Ditch the Kraft Singles! Four Cheeses to Try

Do you put tasty neon orange slices of American cheese on your grilled cheese sandwiches? Do you shake dry, tasteless, powdery parmesan cheese onto your spaghetti or lasagna? Do you fill your quesadillas with lots of "sharp" cheddar cheese? If that's the case, then I think that this article's for you. There's a whole world of cheese that you're completely and totally missing. I'm not telling you to go out and buy a big wheel of a stinky limburger or to completely give up your American cheese; I'm just suggesting that you try a little something new.

When most people think of Goat Cheese, they get a pretty distinct "gross" expression. After all, goats eat tin cans and garbage, why would you want to eat anything that comes out of them? The truth is that this is pretty much a bygone stereotype. Modern goats are raised well on farms as cleanly as any cow. Most of the commonly available goat cheese comes out of France and Spain, with different varieties in different degrees of firmness coming from different regions. In terms of flavor, goat cheese brings up the sort of problem that most people have with cheeses that are out of the common comfort zone. Unlike simple cheddar and other common sorts of cheeses, goat cheese has a strong flavor which may be unfamiliar to most. The flavor is very tart, with the tartness increasing as the cheese is ripened. I've found that one of the best ways to enjoy goat cheese is quite a simple one: top a cracker with a thin slice of goat cheese, and then add a drop of honey to the cheese. The sweetness of the honey goes really well with the flavor of the goat cheese, and it's quickly become a party favorite around here.

English Red Dragon cheese is a little less powerful (some may prefer "pungent") than goat cheese, but it's still very flavorful in its own right. Red Dragon is a sharp cheddar studded through with mustard seeds and a nice horseradish flavor. Now, when considering the other cheeses in this article, Red Dragon doesn't really fit. The rest of the cheeses are in general categories, but Red Dragon's pretty specific. Why? Well, it's because cheddar is a comfort cheese for a lot of people. So, why not include a cheese that's an excellent, relatively common variation on it. I've found that this cheese very rarely gets into any actual food: it's gobbled up long before that with crackers or just on its own. However, if you get a chance, it's a really great sandwich cheese. Its mustard flavor goes really well with ham of all varieties, especially proscuitto.

Feta is a name which is familiar to a lot of people. It's common to a lot of Greek treats and is a very versatile sort of cheese. Feta is produced in a slightly different fashion than many cheeses. The first thing most people notice is the texture. It feels a little like firm tofu: it's crumbly, but not terribly so. It's unique in that it's repeatedly salted then left to cure in a brine solution. This leaves it with a rather salty taste that many find nice on sandwiches. Because it is so thoroughly soaked in a salt solution, the cheese dries out fairly rapidly when removed from it. As a result, feta is almost always kept moist. That doesn't mean that the cheese is relegated to being used in salads. The cheese can be grilled and used as an appetizer, while it can also be used in sandwiches with mild meats or only vegetables.

Brie is another cheese with which many people are familiar in name but not in taste. Brie is from France and is sold with a layer of white mold covering the cheese within. The cheese is very soft, although a bit firmer than cream cheese, and has a very savory flavor. Like many other cheeses, its flavor becomes much more intense and bold as it ripens. It's best used as a cheese to be eaten plain, served with a nice wine as part of an appetizer course. In parts of France, the cheese is soaked in coffee with milk then eaten as a part of breakfast.

There you are. I've given you four cheeses, just four cheeses to try. You can eat them plain, in sandwiches, dipped in coffee, or breaded and fried in chunks. Just try them. Maybe you'll branch out. Good luck!