Little Darling certainly lives up to its name – it’s a cute little cheese! Hailing from my home state of Wisconsin, this cow’s-milk cheese may be pasteurized, but it has all the spunk and tang of a raw-milk cheese. And unlike Lou Grant from “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” I like spunk!
Little Darling is made by Brunkow Cheese, an artisan cheesemaker that makes a full line of Old World-inspired cheeses. The cheese is aged for six weeks and has a firm, crumbly texture that makes it an excellent snacking cheese. As usual, I enjoyed mine with apples. Its flavor, however, reminded me of Parmigiano-Reggiano – it had the same salty bite. Like Parm, Little Darling could be shaved onto a green salad or served atop a pile of pasta. It definitely has the strength to stand up a tomato sauce or vinaigrette.
I neglected to ask my friend Ken at Premier Cheese Market about wine pairings (I know, my bad), but I could see myself enjoying Little Darling with a big Italian red. Being a Wisconsin cheese, Little Darling is likely compatible with beer, but since I’m not a beer drinker I couldn’t tell you which kind. Feel free to send in your suggestions!
March 4, 2009 at 12:26 am
[…] sheep, pinot grigio, wisconsin, carr valley, sid cook, marisa | While Jill is our resident Wisconsin cheese expert (as mentioned previously, I was raised on Tillamook curds myself), her influence over […]
July 20, 2009 at 10:58 am
[…] on the table for the first courses, besides the grilled veg, the last of my fennel-summer apple-Brunkow Little Darling, soon to be famous salad and shredded red cabbage with tons of garlic. Then we plated up the […]