I made one last trip to Bi Rite Market in the Mission and picked up some candy and a few slices of Jamon Iberico. For those who have not tasted, it’s as if a rich porky slice of Serrano ham mated with a luscious, creamy, yet slighty aged cheese.  The deep red ham, with a high fat content, melts in your mouth. The tongue first tastes a slightly salty pork flavor, the flavor then morphs into that of a cow’s milk aged cheese, and finishes off with a slight peppery taste in the back of the mouth. At $100/pound I only buy 2 or 3 slices at a time. But it’s a delicious treat if you can find it.

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A while back at the Fancy Food Show I stopped by the Kerrygold booth and tasted one of the new varieties–Dubliner with Irish Stout. If a cheese can represent a season, this one represents fall. It has a nutty, full-bodied flavor, that finishes with a taste that’s reminiscent of classic Irish stew. The flavor that the stout adds is a complex combo of malt and yeast.

I can imagine nibling on a bite of this with some crusty bread on a cold, fall night. Dubliner with Irish Stout is available nationally at Whole Foods, and can be found at the below regional locations:
New England - Shaws
The Carolinas - Earthfare
Pacific Northwest - Haggen
Midwest - Jewel
Southern California - Gelson’s, Ralph’s

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The New May Wah on Clement St. has frozen, whole durians.  I suspect they have one box (as the box contains less fruit each time I’ve walked by this week) and when they are gone, they’re gone. I considered picking one up to taste, but it’s a good 6 or 7 pounds–a bit pricey for what will no doubt be just one bite.

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While there were thousands of vendors at the Fancy Food Show, I spent the majority of my time sampling untold cheese varieties from dozens of domestic and European dairies.

My absolute favorite was the Amalattea Tenerina, a goat milk Riccota Salata. No salty or bitter aftertaste with this cheese. It is slightly sweet with hints of citrus and slightly more creamy than a cow’s milk version. In fact, the taste is reminiscent of my grandmother’s lemony rice pie. Unfortunately it won’t be available in the U.S. for another six months or so. I suppose I have no choice but to wait.  The company, which makes cheese exclusively from goat milk, produces several other varieties varying in age from one day to nearly a year old. The mozzarella was tasty too-neutral with a slight chevre taste. I’d be interested to try this on a veggie lasagana–as opposed to a meat one–as I think the flavors would blend nicely.

My other favorite cheese find was a new cow’s milk variety from Kerrygold–Dubliner with Irish Stout. It seems that it’s so new it’s not even listed on the website yet. It has the same nutty, robust base flavor as the Dubliner, but with a sweeter finishing taste.

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Catching up on the new season of Top Chef I realized I had a post I never finished from Rochester–white hot dogs. Growing up we were a Zweigle’s family and nearly always had a combo pack of red and white hot dogs in the fridge. It wasn’t until I moved to Boston to attend college that I (sadly) realized that white hot dogs are not widely availble, or even known, throughout most of the country.

The white hot dog, a combination of pork, beef and veal, has a mild flavor close to that of a bratwurst, but with the soft texture of a hot dog. Other producers of this variety include Hofmann out of Syracuse and Wegman’s store brand.

Upstate NY food bloggers–perhaps we can have a meetup this summer when I’m back home. Thinking we could do a littl hot dog cooking and sampling, as well as a few trips to some of the many diners that dot the landscape between Albany and Buffalo.

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