Posts Tagged ‘tete de moine’

Tete de Moine: Swiss Cheese That Complements Any Dish

Thursday, February 10th, 2011

Have you heard of the Tete de Moine cheese? If you’re tired of buying different kinds of cheese for different kinds of dish then this cheese is the solution to your dilemma. Tete de Moine, in English translation, is monk’s head. This refers to the bald head monks in Bellelay, Switzerland. This cheese dates back to 1520, made at the Swiss Alps called Bernese Jura.  Tete de Moine is defining what real gourmet Swiss cheese is all about. It is a true masterpiece of cheese making. This Swiss cheese is an unpasteurized cow’s milk that is cooked lightly. The aroma is simply amazing. Its flavor is so complex and this particular cheese exhibits much more flavor and aroma compared to other Swiss cheeses. It is truly a fantastic gourmet Swiss cheese.

Cutting the Cheese
Tete de Moine cheese is very aromatic even before you cut them into pieces. To be able to experience the full extent of its aroma and flavor, it would be best to have it shaved with a knife into thin slices. A wonderful tool that is so perfect for shaving this cheese is the Swiss made Girolle. This tool is specially designed for accenting cheese platters and making perfect cheese rosettes. This will give you a perfect shaving with your Tete de Moine cheese at a minimum effort.  But if you don’t have this particular tool, you can use your knife. You can thinly cut the top off with your knife and then shave it.

Keeping it Fresh
To keep the freshness of your Tete de Moine, store this cheese in the refrigerator. You can wrap it with aluminum foil or a waxed paper can also be very useful. You can serve this gourmet cheese with almost anything. It is certainly fantastic to serve it in fresh salad. You can mix it with fruits like apples and grapes. It also complements well with prosciutto or other cured meats. You can put in on top of crackers or for whatever food that you will serve it with. When you use this Swiss cheese, rest assured that there won’t be any leftovers.

You can buy Tete de Moine Swiss cheese in gourmet cheese stores or you can also order it online thru online cheese shops. Although it would be best to buy it on cheese shops so you can really check the quality of the cheese, buying this cheese online through the Ideal Cheese website will be as good as buying it in your local retail cheese store. You may also ask the stores cheese expert for some advice on what is the best wine that you can pair with this cheese. Before you buy Tete de Moine cheeses just make sure the shop you are buying is trusted in selling authentic cheeses. This cheese is certainly worth the price.  If you are looking to buy for the top quality Swiss cheese, then Tete de Moine cheese is the right choice. So go and try one now!

Tete de Moine Cheese: Real Gourmet Swiss Cheese

Wednesday, September 1st, 2010

The real masterpiece among all Swiss cheeses is the Tete de Moine, and is by all accounts the definition of a true gourmet cheese. This particular Swiss cheese is only produced in nine dairies in the northwestern portion of the Swiss Alps called the Bernese Jura, a part of Switzerland where French is the predominate language.

According to history, Tete de Moine is the “Cheese of the Monks” since it was thought to have been produced by the monks at the Bellelay abbey dating as far back as 1192. However, the Tete de Moine has only been fully noted for production and sale in 1520. Originally, this cheese was referred to as Fromage Bellelay, after the place where it was produced but was renamed Tete de Moine in 1970.

The literal English translation of Tete de Moine is “monks head”, referring to the tax (paid with cheese) by the abbey to the French kings and the shaved circular bald spot on the monks’ heads.

Tete de Moine is an unpasteurized, pressed curd cheese made from pure cow’s milk that is lightly cooked. The milk used to produce the Tete de Moine is delivered to the local dairy twice a day to make sure that it is fresh. The milk is then processed within modern facilities but without forgetting traditional cheese making methods. Although the taste of the Tete de Moine is very similar to other Swiss cheeses, the Swiss government emphasizes that it is NOT a factory made cheese.

Tete de Moine is served in small wheels and is cut using a griolle – a tool that allows perfect shaving with minimum effort. and has either a sticky or a hard brown outer rind that depends on the dairy. Its interior paste is firm and comes in straw color, but darkens as it ages. The unique feature of the Tete de Moine is that it ages from the outside to the inside, so the part closer to the rind looks darker or browner. This feature is often mistaken by some first time Tete de Moine tasters as a sign of poor quality.

One very distinctive feature of the Tete de Moine is its aroma. Aside from its natural brown edges, it gives off a very delectable smell even before cutting it. It smells like roasted nuts mixed with earthy wine and musty wood that will transform any room into a cheese heaven. When you taste the Tete de Moine, you will get a full bodied flavor as well as very complex hints of nuts and sweet fruit.

Ask any cheese monger, and they will tell you that the Tete de Moine cheese has much more flavor and smells greater than Emmental and Gruyere. If you are looking for a real gourmet Swiss mountain style cheese, then the Tete de Moine is your best choice. Go and try one today!