Champion cheeses on our doorstep
Serve local farmhouse cheeses as a simple dessert over the festive season or use them as ingredients in delicious soufflés.
Darina Allen tells you how
The other day I was called to the phone. One of our local cheesemakers Jane Murphy had to speak to me urgently. What could the problem be? Jane was breathless with excitement: she had just learned that her Ardsallagh Honey Mustard goat cheese had won a gold medal at the prestigious British Cheese Awards. I too was thrilled: I know how hard farmhouse cheesemakers work.
It was Jane's first time entering the awards and when she arrived and saw the incredibly high stardard, she wondered what she was doing there.
The Ardsallagh Honey Mustard is a new cheese which Jane developed specially to sell at the Farmers Markets. It's sold open as a fresh cheese, coated with sweet wholegrain mustard, a perfect marriage of flavours. Its not the prettiest looking cheese in their range, but it outsells all others. People are more familiar with her chive and black pepper variety but once they taste this they are hooked, its popularity has amazed her.
By the time Jane and her daughter Louise roll into the Midleton Farmers Market at 9.30am on Saturday morning, they have milked 350 goats and made 800 cheeses to the strains of Lyric FM. Jane loves classical music and loves when Ailsa the travelling busker plays Schubert and the Brandenburg Concertos on her cello at the Midleton Farmers Market.
Jane and her husband Gerard moved from Wicklow to Carrigtwohill, Co Cork in early 1999. They bought a 35-acre farm and started to experiment.
At first they made soft cheese and then a hard cheese and it was this that they tentatively offered to the first discerning customers at the market.
Jane encouraged everyone to taste and very soon the customers were suggesting new variations. Soft goat's cheese was enrobed in freshly chopped chives and cracked black pepper.
For Christmas, Jane topped her baby Ardsallagh with some cranberry sauce and another with Membrillo quince paste – a marriage made in heaven.
The curd to make fresh cheeses is hand-ladled into moulds, a method known as "à la louche". It has to be ladled in slowly and allowed time to settle after each ladle because the curd is very fine and makes a delicate set, so it must be built up very slowly.
After 24 hours the curd is turned and a further 24 hours later the soft cheeses are ready to be packed for restaurants and cheese shops. The remainder goes to local shops, some discerning supermarkets and of course the Midleton Farmers Market. Jane also sells at farmers markets in Douglas, Naas, Dún Laoghaire Peoples Park, Marley Park, Ranelagh and Bray and Barry Tyner sells her cheese in Clonakilty and Ennis markets.
Jane and her team work incredibly hard and are passionate about quality. They love what they do. The income from the cheesemaking enables them to add value to their goats' milk and stay on the farm they cherish.
We in Ireland are fortunate to have access to such a variety of delicious farmhouse cheeses, why not serve them proudly to family and friends when entertaining during the festive season.
?More Easy Entertaining by Darina Allen will be published on 5 December Price: €33