Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/326223
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 22 MAY 2011 33 RECIPE OF THE WEEK Camembert NOTHING beats the flavour of a good oozy, creamy, smelly Camembert cheese – named as the crown jewel of French cheeses. Camembert de Normandie, as the genuine article is called, is made from raw unpasteurised milk from Norman cows that is curdled with rennet. It is then gently hand-ladled into small, individual moulds so that the curd is not broken. Five ladling passes are required to fill each mould giving Camembert its creamy characteristic. Following a period of draining, the cheeses are transferred to the salting room where salt and the bacterium penecillium camemberti are shaken onto the cheese, giving rise to the characteristic downy white mould that covers the cheese. The cheeses are allowed to ripen for two weeks and are then packed and shipped for retail. They are at their best between 30 and 35 days after they are made, a period called "a point" in France. As a result of the short shelf life of Normandy Camembert, pasteurised milk is used to make mass-produced Camembert, which increases its shelf life allowing for export to far-away destinations. Though mass-produced Camembert is tasty, it lacks the complexity of its Normandy-made counterpart. The mouldy rind of a fresh Camembert should have a smat- tering of fine red stripes, which indicate how strong the cheese is – the darker the stripes, the stronger the cheese. The rind is completely edible and adds a bitter aftertaste to the creamy cheese, especially when fresh. When the cheese is fresh it is mild in flavour with a slightly salty tang. As the cheese ripens, it becomes creamier with a sharper edge The most common legend about Camembert's history in- volves a woman named Marie Harel, a farmer in the Norman- dy region of France who was hiding a priest during the French Revolution. Though it is said that she invented Camembert, she is more likely to have improved on the recipe through a tip given to her by the priest she saved from the guillotine. There is some speculation that Camembert may have started out as a blue cheese and its characteristics changed over the years until it evolved to the semi-soft cheese we know today. Brie and Camembert are remarkably similar, especially to an untrained palate. This is due to the fact that they are made from the exact same recipe with distinctive flavours resulting from the territory in which they are produced. Unpasteurised milk products may contain bacteria that pos- es a risk to pregnant women, young children, the elderly and those with compromised immune systems so care should be taken when choosing cheeses of this nature. maltatoday, SUNDAY, 8 JUNE 2014 FINE FOOD OF THE WEEK Flavours – and smells – of Normandy Ingredients • 1 Camembert (250g) • Thyme sprigs • 125ml cider • 2 tbsp brown sugar • 3 tbsp butter • 1 Granny Smith apple, cored and sliced • 1 tsp thyme leaves, chopped • ¼ ground pepperA Method 1. Put Camembert in a shallow ovenproof dish. With a slim skewer, make holes all over top of Camembert; insert thyme sprigs into holes, using a skewer to poke them down into centre of cheese. 2. Drizzle 1 tbsp cider over Camembert; set aside. 3. In a small saucepan, combine remaining cider and the sugar; bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring to dissolve sugar. 4. Boil for 5 to 7 minutes or until cider has reduced to about 2 tbsp and is syrupy. Set aside and keep warm. 5. Toss apple slices with vinegar, thyme and pepper. 6. Heat clarified butter over me- dium heat. Add apple slices to skillet more or less in a single layer; cook for 6 to 8 minutes, turning gently, until apples slices are golden brown and tender but not broken up. 7. While apples are cooking, put Camembert in oven at 220°C; bake for 5 to 7 minutes or until warm and you can hear cider in holes just start to siz- zle. 8. Remove Camembert from the oven. 9. Carefully arrange apple slices decoratively on top of Camembert to cover the top completely. 10. Brush apples with reduced cider. Place the Camembert under the grill for 1 to 2 min- utes or until apples are glazed and bubbly. 11. Garnish Camembert with thyme sprigs; serve with crusty bread. Cider-glazed Camembert tarte tatin The original Camembert recipe involves the use of unpasteurised milk, which gives the true Normandy camembert its characteristically short shelf-life