The Cheese Book

This little book (mine is paperback) is one of my favorite of all time. Two women, amateurs, head to Europe in order to try cheeses. In the process they receive an education in all facets of the cheese industry from animals to growing to types to - best of all - the history behind a number of popular cheeses.They are adventuresome eaters and what is particularly endearing about the pair is their unabashed enthusiasm for their product as they sample and smell and spoon all manner of things. No sophisticated air or silent nod of the head from these two. They traipse through country after country in Europe eating as they go. The chapters are divided into logical categories - mainly by types of cheese - "aromatic", cheddars, blues, Double and Triple Cremes), Monastery, etc. They present a good discussion of the pros and (mostly) cons of "pasteurization" and the resulting blandness in the American diet.Some parts of the book are hilarious - the Goat cheese contest is worth the price of the book alone. The recipes are simply an added bonus with the tip of the hat going to the beer Welsh Rarebit - a snack of divine origins.

I came upon this book long after it swept into thousands of American homes via Book Clubs. (1960's) At that time it must have been considered an incredible resource as cheeses (beyond the standards) were still largely unfamiliar commodies to most. It may have been a bit overly-thorough for the average reader at that time. Today we are on the whole a lot more cheese-savvy in this country and there are wonderful cheeses to be found near at hand. It's wonderful to find a book that takes the time to go into all the various aspects of cheese-making, buying, storing, serving, as well as covering the fascinating history of cheese down through the ages. Every possible type of cheese seems to be covered - it's amazing how many there are!Then finally one comes to the recipes - not many, but all use basic ingredients, are quite simply prepared and incredibly tasty. They've all worked well for me (and I've tried most all of them.) The cheddar cheese soup is easy to prepare and is one of the best I've ever tasted. It's the two creamy onion soups with cheese (one with a hard sharp cheese like cheddar, one with parmesan) that are the piece de resistance for me in this fine book. I consider the book worth it for the soup recipes alone! If you like cheese -- ANY kind of cheese -- grab yourself a copy of this now out-of-print book!