Cheese is one of the most popular consumed foods in the world. Did you know? that in Britain alone there are in fact over 700 British cheese producers. With such a wide range of cheeses sold within supermarkets not just from England but all over the world it can be hard to decide what to choose but thanks to cheese suppliers Slate Cheese whom sell the finest British and European Cheeses, cheese making has been made that much easier.
Cheese is generally made from milk from grass fed animals. Did you know? though that eating cheese is actually great for your health in so many ways. It is a good source of calcium, protein, omega 3 and provides a vitamins A and B-12, along with zinc, phosphorus and riboflavin. In fact medical studies have proved that eating around 40 grams of cheese a day could in fact help to reduce the risk of heart disease and strokes. These nine cheeses are regarded as the top nine healthiest cheeses to eat:
- Mozzarella,
- Blue cheese,
- Feta,
- Cottage cheese,
- Ricotta,
- Parmesan,
- Swiss, and
- Cheddar
Courtesy of Slate I was gifted a variety selection of cheese all of which have been produced within East Anglian, Norwich.
Slate
Slate is a family run business which came about in 2017 by Clare Jackson and her father John Ormerod. They are a specialist cheese retailer and delicatessen with shops in Aldeburgh and Southwold, Suffolk. Both stores sell the finest curated range of British and European artisan cheeses.
Within any of their shops you will be warmly welcomed by their friendly and knowledgeable staff who are all cheese enthusiasts and have been trained by the Guild of Fine Food and Neal’s Yard Dairy. They will be able to advise you on storing and serving their variety of different cheeses and even offer tips for creating a fabulous cheeseboard.
Slate cheese can also be purchased online and delivered to your home directly. With such a vast choice of deluxe cheeses to choose from soft to hard you can always call Slate team for any questions you might have for advice on cheese.
Cheese at home
With so many varieties of cheese to choose from ranging from soft, hard to cheese made from sheep or cows it can be a hard decision in which cheese to buy. However all of Slate’s cheeses have in-depth informative information on-line and their customer service is on hand to help make any decision when it comes to cheese selecting.
Slate kindly sent me a selection of some of their East Anglian cheese to sample I tried a variety of soft to hard cheese which have been made from milk from free roaming sheep, goats and cows of Norfolk and Suffolk.
Indulging in cheese at home with crackers
The cheeses I was sent was a Baron Bigod, Norfolk Dapple, Binham Blue, Suffolk Gold, Norfolk Mardler and St Jude. Plus I was also sent a box of Peter Yards Sourdough Crackers to enjoy the cheese with.
Here I have listed all the cheeses in which I tried and each one was delicious.
Baron Bigod
Style – Soft
Milk – Cow
Pasteurisation – Unpasteurised
Vegetarian – No
Country of Origin – Suffolk, UK
Strength – Medium
This soft brie-style cheese is made in Suffolk at Fen Farm Dairy by cheese producers Jonny and Dulcie Crickmore. The cheese is made using raw rich milk from Montbéliarde cows from a traditional French recipe. Wrapped in a white rind this eight week ivory curd matured Brie cheese did not disappoint. It provided a silky texture with a soft, creamy, nutty and delicate flavour.
Norfolk Dapple
Style – Hard
Milk – Cow
Pasteurisation – Unpasteurised
Vegetarian – No
Country of Origin – Norfolk, UK
Strength – Medium
This cheddar-style cheese is made in Norfolk by cheese producer Arthur Betts. The cheese is made from unpasteurised milk from his pedigree Holstein-Friesians cow’s. Using traditional cheddaring method this matured cheese of up to eight months provides a rich tasting cheese.
Binham Blue
Style – Hard
Milk – Cow
Pasteurisation – Unpasteurised
Vegetarian – No
Country of Origin – Norfolk, UK
Strength – Medium
Binham Blue is made at Copy’s Green Farm in Wighton, Norfolk. The milk comes from her herd of Brown Swiss cows. Using milk from her herd of Brown Swiss cows with added spores of Penicillium Roqueforti which makes it into a blue cheese and gives it that award winning flavour. This cheese is not too strong like other blue cheeses. It is soft, creamy and has a slight sweet tang to it.
Suffolk Gold
Style – Crumbly
Milk – Cow
Pasteurisation – Pasteurised
Vegetarian – Yes
Country of Origin – Suffolk, UK
Strength – Medium
Suffolk Gold cheese is made from a farm within Suffolk by cheese producers Katharine and Jason Salisbury. This golden crumbly mild cheese is buttery and delicate.
Norfolk Mardler
Style – Goat & Sheep
Milk – Goat
Pasteurisation – Pasteurised
Vegetarian – Yes
Country of Origin – Norfolk, UK
Strength – Mild
This cheese is made from a farm within Norfolk by Sam Steggles. It comes wrapped in a bright yellow wax coating, making it very eye-catching. The cheese within is bright white. The cheese provides a firm but yet delicious creamy taste.
St Jude
Style – Soft
Milk – Cow
Pasteurisation – Unpasteurised
Vegetarian – No
Country of Origin – Suffolk, UK
Strength – Mild
This cheese is made within White Wood Dairy in Suffolk by cheese producers Julie Cheyney. This cheese comes within a wooden box, wrapped in a delicate rind. It is made from raw protein rich milk cheese from Montbeliarde cows using traditional making method from the Alps. It provided a very soft smooth cheese which tasted milk and buttery. Literally it spread on crackers like butter and melted in the mouth. This cheese is the most creamiest and milkiest cheese I have ever had.
For more in depth information on all the cheeses click on the sub headings and you’ll be able to learn more about the cheese itself and the cheese producers.
Along with the cheese I was also sent some Peter Yard crispbreads.
Peter’s Yard Sourdough Crispbreads Original
Made from a Swedish recipe here in the UK these huge sourdough crispbreads did not disappoint. Large and thin with a great crunch these crackers worked beautifully with all cheeses. The sourdough is fed daily and allowed to ferment for 16 hours before each is batched and baked.
Cooking with cheese
With some of the cheese I decided to cook with it.
Blue Cheese Tart with Apple and Shallots
If you love cheesy tarts then this Blue Cheese tart is a must. As it provides a sweet but yet tangy bite.
Ingredients (makes 2 individual tarts)
- Ready rolled Shortcrust Pastry
- 18g Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 375g apples, cored and sliced into 1/4 inch thick slices
- 125g shallots, peeled, and sliced into 1/4 inch thick slices
- 1 branch of thyme, leaves removed
- 28g Binham Blue, crumbled
- Sat and pepper
Method
- Preheat oven to 180c.
- In a large bowl, toss together apples, shallots, 4g extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper and thyme leaves. Spread onto large baking sheet and roast tossing occasionally, until the mixture is tender and golden, about 30 minutes.
- Lightly oil two individual tart trays. Place the shortcrust pastry within each tart tray.
- Scatter over the apple mixture over the shortcrust in tin. Then scatter over crumbled blue cheese on top. Drizzle with oil and season.
- Transfer pan to oven and bake until crust is golden brown and cheese has just melted, approximately 17 minutes.
- Serve straight away with some salad or by itself.
Figs with Blue Cheese
Ingredients
- 6 fresh Figs
- 225g Binham Blue
- 2 tbsp Olive Oil
- 1 tspn Thyme leaves
- 2 tbsp honey
- Pepper
- Walnuts, small handful chopped
Method
- Preheat oven to 180c.
- Trim the stem and cut x from the top down 3/4 down of each fig.
- Arrange on a baking tray, drizzle with olive oil and bake for 5 minutes.
- Remove from oven and stuff each with crumbled blue cheese and sprinkle with thyme. Drizzle over honey and bake for 10 minutes.
- Remove from oven, season with pepper and serve with some salad.
Mushroom Cheesy Toastie
Creamy full flavoured cheddar always works great in cheesy toasties but a cut loaf and stuffed with mushrooms makes this sandwich even more indulgent. Creamy, milky, and nutty explosion.
Ingredients
- Closed Cup Mushrooms, handful
- 1 tspn Thyme, leaves chopped
- Loaf of bread
- Norfolk Dapple cheese, grated
- Butter
Method
- Slice mushrooms and add along with thyme into a pan with some butter. Fry for a few minutes over a medium heat. Season and set aside.
- Slice loaf of bread.
- Grate the cheese.
- Add cheese to one slice of bread and top with mushrooms.
- Place other slice of bread on top and place sandwich in heated frying pan with butter over medium heat.
- Flip and push down every so often with spatula and cook until crisp on each side and cheese melted within sandwich.
- Serve with some salad.
Courgette, Bacon and Brie Gratin (by goodfood magazine)
This dish is a great summery dish for anyone who loves courgettes, bacon and cheese. Provides plenty of flavour and bite.
Ingredients (serves 4)
- 3 tbsp Olive Oil
- 600g Courgettes, sliced
- 4 Rashers of Smoked Back Bacon, chopped
- 1 Onion, chopped
- 1 Garlic, crushed
- 200g Risotto Rice
- 150ml Dry White Wine
- 850ml Vegetable Stock made with Bouillon Powder
- 160g Baron Bigod brie
Method
- Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a large saucepan, tip in the courgettes and fry for 10-12 minutes until golden. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
- Heat the remaining oil in the pan and add the bacon, onion and garlic. Fry on a low heat for about 8 minutes or until softened and lightly golden.
- Tip in the rice and stir until the grains start to pop.
- Pour in the wine and let absorb into the rice. Stir well, then pour in about one third of the hot stock and increase the heat to moderate. Cook, stirring frequently, until the stock is absorbed. Repeat with the remaining stock, in two batches. This should take about 20 minutes, and the rice should be tender.
- Preheat the grill on its highest setting. Remove the rice from the heat, gently fold in the courgettes and season to taste. Tip everything into a big flameproof dish. Slice the brie and lay on top of the rice. Put the dish under the hot grill for approx. 4 minutes until the brie is bubbling.
Plus to accompany the cheeses which I ate with the Peters Yards Sourdough Crispbreads I made some homemade chutney as there is nothing quite like a homemade chutney.
Fig chutney
Love a sweet chutney with plenty of texture then this fig chutney will not disappoint.
Ingredients
- 100g light brown sugar
- 120ml apple cider vinegar
- 300g fresh figs, chopped
- 1 apple, peeled, cored and diced
- 1 white onion, finely chopped
- 50g sultanas
- 1 tsp sea salt
Method
- Put all the ingredients into a pan and bring to a gentle simmer for an hour uncovered. Stir occasionally.
- When sticky and jammy remove and spoon into a jar. Leave to cool before using and refrigerating.
Verdict
Upon tasting all the different East Anglia cheeses from Slate it is easy to see why many producers within Norfolk and Suffolk have won many awards over the decades for their outstanding cheese. Each and every cheese I enjoyed. All were superb, fresh, great texture and loaded with flavour.
So if you are looking for fresh, outstanding and award winning cheese then I highly recommend checking out Slate. Plus Slate customer services are more than happy to help you choose the right cheese for you. Be it if your looking for a cheese which is soft, hard or punchy in flavour they will be able to help.
Slate also sell hampers of cheese and cakes made out of stacks of cheese which are a perfect gift for any cheese lover in your life.
Make your cheese board special with Slate or bring a smile to your cheese loving friend.
Slate order your cheese now
Slate Cheese Limited
138 High Street
Aldeburgh
Suffolk
IP15 5AQ
and
Slate Cheese Limited
6 Victoria Street
Southwold
Suffolk
IP18 6HZ
Customer services: 020 3603 4736 (9am – 5pm Monday to Saturday)
Email: saycheese@slatecheese.co.uk
Check out their full range of
Cheeses
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Accompaniments
Occasion cheese
Thank you to Slate for the most delicious cheese. All views are my own honest opinion.
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