Just Crumbs...

I wanted to do a quick post to open your eyes to Limburger Cheese. I have always heard horror stories of Limburger. It is smelly. Eww, that is gross. Smells like_____________ (fill in the blank), etc... These comments have honestly intrigued me.

The other night I was out to dinner with my good friend G, and I asked her opinion of Limburger Cheese. She really likes it. She shared the memory of eating it with her dad (may he rest in peace) while watching movies. She said that they always ate it smeared on bread and topped with onions. I knew then I had to try it.

The Limburger is the cheese with the candy cane spreader (I know Christmas is over, but the spring spreaders are still packed away)

Today I purchased my first ever Limburger Cheese. I added it to my cheese plate along with some Gorgonzola, Gouda, Goat, Parmesan, and Mozzarella. When I cut into it, yes, it was "smelly", but nothing overwhelming. There are other "smelly" cheeses that fit into the same sharp smell category that this cheese produced. I tried it three different ways. The first all by its lonesome. The taste was fishy. Not a bad fishy, but like fish sauce in Asian cooking. The second was on a cracker. It was better. And the third was on bread with sliced onion. This was the best. I even added some of the red pepper pictured above and it was over the top. All the components complemented each other nicely. This is the way I will eat the remaining of the Limburger.

I need to tell you that a little of this cheese does go a long way.  If you do try it,which I encourage you to do, put just a thin smear on your cracker or bread. When you find yourself in the cheese department of the grocery and you pick up that small square package, let me know what you think. As for me, I will purchase it again. It is not my favorite, but it is different and now I can say that I have had Limburger Cheese. Heres to you G, Red, and movie night!

  

  As they say "As one door closes, another one opens". I have spent the last couple days packing, packing up all my belongings that I have collected over the last 8 years in my house. We do not have too much, we live a pretty frugal life, but where does all this stuff come from? What is it like in the normal household with kids and people who hoard stuff? I can't even imagine. 

We have finally sold our condo and it is time to move on. What does that mean? It means warmer weather, that is for sure. Ohio can be great, but it gets cold, and cold weather I am not a fan of.  And it means cleaning out the pantry, refrigerator, and the freezer. We have to be out in less than a week so we are using up the food that we have collected, horded, and stashed away. It can lead to some interesting finds and unique food combinations. For example, yesterday for lunch we had French onion soup with corn in it. The soup was left over from a party that we had......last February (I honestly forgot it was in there), and the corn was from my parents' garden that was frozen. And then there are these little guys

Aren't they cute? Crawfish, so little, so sweet, and so tastey. Who has these in their freezer? I was thinking of adding them to a fondue with some other seafood, but decided against it. I thought about just baking them for about 15 minutes on a bed of rock salt and serving them with some lemon and thyme butter, but that is too easy and doesn't use up enough of the food that we need to consume before the week is out. I took inventory of what had and decided upon....Macaroni and Cheese. I had a couple of half full boxes of pasta, different cheeses to use up, artichokes, shallots (from my grandma's garden),evaporated milk (never have used it before in my mac and cheese, but what the heck), mushrooms, frozen jalapeños (from the garden), crab, and of course the crayfish. Oh yes, Mac and Cheese it is.

Did I mention that I am tired of packing? I am surrounded by boxes. My house is in disarray. My cookbooks are all packed away. And, I am depressed. I dislike Ohio weather, but I love looking out my great room window and watching the birds, ducks, deer, red fox, and other wildlife that congregate in my back yard. It is quite peaceful for city living. I am going to miss it, but on to bigger, brighter, and a new start. 

1/2 stick of butter

1/4 c. olive oil

1 c. shallots, thinly sliced (or onions)

1/4 c. garlic, chopped

1 lb. pasta

1 c. white wine

1 Tbsp. chicken bouillon

3 Tbsp. flour

2 cans (24oz) evaporated milk

2 tsp. pepper

3 c. cheese (use a variety) I used Gorgonzola, Dubliner, Parmesan, and Cream Cheese

1/4 c. jalapeños

12 oz. artichokes

1 c. mushrooms

1 1/2 lbs. crabmeat, chopped

1/2 lb. crawfish

1 c. bread crumbs

2 Tbs. olive oil

Put the pasta in a large bowl and cover with water. Let sit one hour, stirring occasionally. Drain and use as follows. 

Butter a large 9x13 pan and preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large pot heat oil and butter over a medium heat. Add the shallots and cook 5-7 mins. Toss in the garlic and cook an additional 4 minutes. Pour in wine and bring to a simmer. Simmer 5 minutes to allow the alcohol to burn off. Stir in the the chicken bouillon until dissolved. Whisk in flour and cook 3-4 minutes. Add the evaporated milk, and heat until just steaming, stirring occasionally. Slowly stir in the cheeses, a handful at a time until they are evenly incorporated and melted. Add the artichokes, jalapeños, and mushrooms. Cook together for 5 minutes. Add the pasta, stir, and cook an additional five minutes, the pasta will absorb some of the sauce and thicken. Toss in crab and crawfish. Pour into prepared 9x13 pan. Mix bread crumbs and 2 Tbs. olive oil and sprinkle over the top.

Bake for 30 minutes until golden brown and bubbly. Remove and let rest 5 minutes.

     It's Meatless Monday! For those of you who haven't heard about Meatless Mondays I encourage you to try it. It is a big rage right now in the food world, including in restaurants and with chefs. Foodies are encouraging others to replace one "meaty" meal a week, to a vegetarian meal. It doesn't mean that you are turning into a tree hugging neurotic psycho, who will chain yourself to a tree or die, type of person. It is just creating a more healthy awareness for your body and for the environment. It is one meal a week. I am not asking you to forgo your carnivoristic behavior all together, but one meal will not kill you. Plus think of the money that you will save by substituting ONE meal to be meat free. Your worried about not getting enough protein? Don't. For one thing it is one meal. Add beans, grains, nuts, the world is your oyster err, I mean umm... pecan, (insert which ever unmeat protein here).

     For this "Meatless Monday" I made large portabella caps, grilled, and stuffed with spinach, sun-dried tomatoes, and blue cheese. These were quick and easy. Feel free stuff your mushrooms with whatever items sound delightful to you or, ingredients that you have on hand. Make it yours. These were Dee-licious! Resembling steak with creamed spinach and Gorgonzola. Try it. I promise it won't kill you!


4 large Portabella mushroom caps, wiped clean
10oz bag Spinach
1 Shallot, sliced (or small onion)
1 clove Garlic, minced
1 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 Tbsp Balsamic vinegar
4oz Gorgonzola, crumbled
1/2 c. Sun-dried tomatoes, chopped

Place portabella caps on a hot grill, gill side down for 4 minutes. While caps are grilling, add olive oil to a large saute pan and heat. Add shallot, sun-dried tomatoes, and garlic, saute until garlic and shallots are soft. Toss in spinach and wilt. Drizzle with Balsamic Vinegar and toss to coat. Turn mushrooms over, gill side up and divide hot spinach mix to all four mushroom caps. Top with blue cheese and heat until melted. Serve.
Serves 2.