Cheese

A question presented itself Wednesday in regard to those Haverford Township pols who have been handing out federal surplus cheese from their homes and campaign headquarters. Do they make the poor and elderly come around to the back door?

THE INSURANCE INSTITUTE for Highway Safety's recent report on red-light cameras on Roosevelt Boulevard supports our contention that motorists, no matter their age, are just kids at heart - they'll try to get away with as much as you let them. The cameras and extended yellow signals at the Grant Avenue and Red Lion Road intersections, two of the deadliest in the country, have led to a striking drop in red-light runners, the report said, from 251 violations per 10,000 vehicles in 2004, to 1.8 per 10,000 in 2006.

A wedge of ripe Hooligan is as boisterous as its name, and that's why it's near the top of my list of American cheeses pushing the flavor envelope. This pungent round from Cato Corner in Connecticut, made from the hormone-free milk of grass-fed cows, has a washed rind reminiscent of world-class stinkers like Alsatian muenster and Epoisses. A twice-weekly brine bath gives it that sticky exterior (which only the most intrepid will eat). But the funky crust harbors a creamy heart with a twinge of clover, a whiff of peanut, and a loudmouth twang that rings and rings.

Few things are as fleeting as the sweetness of fresh mozzarella. The richness of its butterfat begins to fade literally within an hour or two of the moment it was turned into a milky white orb. And it's hard to find any fresher than those rolling off the imported mozzarella machine at Claudio's Caseificio in the Italian Market. "Mozzarella's like bread," says owner Sal Auriemma. "You don't buy it today to eat next week. " Auriemma and his sons, Claudio and Sal Jr., have perfected the delicate texture and lightly salted tang of their cheese since opening this annex to the family's cheese and import market four summers ago. Sliced into lusciously thick white rounds, I can think of no better homage to the blushing tomatoes and plumes of basil that make summer's farm-market bounty so fleeting, too. Fresh mozzarella costs $6.99 a pound at Claudio's Caseificio, 922 S. 9th St., 215-238-0435.

The Daily News Pet of the Week is Cheese (above), a 1-to-2-year-old pit bull mix at the Philadelphia Animal Welfare Society. Cheese is friendly and sweet. He would be a great family dog. To adopt Cheese, contact PAWS, 100 N. 2nd St., at 215-238-9901. When inquiring, please provide his tag number, 12760690. A $75 fee includes sterilization, vaccines and microchipping.

Move over wine and cheese. Beer and cheese are a match made in culinary heaven. "The carbonation in beer cuts through the richness of cheese," said Tria Fermentation School director Erin McLean. She offered these pairings for your next party: _ Robust dark imperial stout with a cow's milk bleu, Stilton or a sweeter Gorgonzola. _ Hoppy, citrusy India pale ale with aged farmhouse-style English or Vermont cheddar. _ Fruity, sweeter lambic with a rich triple crème or Brie. _ Malt-driven amber ale or German double bock with aged Gouda.

Over the last 15 years, restaurants and chefs have gotten most of the credit for the blossoming of Philadelphia's vibrant food scene. But for local home cooks, no single institution has had a greater impact on boosting the quality of the city's ingredients - and in particular, its cheese boards - than Di Bruno Bros. The Di Bruno's at 930 S. 9th St. has been a jam-packed, 900-square-foot nook of cheese-and-salami bliss since 1939, a gem of South Philly authenticity that remains one of the priceless beating hearts of the Italian Market.

To me, May will always be goat cheese weather. Walk into any cheese shop, and it's a petting zoo of pretty goodies: goat cheeses wrapped in leaves, rolled in flowers, molded into balls and bells. It's worth a stroll through Reading Terminal Market or your favorite cheese shop just to check out the Loire Valley bling - the most-prized French goat cheeses appear in spring, just after new pastures have been grazed. One of the best ways to celebrate this bounty is to assemble a seasonal goat cheese board.

This quiche remake reduces the butter and cheese and eliminates the crust entirely. This dish can easily be prepared a day in advance. Reheat uncovered in a 350-degree oven.   Spinach and Mushroom Torte 10 to 12 servings 1 tablespoon mild olive oil 1 tablespoon butter 1/2 cup finely diced onion 12 ounces white mush- rooms, cleaned, stem- med, and thinly sliced Kosher salt Ground black pepper 8 large eggs, beaten 11/2 cups low-fat milk (2 percent)

"You know you love it," the giant yellow noodle sculpture proclaimed at Love Park this winter, alluding, of course, to Kraft Macaroni & Cheese. But 278,000 people don't agree. They've signed a petition at Change.org , agreeing with two food bloggers' objections to two "dangerous" artificial colors. Monday, Vani Hari of FoodBabe.com , bearing boxes full of printed petitions, met with company representatives in Chicago, as Lisa Leake of 100daysofrealfood.com took part via conference call.

Here is an excerpt from Craig LaBan's online chat from March 19: Craig LaBan: Welcome to a special Cheese Head Edition of our weekly Philly Food Chat! We have a special guest this afternoon: Madame Fromage - a.k.a. Tenaya Darlington - an associate English prof at St. Joe's by day; "cheese courtesan" and witty blogger who's penned the forthcoming book Di Bruno Bros. House of Cheese, to be published in May. Tenaya's in the Inquirer newsroom, with a cheese platter to get us in the groove.

E RAN WAJSWOL, 57, of Califon, N.J., owns the 120-acre Valley Shepherd Creamery in Long Valley, N.J., where he raises dairy sheep and makes cave-aged, farm-fed cheeses and other dairy foods, including sheep's milk yogurt, ricotta and butter. In mid-January, Wajswol (WHY-sole) opened a retail outlet at Reading Terminal Market, complete with an aging "mini-cave" and glassed-in production room. Q: What made you decide to open a store here? A: The store is really a derivative of how we do what we do. We're basically a farmstead operation, which means you own your own animals, milk 'em daily, make your own dairy products, age them yourself and sell direct.

The mission to make "wrinkles sexy" for America with "geo cheeses" has been quite the learning curve for Vermont Butter & Cheese Creamery. But their pioneering work with "geo" over the past decade - geotricum yeast added to goat's-milk cheeses fosters a wrinkly rind with multi-textures inside - has resulted in some truly Loire-like gems of American cheesecraft: Bonne Bouche, Coupole, and Bijou, for examples. But Cremont, an aged goat and cow's milk blend similar to an Italian "due latte" Robiola, may be the geo first-timer's best point of entry.

Q: There seems to be so much controversy over portion sizes. What constitutes a portion size for most common foods? - Karen Williams A: A proper portion of meat is 3 ounces, the size of a deck of cards. The recommended serving of cheese is an ounce, equal to one string cheese or an individual slice. After that, a half-cup works for foods such as cooked rice or pasta, whole fruit and ice cream. A serving of cooked vegetables is also a half-cup, but go ahead and splurge on the veggies and have a full cup.  

"OH, MY GOD, I couldn't live without cheese!" Ever heard those words, or maybe uttered them yourself? I sure have. Back when I, a longtime vegetarian, decided to go vegan, the prospect of life without cheese yawned as a desolate, ascetic slog of eternity without such rich, gooey gustatory pleasure. What a martyr to cross the line into that bleak, barren world! A couple of dairy-free months later, I was already puzzling at such grandiosity. Cheese? Really? I didn't know then how casomorphins, a dairy component that's concentrated in cheese, act as opioids - that is, they confer a mild but habit-forming euphoria.

Go ask Rob Mitchell what a cheese curd is. A few years ago, he himself didn't know. Now they're his life. Like many schoolteachers, Mitchell, of Philadelphia, had a summer job to keep cash flowing. He runs a mobile food concession feeding the masses at soccer and lacrosse games, rock concerts, carnivals, and strawberry festivals in five states. Much like urban food-truck ooperators, festival vendors need something to set them apart. Mitchell, 40, raised this issue with his wife, Laura Windham, a psychologist.