Blue cheese, stinky cheese, smelly cheese… all the same thing  for some people, usually the ones who do not like blue cheese. I, on the other hand love blue cheese! Nothing beats a wholewheat cracker, some blue cheese and a preserved fig after a meal.

Blue Cheese is a very wide term describing a white cheese, made with cow’s, goat’s or sheep’s milk to which the mold Penicillium  is added to give it the blue or grey veins and the very pungent smell! Blue cheese carries many names and Roquefort, Gorgonzola and Blue Stilton carry a protected designation of origin, which means it can only carry that name if it comes from that country or region.

Here in South Africa, I prefer Fairview Blue Rock! This full fat blue veined Roquefort style cheese, with its rich flavour and firm yet creamy texture, won a Gold Medal at the 2012 World Cheese Awards. First Prize at the 2010 South African National Dairy Championships.

Talking about awards, tomorrow I have been asked to join  the judges at the 180th Du Pont  SA Dairy Championships. This year 68 producers entered 821 products in the categories for butter, cheese, cottage cheese, yoghurt, flavoured milk, dairy dips, ice cream and dairy dessert. I am so looking forward to this event and to learn what the judging of all these products entails.

To get into the right mood, I made a lovely blue cheese souffle tonight and the best part is that I used only 5 ingredients…. yip, only 5!

Blue cheese Souffle with only 5 ingredients

makes 4 mini souffles

Ingredients

3 slices white bread – cut into small cubes

250 ml cream

3 eggs

3 ml nutmeg

100 g Fairview Blue Rock

Method

Preheat the oven to 180 C. Spray 4 ramekins with Spray ‘n Cook! Place the bread cubes in a bowl. In another bowl, pour the cream, eggs and nutmeg  and whisk. Pour the cream mixture over the bread cubes and mix. Crumble the cheese into the mixture and mix. Pour the mixture into the ramekins and bake for 12-15 minutes or until the souffles are puffed up and gold brown. Serve immediately with a green salad.

Tomorrow morning  just after the 9 o’clock news, I will be  talking to Mariana Rabie (Agri-Expo Marketing Manager) and Kobus Mulder (main judge) to find out more about the judging process. I will also be sharing this easy recipe with you!  Get ready to be amazed! I will also in weeks to come take you into the kitchens of other bloggers, chefs and interesting South Africans this year. So buckle up, it is going to be an awesome ride. Tune in 100-104FM or listen online here!