wisconsin cheese

Steak & Guinness Pot Pies

March 16, 2016

St. Paddy’s Day is right around the corner, so you know what that means…it’s time to share my annual St. Patrick’s Day recipe. Let’s get excited because there’s still time to switch up those plans you’ve already made. Ditch those boring recipes you make year in and year out and try something new for a change. Last year I teamed up with Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board aka Wisconsin Cheese to bring you Irish Colcannon Mac and Cheese. It was a huge hit, but when isn’t cheesy mac and cheese with bacon and potatoes a good thing? It’s a dream team made in heaven. This year I teamed up with Wisconsin Cheese once again to bring you another classic Irish dish but with a twist. Potatoes and bacon and cheese happen to be involved again so I’d say we’re already off to a great start. I know that bacon isn’t a traditional Irish ingredient, but something about potatoes and cheese just scream bacon to me.

I wanted to switch things up a bit this year by making something new to me, Steak and Guinness Pot Pies. It’s like a traditional Irish beef stew all wrapped up in a flaky pie crust. The thing though is that this flaky crust is studded with crispy bacon and lots of Cheddar cheese, the way it always should’ve been. It’s a new take on a classic dish. So let’s all get in the spirit and be Irish for the day. This is our one free pass to let loose and get as wild as we’d like. So let’s all wear our green and start pinching those that forgot or just didn’t care enough to. Let’s make all of our favorite festive recipes and make everyone around us happy by getting into the St. Patrick’s Day spirit. Remember that no holiday is complete without lots of cheese and lots of fun.

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Spicy Sausage, Potato and Kale Pizza

October 16, 2015

I have a popular post on my blog that catches me by surprise every time I see it. It’s a simple soup that I made in dedication to a really bad restaurant chain, a couple years ago. Never did I think that it would go on to become one of two of the most popular posts on this site. (The other one being a Fried Chicken and Waffle Sandwich that is as crazy and delicious as it sounds). This other post though, the one in question, is a Spicy Sausage, Potato and Kale Soup. It’s a soup I make on a regular basis, and I actually love it a lot. Apparently, a lot of you really like it a lot as well! So in honor of our mutual love for this simple soup, I decided to turn it into a simple pizza. Pizza with browned spicy sausage, sautéed kale and potatoes just sounds like a great decision to me, and the only way that recipe could get better if I’m being honest. The kale makes it healthy so don’t worry about a thing. Not one thing. Go ahead and eat that second helping. No one is watching.

I’ve teamed up with Wisconsin Cheese to talk to you about a new site, a new cheese blend and a nifty giveaway. Let’s first talk about the new site. Wisconsin Cheese is debuting a new site called Friday Night Pizza Night! It’s a site dedicated to those who love making pizza at home with family and friends, or for those who want to be the kind of people who like making pizza at home with family and friends. It also happens to be National Pizza Month, so if you’re in need of pizza night recipes and tips to help you celebrate all month long, you’ll definitely want to check the site out for yourself. Let’ talk about the new cheese blend now. Roth Cheese has developed three different cheese blends that are perfect for flatbreads and pizzas (among other dishes). They’re a great way to add restaurant-quality flavor to home cooked dishes. The blends are unique, flavorful and give you the flavor of three specialty cheeses, without having to buy them individually. The flavors are Ultimate Firehouse, Ultimate Mac and Cheese and Ultimate Flatbread. I used the Ultimate Flatbread blend which is made up Grand Cru, Mild Provolone, and Fontiago. Aka, the best cheeses for pizza.

Now let’s talk about the giveaway! The best part. Remember how last time I told you that there would be more giveaways on the site because you deserve it and because you’re amazing, well I meant it. You do deserve it and you are amazing, so Wisconsin Cheese is giving away a pizza making kit to one lucky winner. Everything you need to become a pizza pro at home! You’ll get:

Pizza stone and pizza cutter
Microplane grater
Wisconsin Cheese trivet
Wisconsin Cheese!

You’ll be making delicious pizza at home in no time. To enter the giveaway, leave a comment below telling my mom (as always she’ll be picking the winner at random) and I what your favorite pizza topping is! One entry per person please, and you have until Sunday to enter. The winner will be notified Monday via email! Good luck!

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Stove Top Ratatouille Mac and Cheese

July 14, 2015

It’s National Mac and Cheese Day today (Tuesday July 14th) and I’m celebrating this momentous occasion the only way I know how, by making a giant pot of the creamiest macaroni and cheese you ever did see. If that isn’t the perfect way to celebrate this beautiful holiday, then I don’t know what is. I couldn’t just give you some boring every day pasta recipe in a cheese sauce though, what kind of person would I be if I did? Don’t answer that. Nothing makes me happier than when two classic recipes come together in a delicious food explosion to make one unbelievable dish. It’s fun and exciting. Such is the case this time around because I’ve gone ahead and thrown ratatouille and mac and cheese together into the same pot. Blasphemous? I’m sure, but I wouldn’t have had it any other way, and I don’t think you should either.

I’ve teamed up with Wisconsin Cheese, once again, to bring you yet another out of this world macaroni and cheese recipe for their All Things Mac and Cheese site. If you’ll recall, earlier in the year, I made an Irish Colcannon Mac and Cheese that taught us a very valuable lesson; cabbage, potatoes and bacon in mac and cheese is always a good idea. Much like with that post, you’ll notice that the recipe won’t be included at the bottom of this page, like it normally is. You’ll have to click on over to their site to get the full recipe! I’m evil, I know, but it’s worth it! (I just want to keep you guys on your toes and make sure you’re paying attention). I’ll include a link at the bottom of the post so you can easily find the recipe and make it at home in honor of your new favorite holiday. Of course, you don’t only have to make it on this day. Do yourself a favor and be sure to make it all summer long because it’s everything you never knew you wanted. You owe it to yourself.

I’ve made and eaten ratatouille only a handful of times here and there, so I’m no expert in the matter. But I am an expert in cheesy sauces tossed around with noodles. I’m a pro at that. I wanted this recipe to be easy enough to whip up in a hurry, but still have all of the sophisticated flavors and tastes that the classic French dish has. It’s the best of both worlds, comfort food meets healthy. Quick side not though, am I the only one that thinks of a rat cooking in Paris, whenever ratatouille is mentioned? I blame Pixar and Disney for that. Although a tiny blue rat in a chef’s apron didn’t make this dish, I can guarantee you that it’ll still knock your socks off. Just blow them clear off your feet. That’s the power of mac and cheese and that’s why it has it’s own national holiday. That’s all I’m saying.

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Irish Colcannon Mac and Cheese

January 20, 2015

I recently partnered up with Wisconsin Cheese to celebrate National Cheese Lover’s Day. This might come as a shock to many of you, but I Jonathan Melendez, am a cheese lover. There I said it. I’m a cheese lover from way back, and I’m not afraid to admit it. I have to be honest though, I actually had no idea a day celebrating people like me existed. Cheese lovers. Finally there’s a holiday where my non-stop eating of cheese all day long is perfectly acceptable. That’s cheese for breakfast, cheese for lunch, cheese for a snack and cheese for dinner. All the cheese you could ever possibly dream of. I can’t think of a better way to celebrate such a momentous occasion than with a big heaping serving of macaroni and cheese. Maybe even two servings. What? It’s my holiday, I’ll party if I want to. It’s the mother of all cheese recipes, but this isn’t just any ol’ mac and cheese recipe. This one here is a fancy mac and cheese recipe. I couldn’t do a simple everyday take on it. Where’s the fun in that?

I’m going to warn you right off the bat, because I believe in full disclosure…sometimes, this is actually going to be somewhat of a shortened post. I’ll share a few photos and funny anecdotes (obviously) like always, but for the recipe itself you’ll have to visit the site it’ll live on All Things Mac and Cheese! Just like the name states, it’s mac and cheese everything and anything. You’d be surprised what you’ll find on there. Sure, I could go on and on and tell you all about it, but I figured it would be a lot easier for you to just go and check it out yourself. Plus, I’m too lazy to type anymore than I already have to. The most important thing though is that my Irish Colcannon Mac and Cheese recipe is on it, so there’s definitely something to search for.

Listen to me going on and on about mac and cheese when we should all be out there celebrating National Cheese Lover’s Day. What are you waiting for? There’s so much cheese to eat and so much mac and cheese to make. If you start now, you might (just might) be able to catch up to me. I can’t make any promises that I won’t beat you. It is my holiday after all.

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