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WA Cheese Week's New Recipe Book

Menu Magazine has supported WA Cheese Week since its inception. Way back in 2016, a group of cheese lovers got together to educate people on where the cheese they are eating comes from. Many people had been tricked into buying cheese they thought was local, when in fact, it was probably just packaged in WA.

The second year of WA Cheese Week saw Menu Magazine became far more involved. We spoke to several café and restaurant owners and encouraged them to include a cheese board, cheese dish or better still, put on a cheese event. It was a great success with 27 events all up, including the first cheese festival in WA - “curds&WAy”. As the third year of WA Cheese Week happened to coincide with the beginning of COVID, the focus moved to hampers and home delivery.

In the fourth year, I had noticed that not all local independent supermarkets were stocking local WA cheese and thought it would be a great idea for this to be rectified. So we ran a feature in the magazine on some of the places that had a good stock of local WA cheese.

This year, it’s time to put all of these people who love cheese and support the ‘buy local’ movement together by producing a recipe book featuring local WA cheese. Let me start with some of the chefs and restaurateurs who will be featured in this book, and discover what they have submitted.

1934 Ristorante has a Stracciatella Pannacotta recipe featuring La Delizia Stracciatella cheese.

Chef Raffaele Fusco told me that he chose this particular cheese because it is fresh and made daily. The company arrived in Perth just a few years ago and he uses this cheese as topping on pizzas or in entrées with tomato or cured meats. This fresh cheese has a unique sweet taste, so why not use it to make an iconic Italian dessert, and that’s exactly how

1934 Ristorante came up with “Stracciatella Pannacotta”.

Art of Seafood offers Seared Scallops with Kytren goats curd espuma, dashi, truffles, prosciutto, bonito, lobster oil and scallions.

“The challenge of matching a WA cheese with seafood was fun, as my first thought was that there was no way I would be doing some sort of mornay sauce and the goats curd from Kytren, matched perfectly with this dish that the team and I created”, said chef Craig Hicks.

Caleb Restaurant & Bar has created Burrata Australiana using camembert cheese from Local Goat. Chef Caleb Azuka chose Local Goat, “due to the unique quality of the cheese and how it showcases Western Australian cheese creativity and uniqueness, in its creaminess and earthiness”.

Charthouse Café has used Borrello’s feta cheese to make a Tandoori Spiced Chicken Salad.

Chef Ratna Aich said, “Feta cheese has got a body of its own. It has a salty, sharp tangy flavour and is a crumbly and mouth-melting cheese. Feta is a low-fat cheese and goes very well with any kind of salad, and is a good source of calcium and minerals”.

Ischia Ristorante produced a Burrata Pizza using La Delizia’s Burrata.

There is no surprise that everyone loves a dish with cheese in it, especially Italian cheese. This delicately soft, cool and creamy cheese is a perfect partner for a fresh woodfired pizza, especially when paired with a drizzle of olive oil.

Lobster Shack Cervantes boasts Crayfish Mornay using parmesan cheese from Rose Valley.

“We chose Rose Valley parmesan because it cuts through the richness with a slight tang. Blended beautifully together with a mozzarella and cream cheese, resulting in a velvety comforting sauce that melts in your mouth, and pairs perfectly with our Western Australian rock lobster”. Nicko’s Kitchen presents a Warm Fromage Tart with roasted tomatoes using Halls Suzette cheese.

“As our restaurant cuisine is heavily Frenchbased, we seek the very best ingredients with a French twist. Halls Dairy has the only purebred Normandy cows in Australia and the milk they produce is second to none”.

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Seven Sins Perth Hills has Cheesy Halls Suzette Oysters.

Chef Sebastian Sindermann tells me that this cheese emulates one of his all-time favourite French cheeses. “It is very versatile as it can be eaten cold or melted down to produce a silky, mouth-watering cheese. The family-run business from Harvey is very close to my heart and really stands for local”.

The Exchange Bar has a Pallotte Casio Uova (Cheese & Egg Balls) using Borrello Ricotta and Rose Valley peppered parmesan.

Chef George D’Annunzio told me that he chose these cheeses because his grandmother and mother have used these same cheeses in recipes since he was a child.

Other restaurants featured in the book are, C15 Espresso, Fire In Your Belly, Graze & Tipple and Limeburners & Giniversity in the Valley.

Now to some of the amazing deli’s and supermarkets that help you get your daily cheese fix, and how they suggest you cook with it.

Basil’s Fine Foods has included a Harvey Ash Blonde Cheese Sauce.

“Harvey Ash Blonde is one of our favourite local cheeses. It’s a local product and very versatile”.

Farmer Jack’s has a Superfood Cheesy Mac with Roasted Cauliflower and Hemp Seeds, using Brownes Tasty Cheddar.

The reason they chose to use this cheese is because they are a local Company. Tasty cheese works well in the Cheesy Mac dish, as tasty cheese is a cheddar that has been aged longer than the usual. A tasty cheese is an above average cheddar in terms of ageing and flavour.

Fresh Provisions offers us a Vegetable Frittata with Cambray Gouda cheese.

Fresh Provisions has had a long-time affiliation with Cambray. “We admire the family ‘hands on’ practices on the farm and believe that Cambray produce some of the finest Artisan crafted cheese in Australia. The cheese chosen has depth in taste and smoothness that is prefect for our dish”.

Little Sister has a Baked Goat Cheese with blackberries, pecans and rosemary honey, using Local Goat Camembert cheese.

Asked why they chose this cheese, owner Eleni Kakulas said, “aside from being a beautiful cheese we love that we are supporting local farmers; we love that the people who manufacture the cheese come in every week and have a chat. They let us know where the goats are at and how the seasons affect the milk and therefore the cheese. It’s a really important relationship”.

Malibu Fresh Essentials has a Warm Potato Salad with Churchill Rd Raclette Sauce from Dellendale Creamery. Dellendale Raclette cheese was chosen because “I love Dellendale Creamery and the cheese is excellent for melting; it’s smooth and creamy with a nutty finish”.

Peaches offers Nonna’s Pina Fritelle di Puglia using Rose Valley Ricotta.

“We chose Rose Valley Ricotta as it is very versatile and we cook a lot of traditional Italian food with it. We love that we can make savoury food such as Fritelle and use the Ricotta to make desserts such as Cannoli”.

The Good Grocer has a fancy cheese and pickle sandwich, focaccia and pickles with St Marcellin cheese from Yallingup Cheese.

Chef Ryan Adair said, “I picked this cheese to use as I wanted to showcase both the amazing cheese-maker Alana at Yallingup Cheese and her products, and pay my respects to the area that I have called home for most of my life. Having our family home down the road from where the cheese is made, I’m instantly taken back there when I eat it. I believe that Yallingup Cheese could stand up proudly to any cheese from France, and I could not recommend trying it enough; so to pay my respect to the product and creator I have kept the recipe simple, letting the product speak for itself. The St Marcellin shines through the cooler months with a buttery consistency and complex flavours of white truffle and tea leaf, an absolute treasure”.

The Herdsman Market has included a Risotto with Double Brie, Butter, Pumpkin and Sweet Potato Chips.

“For us, what sets Harvey Cheese apart is the love and care that comes through in every one of the handcrafted cheeses. The team at Harvey Cheese use time-honoured methods and the freshest, creamiest milk which is why they have become one of the best in the region”.

The Re Store Leederville has included a Continental Roll with Prosciutto, La Delizia Mozzarella, tomato and basil.

The Re Store Northbridge has a Spinach and Rose Valley Ricotta Ravioli with La Delizia Stracciatella and local pesto.

THIS YEAR, IT’S TIME TO PUT ALL OF THESE PEOPLE WHO LOVE CHEESE AND SUPPORT THE ‘BUY LOCAL’ MOVEMENT TOGETHER BY PRODUCING A RECIPE BOOK FEATURING LOCAL WA CHEESE.

Treat me Fancy has made a Baked Ricotta Cheesecake using Rose Valley Ricotta.

“We used Rose Valley Ricotta which is non-animal rennet. We adore this product as we grew up having Rose Valley on our table. Its texture is very smooth, light and fluffy on the taste buds”.

Other deli’s and supermarkets featured in the book are Acciari's Gourmet Butcher & Deli, Marketa and Scutti Fresh Markets.

Some of the cheese-makers have also submitted recipes. I thought it would be interesting to see what they do with their cheese at home.

Bookara Goat Dairy has a Roasted Beetroot Salad, Puy lentils, Bookara goats curd, and pickled kohl rabi.

At Bookara, the quality of their cheese begins with the health of their animals; healthy goats living in open paddocks make the best milk. Their cheese room is right next to the dairy, so the freshness of the goat milk is not compromised. When pasteurising milk, they are careful not to overheat, as goat milk responds best to low temperatures.

Brownes Dairy has a Brownes’ West Aussie Croque Monsieur.

Brownes Dairy was established in 1886 and is Australia’s oldest dairy. A household name in WA with a diverse portfolio of delicious products including dairy milk, cream, yoghurt, flavoured milk, desserts and juice.

Dellendale Creamery has a Young Ocean Brie Mediterranean Style Salad.

Dellendale Creamery’s cheese-maker Chris Vogel says, he “gets inspiration to make cheese from things he has already had combined with his own personal likes. Outback Brie was inspired by a washed-rind style cheese without being too flamboyant in smell, but still highlights the robust, pungent intensity that wash-rind soft cheese has; such as Munster and Stinky Bishop”.

Halls Family Dairy has a Blueberry Pavlova and Halls Suzette Ice-cream.

Halls Family Dairy is a small West Australian owned family farming business in Wokalup. Proudly dairy farming since 1890, today they produce a single origin artisan cheese called Hall’s Suzette. Harvey Cheese has a Gnocchi with St Dukes Red and Smoked Chicken.

They are family owned and operated. Specialising in making cheese to time-honoured methods.

Kytren Fine Quality Goats Cheese feature Field Mushrooms with Goat Curd.

Most of their cheeses are a soft cheese which is good for cooking.

La Delizia submitted a dish featuring their Burrata with beetroot, chestnuts and vincotto.

Head cheese-maker Dom Boccia says, “making cheese is a passion and there is always much to learn. You know there are so many different kinds of cheese and they all come from the same source – the milk. His favourite cheese is mozzarella”.

Margaret River Dairy Company has a simple yet classic recipe for their Baked Brie.

Rose Valley Cheese has made a Ricotta Custard Tart.

Rose Valley Cheese say that their main focus is to maintain a high-quality natural product. They can assure customers the best possible all-natural cheese. I was fascinated to see all the cheese recipes on their web site. Diana Giura, who wrote them all has a soft spot for ricotta because it’s so versatile; it’s great for sweets or savoury foods and is delicious on its own.

WA Cheese Week will be held from 10-16 October 2022. For more information go to www.wacheese.com.au

By Scott Arnold-Eyers

Hand made cheeses using fresh goats milk, the finest cultures, WA salt and lots of love. Natural wholesome foods, rich in flavour and goodness.

www.bookaragoatdairy.com.au

WE FOCUS ON ONE EXCEPTIONAL PRODUCT. Ask for ‘Halls Suzette’ at your favourite local store.