It’s a cookbook, yes, but it’s also a virtual travel guide for anyone who loves — and appreciates — Wisconsin cheese.
The new “Wisconsin Cheese Cookbook” by Kristine Hansen (Globe Pequot, $24.95) provides snapshots of 28 artisan creameries around the state, introducing readers to not just their products but the people (and adorable animals) behind them.
Organized by quadrant of the state, the book makes it easy for a cheese lover to plan a road trip.
Hansen herself visited 90 percentof the creameries while researching her book; the others she had been to before.
One of the most fun to visit, according to Hansen, is Door County Creamery. A visit begins at the creamery and shop in Sister Bay (try some goat’s milk gelato, pick up some goat’s milk soap) and then proceeds to the farm, where, according to Hansen, “you can do goat yoga with the goats.”
“And you get to taste the cheeses while you’re looking at the goats,” she added. “There’s not a deeper connection than that.”
Southwestern Wisconsin, arguably the epicenter of Wisconsin cheese, has the largest representation, with 13 creameries, including Carr Valley, Crave Brothers and Uplands; here in the southeast there are just three: Clock Shadow Creamery, Highfield Farm Creamery and Hill Valley Dairy. The northeast includes BelGioso, LaClare and Satori; the northwest, Holland’s Family Cheese and Yellow Door Creamery, among others.
Though she has written about Wisconsin cheese before, Hansen did encounter some surprises on her trek.
“The cheesemakers are far more humble than I thought,” she said. “I arrived at Hook’s in Mineral Point and he didn’t even have a chair or stool I could sit on. These cheeses are sold all over the country, and yet they’re very primitive operations.”
Likewise, at Roelli Cheese Haus in Shullsburg, owner and cheesemaker Chris Roelli “was a little bit late because he was still out milking the cows. He walked in in his boots.”
The camaraderie among cheesemakers was another thing she wasn’t expecting to find.
“There’s not a sense of competitiveness,” she said, noting that some smaller cheesemakers will even bundle their out-of-state shipments together to save money.
Perhaps such cooperation is possible because so many of them have been successful.
Initially, the publisher, who approached Hansen about writing the book, said he wanted her to target creameries that had won awards.
“I said, ‘Well, that’s everybody!’ “ (In the back of the book, Hansen fills eight pages with major awards won by these Wisconsin cheesemakers over the last two years.)
So Hansen made her choices based on creameries that had an interesting story, or perhaps an ethnic heritage dating back generations. Some cheese operations she profiles were started in the 1800s, while others are less than five years old.
In addition to creameries, the book includes one-page accounts of a dozen or so chefs, restaurants and retailers around the state “who are true champions of cheese and who use artisan Wisconsin cheeses on their menu.” Examples: Fromagination cheese shop in Madison, Dave Swanson of Milwaukee’s Braise restaurant, Canoe Bay resort near Chetek.
Other helpful features include a guide to cheese retailers across the state and a list of annual cheese events in Wisconsin (though it should be noted that Green County Cheese Days occurs only in even years).
And then there are the recipes, 92 of them, almost all collected from the cheesemakers themselves.
“That’s what makes them so special,” Hansen said. “They’re not just recipes used in their marketing materials. A lot are recipes that as a family they enjoy at home.”
Look for standards with a twist, like Tuscan mac ’n’ cheese, simple recipes like a three-cheese fondue and elaborate creations such as Chocolate Ravioli with Chocolate Ganache, Goat Cheese and Raspberry Coulis.
“This is a book for people who already know they love Wisconsin cheese but maybe want to know more about the face and the maker behind the cheese,” Hansen said. Referencing the recipes, she said she hopes readers will be inspired to “think about cheese as a 24-hour ingredient that can be used in both sweet and savory ways.”
“Wisconsin Cheese Cookbook” is sold at a variety of bookstores including Boswell Books in Milwaukee, Books & Company in Oconomowoc and Barnes & Noble, as well as on Amazon.
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Author events
You can meet Kristine Hansen and learn more about the “Wisconsin Cheese Book” at the following events:
April 3: 7 p.m. at Books & Company, 1039 Summit Ave., Oconomowoc, in conversation with Lori Fredrich from OnMilwaukee.com.
April 20: 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. book signing and cheese tasting at The Oxbow Hotel, 516 Galloway St., Eau Claire.
May 2: 5-7 p.m. Hunt Club Steakhouse, at Geneva National Resort, Lake Geneva. Cost: $20 a person, includes a 6-foot cheese-board spread and mac ’n’ cheese.
May 16: 6 p.m. at the Grafton Public Library, 1620 11th Ave., Grafton, in celebration of its 30th anniversary.
RECIPES
Both of these recipes are from “Wisconsin Cheese Cookbook.” Buttermilk blue cheese crumbles top this healthy salad from Emmi Roth in Monroe.
Harvest Couscous Salad with Buttermilk Blue
Makes 8 servings
Salad:
- 3 cups peeled, cubed butternut squash
- 2 tablespoons olive oil (divided)
- Pinch of salt and pepper
- 1 ½ cups dry Israeli couscous
- 4 ounces fresh baby spinach
- ½ cup dried cranberries
- ½ cup chopped almonds
- 1 container (4 ounces) Roth buttermilk blue cheese crumbles
Maple vinaigrette:
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 2 to 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- ¾ to 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- ¼ teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon dried or fresh parsley flakes
- Salt and pepper to taste
Prepare salad: Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Toss squash with 1 tablespoon olive oil and salt and pepper on baking sheet. Roast in preheated oven 30 minutes, turning after the first 15 minutes.
Cook couscous according to package instructions and drain. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil.
Mix spinach, squash, and couscous in a bowl, then add dried cranberries and almonds.
Make maple vinaigrette: Whisk together dressing ingredients. Pour over squash- couscous mixture and stir to mix. Fold in buttermilk blue crumbles, reserving a few to sprinkle on top.
Salad can be served warm immediately, or store in refrigerator and serve cold.
*****
Creamy goat cheese works well in sweet as well as savory dishes, as this brownie recipe from LaClare Family Creameryshows.
Goat Cheese Brownies
Makes one 8-inch-square pan of brownies
Brownies:
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
- 4 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 4 ounces LaClare Family Creamery original goat cheese, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ cup flour
- ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
Frosting:
- 6 tablespoons (¾ stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 6 ounces LaClare original goat cheese, room temperature
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
Glaze:
- 6 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
- 4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter
- 6 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
Make brownies: Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line an 8-by-8-inch baking pan with foil and apply vegetable oil spray.
In a mixing bowl, microwave butter and chopped chocolate in 20-second increments, stirring until melted. Whisk in granulated sugar. Cool to room temperature.
Whisk in eggs one at a time until thick and shiny, then add goat cheese and vanilla. Sift flour, cocoa and salt over bowl and stir gently with a spatula. Scrape batter into baking pan in an even layer.
Bake in preheated oven 45 to 50 minutes, until a toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs clinging to it. Cool completely before frosting.
Make frosting: Mix butter and goat cheese on medium speed of electric mixer until light and fluffy, then add powdered sugar, vanilla and salt, beating on low speed until sugar is mixed in. Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy.
Spread frosting over cooled brownies in pan. Refrigerate 20 minutes before glazing.
Make glaze: Heat cream and butter in a small saucepan over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Pour over chopped chocolate in a bowl and let sit 1 minute.
Whisk chocolate and cream together until smooth and shiny. Pour over brownies and smooth into an even layer.
Refrigerate brownies until glaze is firm, at least 45 minutes.
To cut brownies, lift from pan using foil. Cut into small squares. Wash knife in warm water between cuts for the cleanest cuts. Brownies are easiest to cut when cold, but for the best taste and texture, let sit at room temperature 20 minutes before eating.
