If there was one thing that I had to eat the rest of my life, I might very well choose cheese. I am a total cheese addict. I actually don’t think a day goes by where I don’t have cheese in one form or another. But the thing is – I am not a cheese expert by any means. I’m very “American” with my cheese – you know, usually only eating the kinds that come in blocks in the dairy section at the grocery store. I have been trying to branch out a bit since I started blogging, and fortunately, I have started seeing more imported cheeses at my local grocery store.
So when the folks at Ile de France contacted me and asked if I’d like to be part of a program where I get to sample an imported cheese each month, I jumped on it as fast as I could. This would be a great opportunity for me to become more familiar with more than just the block cheeses. They’ve asked me to be honest in my reviews, so each month I will show the cheese and give you my honest opinion.
The first cheese that came to me is called Saint Andre. It is a soft cheese who’s texture reminded me of brie. I decided that with each cheese, I’m going to try it in a simple way where the cheese flavor shines – like on a cracker – and also try the cheese in some sort of recipe. On the company’s website, they call the Saint Andre “heavenly” and I think that is the perfect word to describe it. The minute I tried this on my crackers, I knew it was a cheese I was going to fall in love with. It is really creamy and rich – yet I had a hard time not eating the whole wedge of cheese just on my crackers! Once I finally pulled myself away, I decided to make a panini for lunch with the cheese. The panini was a combination of eggplant, prosciutto, and the cheese and it was a perfect lunch. I was actually surprised how well the cheese melted and became nice and gooey – just how cheese should be on a panini! The cheese taste came through very well and was the star of the sandwich!
For more information on this cheese, click here, and for locations to find this cheese near you, click here.
Grilled Eggplant, Prosciutto and Cheese Panini
inspired by 30-Minute Meals
makes one sandwich
1 slice of eggplant, about 1/4 inch thick
extra virgin olive oil
1 slice prosciutto
St. Andre cheese
mixed baby greens
1 foccacia roll
Brush both sides of the eggplant with olive oil. On a pre-heated panini press, grill the eggplant.
Assemble the cheese, eggplant, prosciutto and greens on the foccacia roll. Grill on the panini press until browned and the cheese has melted.
What delightful panini! Really droolwothy!
Cheers,
Rosa
If they asked me to sample cheese monthly I’d think I had died and gone to heaven. I love cheese. And I adore Saint Andre! the panini looks yummy!!
Oh my goodness–I’m so envious! I’d love to have a new cheese sent to me in the post each month.
But I really shouldn’t complain, as we do have our own local cheese shop with an amazing selection (and tasty crackers too)…
Definitely looking forward to the next post in the ‘cheese of the month’ feature!
K x
A cheese taster? How fun! The panini looks perfecto!
Cheese of the month? Holy YUM. Great thing you got signed up for!
So jealous! What a great opportunity for you!! Enjoy! And we will enjoy your reviews and recipes. Yum, yum!
What a great opportunity – trying a new cheese each month! I am with you, I couldn’t live without my cheese fix each day!
Ommygoodness! That sandwich looks absolutely amazing. I love eggplant and cheese. So glad you’re doing a bit of an expose on cheese! I love cheese (although I’m not sure I’d choose it over dessert)!
A new cheese every month? Sounds awesome.
the panini looks absolutely delicious! great review.
I’m going to have to get my hands on some of this cheese. Yum!
St. Andre is one of my favorite cheeses! How lucky you are to be in this cheese of the month program!
Ok I’m so jealous of you getting to taste all these cheeses
This looks and sounds fabulous! I definitely need to try this cheese.
Oh gosh what fun cheese tasting Debs. The panini looks scrummy.
The cheese and sandwich do look heavenly. I really need to try more cheeses! I like how you used the eggplant, yummmmy!
Mmm…no convincing necessary! St. Andre is a favorite and I enjoy it just smeared on a piece of crusty bread. Yum!
I am loving the sopund of he Pannini
You lucky dog! We branched out from cheddar and swiss when we went to a wine tasting and could not get over how good some wines tasted with different cheese. We were lucky to discover some of the larger grocery stores in town had the cheese. Now we have our own special nights with a bottle of wine and different cheeses and a what my wife calls a womans movie.
This is the perfect flavor combination!
Yum! Have you submitted this to the Grilled Cheese Academy yet? http://www.grilledcheeseacademy.com/submitrecipe
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