Home is Where the Heart Is

Next to family photos and heirlooms, foods from one’s homeland are often held in as high esteem as one’s own relatives. Immigrants to the U.S. today have access to a practically unlimited assortment of specialty foods from around the world. Several generations ago, this was not the case. For German immigrants in the late 1800’s, memories of foods from home such as Limburger Cheese were simply that; just memories. They would dreamily recall spreading this unctuous, pungent cheese on dark bread topped with sliced raw onions. Fresh cheeses such as Limburger simply could not survive the long ship voyage to the new homeland.

According to the legend which has many accounts, a New York City delicatessen and Monroe, NY cheese plant owner, Mr. Adolphe Tode received so many requests for Limburger and other “stinky” cheeses that he put his apprentice cheesemaker Emil Frey to work on developing a similar cheese. After numerous attempts, Frey created a cheese in 1892 that was quite unique. The local Liederkranz group was so overjoyed at its arrival, they christened the new cheese Liederkranz, which means “Wreath of Song” in honor of the eponymous German singing & drinking groups around the U.S.

Liederkranz had a dedicated following during the cheese maker’s lifetime. After his demise, the Monroe Cheese Company became part of the Borden Corporation who unsuccessfully moved the factory to Ohio during the 1920’s. The spores of the special B. Linens bacteria that ripen the surface of the cheese to a pale brick color and a sliminess that only a cheese connoisseur could love did not reproduce like it had in New York. Legend states that Borden’s cheese makers, in a desperate attempt to recreate the cheese, visited the old Monroe, NY cheese aging room and scraped off the walls what is known in cheese making as the “smear”, a bacteria laden gunk that sticks to the walls and rind of soft ripened cheeses such as Limburger and Liederkranz, among others. This smear was then “smeared” on the walls of the Van Wert, Ohio cheese plant to achieve the desired result. Success was only temporary for the lonely Liederkranz was destined for extinction. Corporate mergers and takeovers ultimately resulted in the cheese being a novelty in the portfolio of a multi billion dollar food conglomerate.

After quality assurance issues that affected several different cheese plants in 1985, Liederkranz was discontinued without even a kiss good bye. Among Liederkranzlers, the joyful cult of followers that missed their beloved friend Liederkranz, conspiracy theories developed about the cheese’s disappearance. Thousands of blog posts may be found reminiscing what Author John Steel Gordon deemed “the late, great American cheese.” Columnist John Hahn described the legendary cheese…”Cutting into a piece of Liederkranz was like that Indiana Jones movie where they opened the Ark of the Covenant.”

Merger after merger in the cheese business brought the recipe and trademark for Liederkranz to the green rolling hills of Wisconsin, a mecca of cheese making. In an odd twist of fate, the U.S.’s largest importer and marketer of specialty cheeses, worked with master cheese maker Myron Olson of Monroe, Wisconsin’s Chalet Cheese as well as Wisconsin’s foremost dairy scientists to resurrect this remnant of German-American immigrant culture this Spring season, 2010.

Each day, Myron hand produces Limburger and now Liederkranz cheeses just like they were made centuries ago. Olsen smiles proudly as he painstakingly “smears” each small brick like cheese, ages them on wooden racks and then hand wraps each one in special foil cheese paper. In an age where the word artisan gets thrown around about foods that are made in factories full of robotic machinery, the rebirth of Liederkranz reminds of that we’ve had American food artisans all along. Liederkranz hits ShopRite stores mid-May 2010. Ask your ShopRite cheese professional for the cheese. This one is American cheese for grownups !

Here are a few recipes to enjoy this month. Have a magnificent May!

Summer Green Bean and Roasted Red Pepper Salad*

*Exclusive Chef Faith Alahverdian recipe.

Click here for printable version of this recipe

Prep time: 12 minutes

Cook time: 3 minutes

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients

1 lb. fresh green beans or haricot verts, stem
end trimmed
1 jar of ShopRite roasted red peppers, drained well
1⁄2 tsp. lemon zest
3 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
1⁄4 cup Filippo Berio Light Olive Oil
1 tbsp. Crosse & Blackwell Seafood Classics Rich and Garlicky Scampi Sauce
1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves
1⁄2 tsp. Simply Organic Oregano
1⁄4 tsp. Simply Organic Granulated Garlic
La Baleine Sea Salt
Simply Organic Black Pepper

Directions

1. Bring large pot of salted water to a rolling boil. In a large bowl, prepare an ice bath
   with ice cubes and very cold water. Blanch the green beans until crisp-tender, about
   2-3 minutes. Drain beans and plunge immediately into ice bath to stop cooking. When beans are cool, place in a colander to drain well.

2. Julienne the roasted peppers; set aside. In a medium bowl, combine lemon zest and
   juice; whisk in oil. Add scampi sauce, thyme, oregano, garlic, and salt and freshly ground pepper to taste; whisk to combine. Add green beans and toss well. Add roasted peppers and toss gently. Serve on your favorite picnic plates with Vanity Fair
   Napkins.

Per Serving: 178 calories, 13g carbohydrate, 2g protein, 14g fat, 2g saturated fat, 4g fiber,
0mg cholesterol, 231mg sodium

Recipe note: Haricot verts, also known as the French Filet Bean, are slender and more flavorful than stringless green beans.

A good idea: When preparing in advance, store vinaigrette separately and toss with chilled vegetable mixture just before serving.

Grilled Fish Tacos with Avocado Tomatillo Salsa*

*Exclusive Chef Faith Alahverdian recipe.

Click here for printable version of this recipe

Prep time: 15 minutes**

Cook time: 12 minutes

Makes 6 to 8 servings

Ingredients

12 oz. firm white fish fillets, patted dry on paper towels
1 tsp. Simply Organic Ground Cumin
1 tsp. Simply Organic Granulated Garlic
1 tsp. lime zest
1⁄4 cup Filippo Berio Light Olive Oil
La Baleine Sea Salt
Simply Organic Black Peppercorns
5 fresh tomatillos, papery skin removed
2 avocados, cut in half and pittted
Juice of 1 lime
1⁄2 cup Santa Fe Packing Co. Mild Salsa
2 tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1⁄2 fresh jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced (optional)
1 pkg. ShopRite corn tortillas
Red leaf lettuce, washed and dried

Directions

1. Place fish fillets in a shallow glass dish. To prepare marinade, in a small bowl whisk together cumin, garlic, lime zest, olive oil and salt and freshly ground pepper to taste. Pour marinade over fish, turning fish to coat well; cover and chill 15 to 30 minutes.
   

2. Meanwhile, to prepare Avocado Tomatillo Salsa, quarter the tomatillos and place in a medium saucepan. Barely cover with water; cover saucepan with lid and bring to a simmer. Simmer 2 minutes and remove from heat. Allow to cool.

3. Using a slotted spoon, put cooled tomatillos in blender container and purée, adding small amounts of the reserved cooking water as needed to thin mixture. Scoop avocado pulp into blender container and add lime juice; purée for 10 to 20 seconds until chunky. Spoon into medium bowl and stir in salsa. Stir in jalapeño pepper, if desired. Add salt and freshly ground pepper to taste. 4. Remove fish from marinade; discard marinade. Place fish on a paper-towel-lined plate. Lightly oil grill pan and heat over medium-high heat 1 minute. Sear fish fillets until golden, about 4 minutes on each side. Transfer to cutting board and cut fillets into strips.

4. Wipe grill pan clean and warm tortillas quickly in pan. Place a lettuce leaf on each warm tortilla. Add several strips of grilled fish and desired amount of Avocado Tomatillo Salsa.

Per Serving: 255 calories, 17g carbohydrate, 11g protein, 17g fat, 3g saturated fat, 50g fiber,
23mg cholesterol, 132mg sodium

**Marinate time extra

Recipe note: Tomatillos are the small, green tomatoes with a papery husk used often in Mexican cooking.

A good idea: Leftover tomatillo salsa may be used as a simmer sauce for chicken fillets, pork chops or turkey cutlets.

Hummingbird Cake with Lemon Glaze

Click here for printable version of this recipe

Prep time: 25 minutes*

Cook time: 65 minutes
Makes 16 servings

Ingredients

2 cups sifted powdered sugar
2 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
3 cups ShopRite all-purpose flour
2 cups ShopRite granulated sugar
2 tsp. freshly grated lemon zest
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. Simply Organic Ground Cinnamon
1⁄2 tsp. La Baleine Sea Salt
3 eggs, beaten
2 cups chopped ripe peeled bananas
1 (8-oz.) can crushed pineapple in its own juice,
undrained
3⁄4 cup ShopRite Grapeseed Oil
1 1⁄2 tsp. Simply Organic Vanilla Extract
1⁄2 cup chopped ShopRite pecans

Lemon Glaze (recipe follows)

Lemon Glaze: In small bowl stir together powdered sugar and lemon juice. Add water, 1 teaspoon at a time, until glaze is of drizzling consistency.

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Grease and flour 10-inch fluted tube pan. Set aside.

2. In large mixing bowl stir together flour, granulated sugar, lemon zest, baking soda,
   cinnamon and sea salt. Set aside.

3. In small bowl stir together eggs, bananas, pineapple and its juice, Enova Oil and vanilla. Stir into flour mixture until combined; fold in pecans.

4. Pour batter into prepared pan and spread evenly. Bake 65 to 70 minutes or until wooden toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack 10 minutes. Invert cake from pan onto wire rack; cool completely. Drizzle with Lemon Glaze.

Per Serving: 357 calories, 57g carbohydrate, 4g protein, 14g fat, 2g fiber, 40mg cholesterol, 182mg sodium

Recipe note: Bananas develop the best flavor when ripened off the vine, thus they are often
sold green. To speed ripening, place at room temperature in a brown paper bag with small holes for up to two days.

A good idea: Store ripened bananas, with peels intact, in the refrigerator for several days. Don’t worry about the darkened peels because the flesh will remain unchanged.