More kitsch cheese!

Funny how when you notice something it often comes popping up again. No sooner had I spotted and blogged about La Vache qui Rit when I get a press release about a new 'Cheese Academy' sponsored by Bel, the French company that produces the 'iconic' Laughing Cow (as they describe it) along with Babybel, Boursin, Leerdammer and Port Salut

Rather worryingly this so-called academy, which is fronted by the ubiquitous Jean Christophe Novelli, is actually designed to teach chefs how to cook with processed cheese.

"We never cease to be amazed by the creativity and ingenuity of chefs when presented with the range of Bel cheeses" trills the website. "Some of the dishes we see are works of art, designed to impress; others are simplicity itself, but with a flavour and texture that are just divine."

Er, yes. Among the recipes that may (or may not) inspire you are Pasta with The Laughing Cow Light, peas and mint which contains an inadvisable 500g of powdered stock (a typo, I hope), Shepherds Pie made with frozen vegetables topped with potatoes and Laughing Cow cheese spread triangles, Leerdammer Light Individual Cheese Soufflés and Mexican Fajitas with Port Salut

Coming to a restaurant or pub near you :(

La Vache qui Rit - the next big thing?

I was really amused to find a triangle of the French processed cheese La Vache qui Rit on the cheeseboard of Eastside Inn, the very posh restaurant in London I went to the other day. Apparently it was the chef Bjorn van der Horst's favourite childhood cheese.

Fortunately the other cheeses were rather more substantial otherwise one would be more than a bit miffed at having to pay £15 for the experience (the cost of a cheese plate and a glass of wine). The others on that occasion were St Tola (a very good Irish goats cheese), Roquefort and what I thought sounded like L'Etivet, a strongly flavoured semi-hard cows' cheese from Switzerland which I hadn't come across before. (I've since been informed by the very helpful Food and Wine Diarist that it's L'Etivaz, so that's that mystery solved.)

Actually I have to admit that the Vache qui Rit - which of course means The Laughing Cow and which has rather a jolly website here - fitted in rather well, adding a mild creamy counterpoint to the cheeseboard.

Sets a precedent though: are we now going to find a bottle of Heinz salad cream served with our side-salad or a bar of Cadbury's Dairy Milk chocolate or a few Smarties tucked by our dessert if the chef has a fondness for them? Watch this space . . .