Please, the Cheese

I miss cheese.

Specifically, the smelly, gooey, soft ones. Like camembert, brie, and the rounds of goat's cheese that's practically liquid inside. The last time I was in front of a really delectable cheese platter was probably the last time I was in Paris in January - it was at the hotel we were all staying at for the fair, and there was a glorious cheese platter, mainly the soft smelly ones, at dinner each night. Resisted most of it at first because I was newly preggers then, and as the days went by I succumbed and had a little bit, just a little bit. Can't wait to be able to have smelly and soft cheese again.

Couldn't locate a picture of the cheese, so instead, in an unrelated fashion (sorry) here is a picture of the beautiful dessert platter that I found - they bring this out for your selection (so many desserts, so little time) at the Les Deux Magots on Saint Germain, which I always run to for the heavenly millefeuille (actually the pastries are from Pierre Hermes, but Pierre Hermes stores in Paris seem to offer only takeaway items, no sit down spaces, so I usually have it at this cafe) and a leisurely cup of tea.



This was the mac and cheese I made during the Basic Culinary class at the CIA last month - it was the first dish during that class, and when the instructor was calling out teams and the dishes the corresponded to each team, I immediately put my hand up to do this.

The picture doesn't quite do it justice (that's me holding it, by the way) but the combination of cheesiness and pieces of fatty bacon really made the difference. I find that mac and cheese without meat pieces tend to be a tad too rich. This mac and cheese was made with from-scratch bechamel sauce, that probably added to its deliciousness.

It's also best finished in the oven with a generous sprinkling of cheese and breadcrumbs on top, because then it begets a lovely crispy crusty topping.

I love cheese and a cheese+beef combinationso much that usually when I have a cheesy item like a burger, I sometimes ask for extra cheese but always always ask for just the meat and the cheese, sans other sauces, veggies and the other accoutrements that eateries seem to like to pile on.

What cheesy item to have for dinner tonight?