just as a starter or dessert. That's why you should have a mixed board. Some soft, some hard, some creamy, some blue. There are even different categories of soft, hard and blue. Some are strong, some creamier, some mild. In the beginning of the meal when your stomach is empty it's better to have a white cheese or goat cheese with salad. Then you'd want just one small hard cheese with fruit to close the meal. With steak, I would probably have a Roquefort or Stilton — a pungent cheese that would enhance yet take the flavour of the steak".

What fruits pair best with cheese?

"You can pair it with any if you like the taste. But it's best to pair it with those that bring out the most flavours of the cheese. If you pair it with the wrong fruit, it will bring out the wrong flavours. For example, if you pair oranges or other acidic/citric fruit with goat cheese, it would enhance the acidic content in it, making it taste bitter. Goat cheese goes best with small sweet fruits such as pears or grapes. Plus like fruit, cheese also has seasons, so they are best paired with the fruits of that season. Coulommier cheese comes during May so enjoy them with summer fruits."

What else can you combine cheese with?

"Anything — fish, meat, everything".

Blue cheese

Hard cheese

Fleur de Marquis (Dh26/100g) — semi-hard goat cheese with the scent of flowers and spices

Perfect with: spring fruits such as cherries, apricot and strawberries

Alternative: None. Quite a unique cheese, with a very floral and herbal flavour

Emmental de Savoie (Dh20/100g) — sweet flavour of milk and sweaty fat

Perfect with: autumn fruits like apples, melted in a fondue with hot beverages like its siblings gruyere and raclette

Alternative: Gruyere, Comte or Beaufort are going to be quite close to this cheese too, but a bit more fruity

Truffle Brie (Dh35/100g) — as the name says, tastes of truffles

Alternative: brie or a coulommier sprinkled with truffle honey

Brie de meaux (Dh17/100g) — smooth, creamy and nutty

Perfect with: begin your meal with Brie de meaux in a salad course, with some dry berries

Alternative: any other brie (Brie de Maubert, Brie Nantis) or coulommier or Camembert

Petit Livarot (Dh74/piece) — pungent, soft, creamy texture with a strong taste

Perfect with: fresh white bread

Alternative: Pont-l'Eveque or an Epoisse.

Try all with cranberries (Dh50/150g pack) and Walnut (Dh46/250g pack)

Soft cheese

Other accompaniments: Emiliana flavoured balsamic (starting from Dh63/100ml depending on the age of the balsamic)