Marie Fromage

Guided Cheese Tasting Classes & Parties!

NEXT CLASSES & EVENTS:

 June, July & August (New York, NY):

French Cheese 101 Tasting Classes @ French Cheese Board
 

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO & TICKETS

 

 

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MARIE FROMAGE CHEESE TASTING CLASSES IN NJ:
A UNIQUE CULINARY EXPERIENCE!

Cheese is a many splendored thing - indulge in a delicious, gourmet cheese tasting! These classes are perfect for the cheese curious as well as the newly obsessed. I will take you on a decadent cheese-themed culinary tour around the country and across the ocean through a sampling of several artisanal cheeses. You will sample cheese treats sourced from specialty cheese shops in New York City as well as finds from right in your own backyard.

 

By the end of the tasting you will know the difference between a bloomy rind, a natural rind and everything in between. We will discuss how to put together a cheese board for a party, wine and beer pairing ideas, proper cheese storage and how to approach a cheese counter.

*What’s included:

• Samples of artisanal cheeses
  
  
• Bread, nuts, dried fruit, dark chocolate and other accompaniments
  
  
• Cheese reference sheet chock full of info to help guide you after the class
  
  
• Length of class is approximately one hour

I teach these classes at special event spaces within the Montclair, N.J. region. You may also hire me to host a private, customized tasting at your home or preferred event space. Consider a guided cheese tasting class as part of a dinner party, cocktail event, birthday party, anniversary party, bachelor/bachelorette party - really, any event you'd like to make just a little different! For more info contact me: mariefromageATverizonDOTnet

Some photos of past events:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Montclair Food & Wine Festival Takes Town By Storm

The third annual Montclair Food & Wine Festival revved up the local restaurant scene last week with four events featuring chef’s tastings, delicious wines, craft beers, artisanal cocktails, live music and crowds of happy eaters. And good vibes – some of the proceeds for these events went to benefit some very worthy causes.*

GALA!

The week began with the elegant Gala Dinner and auction at The Manor that featured wine-paired plates from FIN Raw Bar & Kitchen, renown chefs Arian Duarte (Ariane Kitchen & Bar), Ryan DePersio (Fascino), Mitchell Altholz (Highlawn Pavilion), Michael Carrino (Pig & Prince), Francesco Palmieri (Orange Squirrel), Zod Arifai (Blu and Next Door), Kevin Sippel (Jockey Hollow Bar & Kitchen), Meny Vaknin (Mish Mish) and Thomas Ciszak (Chakra and Blue Morel). The wines were curated by Amanti Vino.

BOOK PARTY & BITES

Next up was ‘The Kitchen’ Book Party & Bites, a delightful evening that took place at Watchung Booksellers and featured Geoffrey Zakarian, Katie Lee and Sunny Anderson, stars from the Food Network show “The Kitchen” who were on-hand to greet fans and sign copies of their cookbooks.
Tasty treats from the cookbooks were prepared by Tiny Elephant for fans to enjoy while waiting to meet their Food Network favorites.

 

 

 

BOURBON & BIERGARTEN

Friday evening brought the party outside with the casual “Bourbon & Biergarten” event which took place on the stately grounds of the Montclair Art Museum. 

 

Small batch bourbons, cocktails and craft beers were featured(Hudson Pale Ale was a favorite), along with the food that loves them – think burgers (BURG; Anderson's 1949), grilled sausages (Pig & Prince), tacos with a twist (Kimchi Smoke), grilled corn (Villalobos), cheese (La Panzanella Artisanal Foods Co.) and pretzels sticks(and even pretzel-shaped donuts, courtesy of Montclair Bread Company) and many others. Sweet cravings were satisfied by The Pie Store, Gelotti, Jaret's Stuffed Cupcakes and more. New Orleans-inspired live music was provided by the Street Beat Brass Band and added a jaunty note to the balmy night. Here are some highlights:

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

GRAND TASTING

The Saturday night “Grand Tasting” bash rounded out the week with even more chef tastings both savory & sweet, wines & cocktails curated by Amanti Vino and live jazz performed by The Jack Ferguson Trio. Leir Hall at the Montclair Art Museum set the stage for this sophisticated event. 

 
The Grand Tasting event is so popular that some folks come every year. “I like the people that come and you get to try different things from different restaurants,” said attendee Regina Schenker. “It’s an easy way to try a restaurant. I like that”.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I can’t wait for next year to see what organizer Melody Kettle and her team come up with. Until then, visions of curry chicken sliders and elderflower rum punch will be dancing in my head.   

*Portions of the proceeds from the Montclair Food & Wine Festival events went to support the following organizations:

St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital 

Intensive Therapeutics

MACHE - Montclair Academy for Culinary Hospitality Education

 

 

Copyright ©Marie Fromage All Rights Reserved; Photos by Marie Fromage except where noted.

 

 

 

The Kitchen Book Party & Bites Heats Up Montclair

Montclair folks love their food. Montclair folks also love the celebrities that live and work there. Case in point, the enthusiastic turn-out for the “The Kitchen Book Party & Bites” that took place last night at Watchung Booksellers & Tiny Elephant.

This lively and fun event was part of the Montclair Food & Wine Festival taking place this week.  

Food Network show “The Kitchen”, produced by BSTV Entertainment, is filmed in Montclair and several of the show’s hosts, Geoffrey Zakarian, Katie Lee and Sunny Anderson were on-site to greet fans and sign copies of their cookbooks.

 

 

 

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 Tiny Elephant prepared and served samples of recipes from the chef’s cookbooks, including a chocolate bread pudding, a cold beet soup, lamb meatballs and a cocktail made with elderflower, Busted-Barrel rum and Blue J Syrups

It was a steamy night outside, but Montclair food fans took the heat and went straight to The Kitchen!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

TONIGHT – Montclair Food Festival event #3 - “Bourbon & Biergarten”, outside on the grounds of the Montclair Art Museum. This casual event will feature live music, fine bourbons, craft beers and food samples from over 25 local purveyors. Sounds like a good time to me! Get your tickets HERE.

Copyright ©Marie Fromage All Rights Reserved; Photos by Marie Fromage except where noted.

 

VERY Easy Baked Brie for A Crowd

This is more of a composition than a true recipe, a shopping list as opposed to a list of ingredients. However that said, I think you will appreciate the delicious ease of this cheesy treat for a crowd.

 Yield: about 10-12 people

Ingredients:

14oz Round of Brie

¼ - ½ Cup of Apricot Preserves (room temperature)

1 Package Puff Pastry, defrosted (recommended brand: Dufour)

1 Egg

1 Tbs. Water

1 Tbs. Flour (to be used for dusting surfaces) 

Equipment:

One Cookie Sheet

Parchment Paper (cut to fit the size of the cookie sheet)

Small Bowl

Fork or Small Whisk

Pastry Brush

How-To:

Pre-heat oven to 350°. Cut the parchment paper to size and place onto the cookie sheet. If the brie has been in the refrigerator, take it out and let it warm up a bit while the oven is pre-heating.

 

 I picked up this one at French Cheese Board, located on W. 39th St. near Bryant Park.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Take the puff pastry out of the refrigerator. Lightly dust the work surface with flour and unwrap the puff pastry.

Place the round of brie right in the middle. 

 

 

 

 

Spoon the apricot preserves onto the top of the brie. 

 

 

 

Wrap the brie with the puff pastry. Bring the corners together and form a twist at the top. Bring the edges in to the sides of the brie round and press the sides in to seal. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                         

 

Place brie-pastry package onto the cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Beat the egg with the water in a bowl to make the egg wash. Lightly brush the egg wash all over the brie-pastry package. This will give it a nice bown burnish and will help to seal it up as it bakes.

Bake for about 30 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and let it sit for about 5-10 minutes. Place on a decorative plate and serve it warm. Crackers and bread optional. This is very rich - it will pair nicely with a crisp white wine, prosecco or champagne. Enjoy!

 

 

Copyright ©Marie Fromage All Rights Reserved; Photos by Marie Fromage except where noted.

In The NY Times: A Brie Binge East of Paris

An article by Alexander Lobrano in this week's NY Times makes me want to drop eveything and go get some of my favorite bloomy rind right at the source.

Click here!

Marie Fromage's NYC Cheese Events Calendar

NYC is a cheesy town: check out my cheese events calendar where you can find out what cheese friends Martin Johnson, Wendy Crispell Wine, Murray's, Bedford Cheese shop, Saxelby Cheesemongers and others are up to!

This month is packed w/fromage fun, see what's happening today (click HERE)!

 

 

 

The Big Cheesy

The Big Cheesey - it is a sold-out gooey weekend cheese extravaganza now in its fourth year. This year it took place on April 12 & 13 at Openhouse Gallery.

 

 

 

 

 

 

One ticket gets you one hour, 2 beers and all the grilled cheese you can eat.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 And you have to vote for your favorite! It was tough to decide... 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And the winner (at least in my book) was the grilled pimento cheese with smoked mushrooms on sourdough from Brooklyn's Van Horn. It had that toasted cheese thing that makes my heart sing.

The official winner? 5 oz. Factory's delicious offering of provolone, havarti and brie with mushrooms, asparagus and a bit of of horseradish, all pressed together into bubbling cheesy perfection. Van Horn came in second, so I was close!

Proceeds for the event went to benefit the Food Bank for New York City. 

Blissfully cheesed-out, a good time was had by all.

 

 

 

Hoboken Mutzfest 2014

I live in Manhattan, and those who dwell here consider it to be the center of the universe, where the best of the best is readily available, including cheese. Little did I realize that I was about to be schooled in the ways of the mutz by a bunch of Italian American delis just across the river in New Jersey.

“Mutz” – that’s mozzarella to you and me. But in Hoboken they call it “mutz” and it was the focus of a boisterous celebration and competition at the Elk’s Club on Sunday January 26, organized by the Hoboken Family Alliance to benefit several local charities.

 Over 800 people turned out to sample the mutz making expertise of six of Hoboken’s finest Italian delis. 

M&P Biancamano, Losurdo Brother’s Deli, Vito’s Deli, Fran’s Deli, Gigi’s Rosticeria and Littletown, NJ presented abundant samples of their mutz to those lucky enough to attend and eat. And eat. And eat.

 

 

There was mutz on a sandwich, mutz with dried meats, mutz with jalapenos, mutz with olives and even mutz dipped in a chocolate fountain (yes indeed and not bad). Mutz quality ranged from excellent to absolutely divine. 

 

The event was sponsored by Polly-O, which supplied the raw curds. Yes, Polly-O of the supermarket cheese fame. Apparently they have some of the finest raw curd in the region for mutz making. Who knew?

Delis competed for the People’s Choice award as well as the Critic’s Choice award. Attendees were given a voting card and token and were instructed to cast their ballot after completing the tour of the mutz.

The winners…

 * M&P Biancamano  - won best mutz in the People’s Choice category as well as best sandwich in the Critic’s Choice category.

 * Vito’s Deli – best mutz in the Critic’s Choice category. 

Vito’s mutz was truly as good as they say – tender, silky and milky with just the right amount of brine. And I really liked M&B Biancamano’s mutz on a sandwich (even the bread was amazing).

But there were two legendary Hoboken delis that did not compete – Fiore's House Of Quality and Lisa’s. Fiore’s, in particular, is famous for a gigantic roast beef, brown gravy and mutz sandwich reportedly so good that it makes people willing to stand on line in the rain just to have it.

I may have to cross the river again just to find out.  

Hoboken Mutzfest: www.mutzfest.com

The Cheesemonger Invitational

What is it about cheese? What is it about that stinky substance with all kinds of weird textures, shapes and sizes that takes hold of the palate and possesses the soul?  Cheese obsession was as the front of my mind as I gazed upon the crowd at the 3^rd Annual Cheesemonger Invitational on June 23, held at the Larkin specialty food importer’s warehouse in Long Island City.

Larkin general manager and curd-obsessed ball of energy Adam Moskowitz, who also serves as the event’s MC, started the Cheesemonger Invitational in 2010.

CMI Founder Adam Moskowitz
(photo: Cheesemongerinvitational.com)

Over 100 star cheesemongers came from far & wide to perform feats of fromage knowledge, care and preparation during the daytime portion of the competition, which is closed to the public. 

Competitor Sarah Maine, of Saxelby Cheese (R) with pal Scott Sherratt (L)

The pool is eventually narrowed down to 10 contenders, with the final three evening challenges of precision cheese cut, wrap and plating revealing the true cheese champion (and this part is open to the public). 

 

 

 

 

The big cheese of the evening walks away with a $1,000 cash prize and some serious curd cred.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Hundreds of cheese industry folk and fans descended upon Larkin. Cheese as far as the eye could see, people as far as the eye could see.            

 

 

Glad to know that I'm not the only one obsessed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The vibe was a little bit Iron Chef and a little bit rock & roll underground rave.

A cheese gangsta T-shirt from Murrays.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cheese champ Steve Jones, of Cheese Bar (in Portland, OR) and last year's 2011 winner, provided this year's spread. Blue cheese ice cream anyone? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Event sponsors Neal's Yard Dairy , Rogue Creamery (and several others) provided their own tasty treats for the crowd to sample. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This guy over at the Rodolphe Le Meunier table was making raclette out of half a wheel of Morbier. Raclette out of Morbier? Zoot alors, how delish! 

 

 

 

 

 

And the winner is... Adam Smith from Cowgirl Creamery. Whey to go Adam! 

Winner Adam Smith (L) & CMI host Adam Moskowitz (R). Photo credit: JenMaler/www.facebook.com/CheesemongerInvitational

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Copyright © 2007-2012 Marie Fromage All Rights Reserved; Photos by Marie Fromage except where noted.

 

Spring Fun Fromage: Tarentaise Reserve

Throw open the doors and fling open the windows – the sun is out and spring is here! 

Today’s beautiful weather found me running errands around town and into Ideal Cheese Shop in Midtown.

The knowledgeable folks behind the counter turned me on to Spring Brook Farm Tarentaise Reserve: an aged, Alpine-style raw cow’s milk cheese from Vermont with a tangy, vague nutty stink. Hello gorgeous! You are coming with me to a rooftop party tonight!

They also introduced me to a crisp French Jenlain Printemps Ale paired with an aged Gouda. It’s a zoomy combo, perfect for park picnic fun, so keep that in mind for your next day date with your honey.

 

Copyright © 2007-2012 Marie Fromage All Rights Reserved; Photos by Marie Fromage except where noted.