Better with Comté Masterclass

Everything is better with cheese, in fact everything is better with Comté. And that was exactly the premise of a night in Cactus Kitchens trying our hand at incorporating one of my favourite cheeses into a selection of seasonal dishes.

First up, cheese tasting. All milk to make Comté comes from Montbéliarde and French Simmental cows who have 2 acres of land each in the Jura Massif to roam free and work their magic. What a life! They eat grass and flowers in the summer and hay in the winter. Each day small village dairies transform the cows milk into wheels of Comté who in turn age the cheese in house, regularly turning the wheels, salting and brining for up to 24 months.

Not only does seasonal changes in the cows diet change the flavour profile of the finished Comté wheel, but also the age of the wheel. There's such a vast difference between a young Comté and a mature. When young, its elastic, lactic, pale and fruity. When mature, more nutty, deeper in colour and crumbly due to the break down of amino acids. 

These both lend a great flavour to varying seasonal dishes as we went on to explore and try for ourselves in the kitchen. 

To start, a watercress, beetroot and fennel salad with Comté, basil and walnut crostinis. Here the 18 month is used in place of parmesan and pine nuts to give a deep nutty flavour in both the pesto and in the generous shavings on top...part of the perks of working with Flick - there's no scrimping on the cheese! Our starter was paired with, Grüner Veltliner, Reiden Selection, one of my favourite wines of the evening. From Austria's signature grape, its dry, fresh, citrusy and the perfect balance to the 18 month Comté and balsamic beetroot.

Next up, a butternut squash, sage and Comté risotto where a young cheese is used for creaminess to the earthiness of the squash. Of course, once again this is also topped with generous shavings of the mature because this is a cheese night after all! Paired with Tierra Alta Sauvignon, again dry and citrusy but more acidic - perfect for the younger, creamier 8 month Comté.

And of course, the Comté chefs worked their magic on a Comté, banana and vanilla tarte tatin. Yes, there's cheese in this dessert. The use of a young Comté, between 8-12 months, as we learnt in making the risotto gives a creaminess to the puff pastry and trust me, it was delicate and totally delicious. Served alongside a Petit Védrines Sauternes gave the perfect nutty, caramelised balance to the finale dish.

Armed with some new know-how I'm very excited to give some new Comté dishes a try at home. I've also decided that it would be a pretty great life being a Comté cow being free to roam in your 2 acres all day and graze non stop.

Thanks for having me Comté and Cactus Kitchens!

I was invited to attend the masterclass, was not paid and all opinions are my own...who doesn't love cheese this much?

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Mac n Cheese with Anna Mae's & Lactofree

I never make mac n cheese at home. I don't think I trust myself not to add more cheese than white sauce and not to eat it all from the pan. There's no sharing when it comes to mac n cheese, its got to be unadulterated and extremely decadent.

So when Lactofree invited me to a masterclass hosted by Anna Mae's to learn how to make their lacto free version, I was a little sceptical to say the least. But I love Anna Mae's and I genuinely love Arla's Lactofree range so was convinced to give it a try.

A little background aside, a few years ago I suffered problem skin. Along with a few treatments and some changes to my diet, I'm pretty much over it. And Lactofree milk was the most obvious improvement for me. So any way to reduce some of the triggers in my diet has got to be good. Aka let's eat all the mac n cheese and still have lovely clear skin!

On the menu for the evening was mac n cheese topped with beef short rib and pickled red onions; deep fried mac n cheese balls with chipotle mayo; and doughnuts with butterscotch sauce. Stuff of dreams!

We started off by making our own white sauces, left to our own devices with adding in our preferred amount of cheese (in my case probably a whole block) before adding in the mac and sour cream to ensure it was super creamy. Topped with bbq beef short rib, sour cream and coriander, it was out of this world kinds of great!

Any mac n cheese left was scooped into balls, wrapped and smothered in breadcrumbs and fried. The sauce we made to dunk them in was a mix of cream cheese, coriander and chipotle paste. I managed to smuggle some of these home and had to fight for a share for lunchboxes the next day with the man friend.

And of course, not forgetting dessert: the doughnuts with a super quick and simple butterscotch sauce. These tiny balls of wonder were deep fried, tossed in sugar and then smothered in butterscotch. You'll see my elegant shot of my 'small' serving, but in reality I ate closer to a plateful.

No pressure in flipping the doughnuts in the fryer!

Everything in each of the recipes was fully free from lactose, from the Lactofree butter and cream in the butterscotch sauce to the cheese and milk in the mac n cheese.

So I suppose I ought to share a recipe. I'm super excited to make this mac n cheese over the weekend. I've never picked onions before and I absolutely love them and we've loads of beef in the freezer ready to roast away.

R I B S   A N D   R E D S
L A C T O F R E E   M A C   N   C H E E S E
T O P P E D   W I T H   B E E F   S H O R T   R I B   &   P I C K L E D   O N I O N S
(Recipe from Anna Mae's and Arla Lactofree, serves 4)

For the ribs:

6 thick cut short ribs  |  350ml red wine  |  1 onion, roughly chopped  |  1 carrot, roughly chopped  |  1 celery, roughly chopped  |  1tbsp tomato puree  |  4 garlic cloves  |  1 litre beef stock

For the pickled onions:

1 red onion, finely sliced  |  1tbsp sugar  |  1/2 tsp salt  |  3/4 cup cider vinegar  |  4 black peppercorns  |  2 cloves  |  1 bay leaf

For the mac:

400g macaroni  |  50g plain flour  |  50g Lactofree spreadable butter  |  1 pint Lactofree whole milk, warm  |  300g Lactofree cheddar, grated  |  1tsp mustard

For the sour cream:

4 tbsp Lactofree cream cheese  |  2tbsp Lactofree cream  |  juice and zest of one lemon

• Heat the oven to 160 degrees.
• Season the short ribs. Place in a roasting tray with the rest of the ingredients. Cover with foil and roast for 4 hours, until the meat falls off the bone.
• Add the pickled onion ingredients to a jar, cover with vinegar. Keep in the fridge till ready.
• Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil 20 minutes before the beef is ready. Cook the macaroni until just cooked. Drain thoroughly.
• Melt the butter in a heavy bottomed pan over a low heat, add the flour and stir to make a paste. Cook for a few minutes, until it starts to turn golden. Slowly add the milk, continually whisking as you go. Cook for 5-8 minutes, until the sauce covers the back of a wooden spoon.
• Continue to cook on a low heat and add the cheese and mustard. Continue to mix until melted before adding the cooked macaroni and gently fold together.
• In a small bowl, combine all of the sour cream ingredients together.
• Transfer your mac n cheese to a serving bowl, top with short rib, pickled red onions and a big dollop of sour cream.

Thank you to the Lactofree team for letting me loose with all the cheese and to Anna Mae's for all your mac wisdom. So excited to recreate!

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Chicory, Bacon & Comté Cheese Tart

Comté is a new addition to the cheese drawer in my fridge. I'm not entirely sure where its been all my life but in a bid to make up for lost time I set out to make something to showcase its brilliantly nutty flavour. I hear its particularly brilliant for fondue, but I'm waiting for the Swiss Queen, Flick to show me that. 

Depending on where the farms milk is from, how long and where its aged, comté can have such a diverse taste. Anything from nutty, creamy or more sharp and fruity. That's what makes it so perfect to melt, grate, shave or bake. Any which way you want it! When comté sent me some samples and asked me to come up with a recipe for Mother's Day I was excited for the challenge. 

This tart balances the natural crisp bitterness of chicory with the smooth buttery comté. Packed with crispy bacon, lashings of mustard and thyme. Serve with some buttery potatoes and a crisp green salad with some Sancerre because its practically Spring now. Perfect for a weekend catchup with my Mum.

C H I C O R Y,   B A C O N   &   C O M T E   C H E E S E   T A R T
(makes one 9 inch tart)

1 pack of ready rolled shortcrust pastry

2 tbsp butter

250g chicory, about 2-3 heads

100g bacon

3 eggs

240ml double cream

1tsp mustard, english or dijon

1tsp fresh thyme leaves

pinch of salt

1/4tsp freshly ground nutmeg

150g grated comté cheese, grated

• Heat the oven to 180 degrees and lay the shortcrust pastry into the tart dish, using a ball of dough to gently push into the edges. Use a knife to trim any excess from the top.
• Chop the chicory into quarter inch slices and remove the core whilst melting the butter in a griddle pan. Cook the chicory for 5 minutes until tender. Remove from the pan.
• Roughly chop the bacon and cook the bacon in the same griddle pan until golden and crisp.
• In a bowl, whisk together the eggs, double cream, mustard, thyme, salt and nutmeg.
• In the prepared tart dish, layer the chicory, bacon and comté before pouring over the egg mix.
• Bake in the centre of the oven for 45-50 minutes until the crust has turned golden. The centre of the tart will look a little wobbly but this will firm as the tart cools.
• Leave for 20 minutes before removing from the tart dish to serve.

This post is in collaboration with Comté who sent me some samples to try as part of their #MothersDayTheComteWay campaign.

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