In my ginger shrimp post, Marianne asked about the Swedish vodka currant cheddar that I mentioned. Since I never pass up the opportunity to gush about all things Swedish, here's the low-down.

I first spotted this cheese in Ikea, of all places, years ago. However, I don't think it had the currant -- just Swedish vodka cheddar. It had a wonderful bite, and added an extra twist to the cheddar flavor. Unfortunately, it disappeared from Ikea's food department soon after. I've been on the hunt ever since. I've never found the same variety, but occasionally, Swedish vodka currant cheddar will pop up at cheese stores and some gourmet stores. Currently, I have VOD currant cheddar from Pusateri's in Toronto. (It's also available at igourmet.com.)

With the currant, it's pretty tasty. The currant flavor mixes with the bite of sharp cheddar for fruity kick without the lasting sweetness. It works extremely well with crackers -- especially ones covered in poppy and sesame seeds that can balance the fruitiness. However, if sweet is your thing, or you want to serve it for dessert, it's wonderful on its own with a good fruit beer.

We here at Slashfood actually had a grilled cheese day back in 2005, but today is the official Grilled Cheese Sandwich Day.

Everyone has their own way of making a grilled cheese. Some people are very strict and only use American cheese and white bread. Some get creative with their breads, and some add tomato and fresh basil.

The sandwich above, by the way, is this Breakfast Cinnamon-Raisin Apple Grilled Goat Cheese Sandwich.

But whatever you do, don't make this one. Trust me.

Had your fill of dyed green eggs and lime Jello? Here's a list of some more sophisticated Irish treats, in honor of Saint Patrick's Day.

1) Beef Stew. Chunks of tender beef, potatoes, a shake of Worcestershire sauce, all hot and bubbling. Is there anything better on a cold damp day?

2) Irish chocolate cake. As dark and moist as the soil of the Emerald Isle, kicked up a notch with a dash of Irish cream liquor.

3) Cream scones. Lightly sweet and crumbly, with a shiny top, these with raspberry jam and clotted cream make me wish America had more of a tea time tradition.

4) Irish cheddar fondue. Sharp Irish Cheddar with a glug of stout; try it with steamed Brussels sprouts or chunks of Irish brown bread for a humble, warming dinner with friends.

5) Bread-and-butter pudding. Chunks of slightly stale bread, lavishly buttered and soaked in custard, become a sublime comfort dessert.

6) Steak and kidney pie. Cooking kidneys is not for the faint-of-heart (hint: soak, soak, soak), but this rich, velvety pie will really stick to your ribs.

7) Irish oatmeal. These steal cut oats beat the pants of the insipid instant variety. Try them with fruit and yogurt.

8) Corned beef and cabbage. The ultimate nostalgia food for Irish-Americans, and a perfect slow-cooking Sunday dinner for the rest of us.

Wedginald, the bouncing, or would that be rolling, baby farmhouse cheddar and star of Cheddarvision TV is up for sale on eBay with the proceeds to benefit BBC Children in Need. At 44 pounds the West Country Farmhouse Cheddar is quite a big baby indeed. Of course the only reason I refer to him as a baby is that he's not quite mature. West Country Farmhouse Cheesemakers, small group of farmers in southwest England, says he should be ready to enjoy just before Christmas.

Way back when we first reported on Cheddarvision, Wedginald had yet to be named. While it's great that the little guy got a name, it's even better to learn that he's being auctioned off for a good cause. The auction ends on November 19 at 12:00 GMT. As of this writing, the bidding was up to £690 ($1,433.71). While I'm quite curious to see how much Wedginald fetches at auction the one nagging question remains. How on earth did the farmers figure out he was a boy?

[via: The Food Section]

OK, your guess is as good as mine.

I've been searching the interwebs, but I can't find anything that explains what this day means. I've found several sites that mention that it is indeed National Cheese Sacrifice Day, but none that go into detail as to what it is. When Wikipedia doesn't have something, you know it's odd. I guess we are left to speculate.

Does it mean that we buy some cheese and sacrfice it somehow, or does it mean we aren't allowed to eat cheese today, as a sacrifice?

Wikipedia does have a long page on cheese, so knock yourselves out. And here's out cheese category to browse.

Update: As a reader pointed out in the comments, it's actually Cheese Sacrifice Purchase Day. I've changed the headline but not the URL.

After pointing you to Wendy's new Design A Burger contest, I figured I'd point you to this site, since many of you eat pizza and not burgers.

It's the Random Pizza Generator, and it automatically chooses your crust, the types of cheese and all of your toppings for you. It's sort of like that idea Kramer had on Seinfeld, only you won't burn your fingers. The webmaster doesn't suggest you actually make the pizza you get, but if you do, take a picture of it and he'll post it.

The one I got was Smoked Gouda, Provolone, Cauliflowers, Salsa, Wurstel, and Spam. For the record, I am never making that.

Remember when we heard about the woman on the Maury Povich show that had a fear of pickles so intense that it was causing harm to her personal and professional relationships? Meet 29-year-old Dave Nunley, from Wyton in the UK. Nunley is not only afraid of pickles, but of every other food product out there - with the exception of cheddar cheese. He eats about 225 pounds of cheddar cheese, preferably grated, every year and has never eaten a hot meal in his entire life. On the rare occasions when he is able to tolerate other food, he will eat a packet of potato chips or some Ready Brek breakfast cereal. Nunley says that his food phobia is so intense that his "throat closes up, making him feel sick" when he even considers eating things other than cheese.

Doctors say that the cheese is keeping him alive, although it is not the healthiest diet you could subscribe to, as he would quite likely be starving to death if he didn't eat it. He has tried "hypnotherapy, acupuncture and even taken part in a BBC show about people with eating disorders" in attempts to cure the problem that has plagued him since childhood.

It could be worse, though. He could have settled on processed "cheese foods," like Velveeta, instead of mild cheddar.

I am not one of the people who likes cheese on top of my apple pie, despite that fact that apples and cheese go quite well together. But apple pie topped with cheese is a favorite for many people, including my grandmother, so when I first saw the recipe for Apple & Cheese Cake at English Patis, I immediately thought of her. The cake is only lightly sweetened and is generously filled with raisins, apples and cheese. It is much easier to make than a full apple pie, but it has a very similar flavor profile. For those who like the combination for dessert, it sounds like it would go perfectly well with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. For those who don't, the cake might make an interesting addition to the brunch table, as that is one meal where the lines of sweet and savory often are blurred. The primary benefit

So one of my duties this Christmas at my sister's house (I'm also making this) is to make a cheese and cracker platter that folks can munch on before and after the main meal. I've done them before, but they always turn out to be just very basic cheese and cracker snacks: a couple of different blocks of Kraft cheeses and a few different crackers. A very basic, low-cost type of thing, and it's OK.

But this year I want to do something different. I want to get a really good selection of nice cheeses and several different types of crackers to place around them. So I need your help! What kinds of cheeses and crackers would make a good selection for my family? Any tips or tricks you can give me to make it just a bit more than the usual "cheese and Ritz cracker" affair? Anything besides the cheese and crackers you'd put on the platter too? Fruit? Chocolate?

That pic on the right looks like a cool presentation.

There seem to be an endless variety of cookies that people trot out for the holidays. I know that I like to have a lot of variety when I'm just offering cookies (and perhaps hot chocolate) for dessert. Lex Culinaria has gone one better and made a batch o sweet and savory Cheddar and Cranberry Cookies. The cookies are very similar to shortbread, but with the salty tang of aged cheddar that makes them extremely snackable, much like a good cracker. The cookies are of the slice-and-bake variety, so the dough is rolled into logs and stored in the freezer. LC makes a very good point about how convenient it is to be able to just slice off a few rounds for baking when you want some, so you'll always have fresh snacks for entertaining and won't be overly tempted by having a huge batch sitting around.

"I want cheddar, but I'll settle for anything yellow."
"How can you eat that on your sandwich? Provolone is the best sandwich cheese."
"I prefer swiss."
"Get some Muenster, too!"
"And I want pepper jack."

This conversation, or one very much like it, plays over and over at family gatherings, barbecues and even during some weekend lunches. Cheese on sandwiches is a contentious issue and no one seems to be able to agree on what best complements their turkey, cold cuts or even tops a hamburger, for that matter. Can you narrow it down to just one type of cheese so you don't spend a fortune for a half-dozen cheeses at the market?

The yellow cheeses, American or otherwise, tend to go into kids sandwiches, where the color is just as important as the flavor. Judging from the selection of cheese that is offered at deli counters, many prefer mild cheeses, like muenster and provolone, which don't distract from the main components of the sandwich. The problem with those cheeses is that sometimes you can't taste the cheese at all. It's harder to match a stronger cheese with sandwich fillings and it can have the opposite effect, overwhelming everything else.

The three cheese groups don't often want to compromise, and after having dealt with a lot of cranky relatives, it seems prudent to spend the extra money at the store and get a cheese everyone likes. Unless you don't mind listening to complaints as you happily munch a sandwich topped with your favorite cheese.

Labor Day is less than a week away and is the last big grilling day of the summer season. It is a weekend of picnics and barbecues, which means that hot dogs and hamburgers will be popping up on everyone's menus. These hamburgers already made an appearance on my grill, but I'm sure that I'll be cooking up a few more over the weekend. I used sharp cheddar and provolone (except for the lone cheese-less burger topped with bbq sauce in the back), adding the cheese during the last few seconds of cooking, keeping the burgers on the grill just long enough to melt it onto the patty.

Cheese is just the start of a good burger, though. Some of my favorite toppings are basics, like lettuce, tomato, onions and avocado, though bacon, pickles, ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise and barbecue sauce are always out alongside the grill for anyone who wants them. You can't go wrong with those options, but what else do you put on your burgers to make them the best they can be?

Wikis, if you're not familiar with them, are online pages that anyone can edit. This leads to comprehensive definitions on just about any subject from applications like the Wikipedia. For a recipe, this means that all the collective knowledge of cooks can be added in to one central location. Does it make the perfect recipe? The directions for making a grilled cheese sandwich at WikiHow look pretty clear and even though the instructions are simple, keep in mind that every great chef (and hungry cook) must start somewhere. If the stove top method is too conventional, you can also try using a George Foreman grill or an iron.

Speaking of grilled cheese, here are a few facts to tide you over while you wait for your sandwich to be done:

• Americans make 2.2 billion grilled cheese sandwiches at home each year.
• The most popular two cheeses for grilled cheese are cheddar and American, though Gouda, Swiss and Gruyere are also quite popular, especially in Europe.
• 30% of Americans name the grilled cheese as their favorite homemade sandwich
• Grilled cheese often has add-ins and the most common is tomato, followed by bacon/ham, potato chips and pickles, while other variations include the French croque-monsieur and croque-madame.

I have my suspicions when it comes to cheese substitutes or alternatives. Cheese is a dairy product, through and through, and I don't think that making a comparison to "real" cheese with any alternative "cheese" is really fair. A non-dairy "cheese" should be evaluated on its own merits of flavor and texture, not as though it were cheese, but as though it is similar to cheese.

I was a little reluctant, but my curiousity about the alternative cheese one out in the end and I bought a package at Trader Joe's. I went with the sliced, packaged variety because it seemed as though it might not be all that different from the sliced, packaged "cheese food." As it turns out, I was right in my assumption. The soy cheese from Trader Joe's does taste a lot like the processed cheese, if perhaps a bit more bland. Does it taste like cheddar? No, and it's not bad, just unremarkable.

 

Adding potato to bread doughs gives them a moist, but very light texture. Potatoes are on the bland side, though, so Gemma, the Part Time Pro-Bono Baker decided to add a little more flavor to her potato biscuits by adding cheddar cheese and topping them with poppy seeds for a bit of crunch. They take mere minutes to put together, and even though the potato needs to be cooked in advance, boiling one potato doesn't take much time. When I bake things that call for adding potato to the dough, I will often just use reconstituted potato flakes, which you can buy at the store. They turn out the same consistency in the finished product - and these biscuits are a finished product I wouldn't mind seeing on my table.