National Cheese Day is observed annually on June 4th.
Cheese is produced from the pressed curds of milk. The milk can come from cows, buffalo, goats or sheep. Temperature and aging affect the flavor and texture of the cheese as well as spices and other seasonings added during the process.
Excellent as a snack on its own, cheese is also a perfect ingredient in pasta, soups, souffle and many other recipes.
- Did you know that there are over 2,000 varieties of cheeses!
- Did you know the #1 cheese recipe in America is “Macaroni and Cheese”
- Did you also know that “Macaroni and Cheese” is on the Top 10 list of childrens favorite foods? It’s everybody’s childhood favorite and its been served since the late 1700’s.
- CHEESE HOLES: The most recognizable characteristic of Swiss cheese is its holes which punctuate the pale yellow exterior. These holes, also called “eyes,” are caused by the expansion of gas within the cheese curd during the ripening period.
- MOLD: Mold may develop on the surface of cheese. Although most molds are harmless, to be safe, cut away 1/2 inch of cheese on all sides of the visible mold. Use remaining cheese as quickly as possible.
- Did you know that what appears to be the remains of cheese has been found in Egyptian tombs over 4,000 years old!
- The terms “Big Wheel” and “Big Cheese” originally referred to those who were wealthy enough to purchase a whole wheel of cheese.
- Cheese takes up about 1/10 the volume of the milk it was made from.
- Greek historian Xenophon (430?-355? B.C.) mentions that goat cheese had been known for centuries in Peloponnesus.
- The first cheese factory to make cheese from scratch was started in Rome, New York in 1851 by Jesse Williams. He had his own dairy herd and purchased more milk from other local farmers to make his cheese. By combining the milk and making large cheeses he could produce cheese with uniform taste and texture. Before then, companies would buy small batches of home made cheese curd from local farmers to make into cheese, each batch of curds producing cheese with wide differences in taste and texture from one another.
- Cheddar, Cheshire and Leicester cheeses have been colored with annatto seed for over 200 years. Carrot juice and marigold petals have also been used to color cheeses. Coloring may have originally been added to cheese made with winter milk from cows eating hay to match the orange hue (from vitamin A) of cheeses made with milk from cows fed on green plants.
- A giant wheel of Cheddar cheese was given to Queen Victoria (1837-1901) for a wedding gift. It weighed over 1,000 pounds. A normal Cheddar wheel weighs 60-75 pounds.
- Almost 90% of all cheese sold in the United States is classified as a Cheddar type cheese.
Sources:
