Cheap Cheese

When you are shopping, skip buying the bags of pre-shredded cheese. Check the prices and typically is is cheaper to buy a block of cheese and shred it at home in your food processor. Blocks of cheese also have less ingredients as the shredded cheese needs added ingredients to keep it from caking and sticking together.

It will also stay fresh longer and melts much better in recipes that need to be heated.

Dicing Cheese

When you need to dice cheese for a recipe you will find that the colder the cheese the easier it is to dice. Grab your loaf of cheese and drop it in the freezer. After a bit pull it out and dice away! (don't let it freeze solid though!)

EXCHANGING CHEESE

Sometimes when you are cooking you have to decide whether you can exchange processed cheese for “natural” cheese in a recipe.

Usually when cooking and baking you do not want to use processed cheese unless you are making a sauce. Processed cheese will melt faster and smoother than a "natural" cheese.

Natural Cheddar for example will make good Macaroni and Cheese, but can sometimes be grainy.

If you use processed cheese instead of cheddar you will have a creamier sauce.

Successful Cheese Balls

You want to make a really cool cheese ball recipe, but how in the heck do you get it to look good? It is quite simple of you make the recipe in the correct order.

First, mix your cheese with the spices and other ingredients.

Place the cheese mixture, still in it's mixing bowl, in the refrigerator and let sit for at least 4 hours. This will allow the ingredients to permiate the cheese, and the cheese will harden up a bit.

Take the cheese mixture out of the refrigerator and gently scoop it all out of the bowl. Working quickly mold the cheese into a ball using your hands and roll in nuts/herbs/sauce as requested by the recipe.

Place back in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

AMAZING ANTIPASTO

To make a quick and impressive appetizer, purchase a jar of Italian Antipasto (My personal favorite is Napa Valley Bistro) and a pound of lump mozzarella cheese.

About 10 minutes before guests arrive, cube the cheese into about ¾ to 1 inch cubes and place in a decorative dish. Pour the contents of the Antipasto over the cubes of cheese and gently toss to combine.

Serve with long toothpicks or relish forks.

This does not store well once combined, so only try to make up as much as you will need. If you are unsure about how much you will need, cube the cheese and store in a zip lock bag. Combine about ¼ of the cheese and antipasto at a time as needed

MOLDY CHEESE

You pull out the block of cheese to use and you notice that it is growing a bit. Is it still safe to eat?

For starters, if you have an allergy or sensativity to penicillin, you should avoid coming into contact with cheese that has mold. Penicillian is closely related to cheese molds and can cause a reaction.

My mom used to cut off all of the moldy parts then use the cheese that was not affected. The same rules still apply if you are very careful.

Using a sharp knife, cut off the moldy sections taking about an extra inch with it. Be careful to wash the knife thoroughly between each cut so that you do not contaminate any of the "clean" cheese with the mold that you are cutting off.

Some cheeses that are created using mold, like blue cheese, can grow mold that is not good for you. Use the same method on these.

Soft or high moisture cheeses such as cottage cheese or cream cheese do not follow the same rules. If you notice mold on these, they should be discaded immediately.

Mozzerella Balls

You are getting ready for your party and you need a few appetizers that are unique and taste good. These mozzerella balls will fit the bill perfectly.

You can find minature mozzerella balls (or bocconcini) at most grocery stores in the deli aisle. They will be in a small container packed in liquid. I have also found them at Sam's club.

Bocconcini is a small round soft cheese that was originally made from the milk of water buffalo's, but is now made with a combination of milks. Bocconcini means "small mouthfull".

To make the appetizer, drain the cheese balls (about 24 balls) While the cheese balls are draining combine the following into a large bowl:

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1/4 Teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes
1 Tablespoon Chopped Parsley (fresh)
1 Tablespoon Chopped Chives (fresh)

Place the cheese balls into the bowl and gently coat the balls with the mixture. Freshly grind about 1/8 Teaspoon of Salt and Pepper over the balls and toss to coat.

Prepare this up to 2 hours in advance and leave on the counter at room temperature to marinate. Place a small dish of colorful toothpicks next to the serving dish and your guests can grab as many as they want.

It is best if they are all eaten and not stored afterward.

Moldy Cheese

You like to buy bricks of cheese, but you hate to pull it out of the refrigerator and find that it has grown a furry.

The next time that you get ready to store it follow these simple steps to keep mold from forming as quickly.

In a small bowl combine 1 cup water and 1 teaspoon salt. Grab a cloth napkin and soak it in the salt water solution. Wring out the napkin well and wrap it around the cheese. Place the bundle into a ziplock bag and place in the refrigerator.

The salt will help prevent bacteria from growing as quickly.