Gruyere: This is a Swiss cheese but variations are produced in France and Switzerland. It has a smooth and uniform paste with a few pea-sized holes and a dark brown rind. It is a good table cheese and is used to make fondues, sauces and quiches.
Cheddar: This cheese by far is England's most famous. Made from cow's milk, it varies from mild to very sharp. Cheddar cheese is used mostly for cooking and also made for making sauces, souffles, salads and pizzas.
Edam: Semi soft to hard texture, with small holes, Edam has a mild and sometimes a nutty flavor.
Hard and Smoked Cheese:
Parmesan: An Italian cheese with a grainy texture and a golden color, it is made of finely cut and carefully separated curd, which then is stirred and scalded before being pressed. It has a sharp and salty flavor. Parmesan cheeses are used for Italian cooking.
Sapsago: A Swiss cheese made from sour and skimmed milk, is also known as green cheese because of its pale green color.
Smoked Emmental: This cheese is traditionally made in a long sausage like shape and is used often as a snack cheese.
Mycella: A Danish cheese that's made from cow's milk and has blue-green streaks. It's a relatively mild blue cheese, and is usually used as a table cheese but can also be used in salads and salad dressings.
Blue Cheese:
Danish Blue: Danablu or Danish Blue is made from homogenized cow's milk. This cheese is creamy and soft textured and has a very strong taste. It makes a very good dessert cheese.
Blue Cheshire: A cylindrical and blue version of the Cheshire and the finest of all blue cheeses, this is made from cow milk and ripens and turns blue 'accidentally'. With a very rich taste, it is best used as a dessert cheese.
Bavarian Blue: A double creamed, soft and blue-veined cheese with a mildly sour taste, it is best used in sandwiches as a spread.
HOW TO STORE CHEESE:
- Once you've brought the cheese home, leave it in its original packaging and tightly cover it in plastic wrap. This reduces air circulation, which in turn reduces the possibility of mold. Store the cheese in the coldest part of your refrigerator - not on the door.
- You can freeze hard cheese like cheddar, but let it thaw out in the refrigerator for 24 hours before use. Rapid thawing causes a breakdown between the moisture and oils in the cheese. It's best just to buy what you need for each week or two.
- Cheese is more flavorful at room temperature. Let it stand for a half hour before serving.
- Cheese will continue to ripen, no matter how carefully it is stored. Hard cheeses will generally keep for several months, whereas softer cheeses will keep from one to three weeks after opening, if stored in an airtight container.
- Shredded cheese is more prone to mold because it has more exposed surface area. Try to use shredded cheese within a few days.
