Stilton with Port

fx

Mon, 14 Mar 2016 20:47:12 GMT

Thanks Susanne for trying this, I love sweet tastes with cheese, hope it worked for you!

Susanne Lamb

Wed, 5 Dec 2012 16:53:59 GMT

I think I have come to this very persuasive website rather late! My husband has always wanted to try this - we have just taken delivery of a beautiful Stilton (not difficult to source in England, as you know) and have started feeding it as per your instructions. We don"t care what "purists" might think - if it tastes good to us, it won"t be the last time! By the looks of concentration on your guests" faces, it"ll be worth it. Your enthusiasm is infectious!

Walter

Sun, 18 Dec 2011 16:54:10 GMT

Hello FX,
I was recently invited to try this amazing gastronomical delight by a friend who is originally from Wales. He served it with a wonderful Tawny Port. He of course gave me a slice to take home, which I devoured the next day! I found your recipe on line and I am proud to say my Stilton wheel is now curing in the basement and will be ready by Christmas day! I have friends coming over for Christmas and I can"t wait to see their delight! I heard that this was Princess Dianna"s favorite and it is now my favorite as well! Truly amazing... Thank you for sharing and I"ll let you know how it turns out.
Merry Christmas! Walter Lewis, Roswell, GA

fx

Sun, 12 Dec 2010 22:20:06 GMT

Most people store it at room temperature.

david Neale

Mon, 6 Dec 2010 02:58:16 GMT

hi, I licked your article on feeding stilton with port and want to have a go myself for christmas, can you tell me how and at what temperature do you store the cheese after poring on the port

kim rees

Mon, 18 Oct 2010 11:00:19 GMT

when you have soaked the cheese with port were do you store it

cantinerita

Sun, 7 Mar 2010 10:33:20 GMT

Me ha encantado tu reportaje!!!!!!!!!!! He llegado aqu� porque una forera de mundorecetas nos mostr� tu brownie con corazon de frambuesa (impresionande paso a paso....) y para un ratoncito como yo..... ha sido ver el nombre Stilton y no poderme resistir!!!! Como me habr�a gustado estar en esa mesa....
Tengo una pregunta... �Como son esos tenedores para nueces?? Nunca hab�a o�do hablar de ellos y como somos consumidores habituales de nueces.. me gustar�a hacerme con uno para probarlo!!
Me voy a seguir cotilleando tus recetas!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

fx

Thu, 14 Jan 2010 18:28:13 GMT

Glad you liked it Karen!

karen

Tue, 8 Dec 2009 15:17:31 GMT

I just bought a beautiful Stilton and am on my way to the wine shop for a port. I enjoyed your article on Stilton and port very much.

fx

Thu, 17 Sep 2009 22:03:33 GMT

Sounds like a plan!

Shelley

Sun, 13 Sep 2009 17:35:01 GMT

That"s right! The vodka is absorbed by the watermelon. You can cut up the melon into cubes, or if you"re very creative, make a "basket" out of the watermelon rind and put the loaded fruit inside.

fx

Sun, 13 Sep 2009 15:24:40 GMT

Shelley, thanks for your comment! Do you mean that you then serve vodka-soaked watermelon cubes as an appetizer? Is the vodka absorbed by the watermelon flesh?

Shelley

Sun, 13 Sep 2009 07:50:32 GMT

What a wonderful dinner you must have had. And I think there is nothing wrong with your presentation whatsoever. I live in Alabama, where, unfortunately, most cheese is pre-packaged processed "cheese". But I will try to find Stilton, port-soaked or otherwise, in my local stores. When you mentioned port and melons, we have something similar that is quite tasty, and very potent. We take a large watermelon, cut a hole in the top, and invert a whole bottle of quality vodka into the hole. Then let it sit for a day in the fridge. The rind holds the vodka in, and when it"s done, you have a sweetly refreshing treat that will knock you to the floor. Perfect for the triple digit summer days we get here. You should try it!

fx

Thu, 19 Mar 2009 15:07:44 GMT

Thanks a lot Gudmundur, and I hope you get to try this wonderful flavor combination!

Gu�mundur Brynj�lfsson

Thu, 19 Mar 2009 11:10:54 GMT

What a wonderful idea. I have never heard about this before, only the tradition to drink Port with the Stilton. This web side is incredeble! Thanks.

fx

Sun, 15 Feb 2009 14:47:31 GMT

Rajesh, thanks for remembering me! Now an update has come, and several more are on the way...

Rajesh

Sun, 8 Feb 2009 14:14:54 GMT

"Although I can buy Stilton with Port in several shops here in Switzerland, I decided to do it myself for the enjoyments of my readers, and of my stomach."

..No fxcuisine website updates on my blackberry for a while now :( Your readers are missing you!

fx

Fri, 16 Jan 2009 04:14:35 GMT

Thanks Jamie, Alaska seems like a fantastic place, what a memorable time you must have there! Hope you get to taste that Stilton some day!

Jamie M. Forbes

Thu, 15 Jan 2009 20:29:59 GMT

Incredible Web site here. Right now am in NEA and have to go to Kroger in Jonesboro for any semblance of cheese.However we"ll tell you that something extraordinary can be made from that Silver Dyke creamy goat cheese infused with Post Family plum wine from Arkansas.

Not exactly Stilton with Port.

Something else.

Wonderfully salacious in its own right.

You know, I"ve seen goats around here. I"ve seen sheep. No cheese from them in the markets, however.

Jamie M. Forbes
Media & Writers, Inc.
332 Bleecker Street F32
New York, NY 10014

fx

Tue, 13 Jan 2009 07:21:06 GMT

I"ll see about that - but it would be in Switzerland!

barbara

Sat, 27 Dec 2008 20:46:09 GMT

Yummy. I want an invite to your party.

fx

Mon, 22 Dec 2008 13:22:15 GMT

Well Cynthia, let me know if you ever do visit Switzerland?

fx

Mon, 22 Dec 2008 13:20:16 GMT

Mike, thanks for your comment and I"ll be very pleased to come and visit your cheese shop next time I"m in Zurich! About Stilton with Port, I understand that this has been used by some restaurateurs to bring back to commercial life leftover Stilton. Many fine dishes have seen their reputation ruined by unscrupulous chefs. Think of Sepherd"s Pie or Spaghetti Bolognese. But does it really mean that with fine ingredients and proper care, one cannot make an extraordinary dish from those age old recipes? Surely not. To us Continentals, there is no negative association of stale cheese and warm beer that comes with this and out of the dozen friends who tried it, all it won was sincere praise!

Mike Jones

Mon, 22 Dec 2008 10:33:07 GMT

Lovely blog and an interesting article. I have to agree with the other English comments about this practice not being a British tradition, but, some would say, a crime. I can imagine that this was first done by a restaurant who had an old Stilton (Stilton is at its best at 12 - 16 weeks old, much older than 20 and it dries out) who thought it would be a good way to bring back some moisture to the cheese, and then the idea/dish was sold to tourists as a traditional way of eating Stilton.

I agree that Port wine is the perfect partner to Stilton, but I would always serve my Stilton on an Orkney Oatcake with a glass of port on the side. If you"re ever in the Thalwil, ZH area, come and see my British cheese shop and try some of the 30 odd farmhouse cheeses we stock (we also have Burts chips!).

Harbourne Blue, a hard blue goats cheese from Devon is my best cheese at the moment.

Mike Jones
www.cheeseclub.ch

Cynthia Nelson

Sun, 21 Dec 2008 20:10:43 GMT

I need to move to your neck of the woods so that I can be invited to these get-togethers!

fx

Tue, 9 Dec 2008 04:51:16 GMT

Glad you liked it!

Cris

Mon, 8 Dec 2008 13:13:10 GMT

Wow,Stilton with Port, I cant think in anything better. This is my favourite post.

fx

Sun, 7 Dec 2008 09:14:16 GMT

The quiche worked really well in fact but I admit using bought puff pastry, hardly FXcuisinesque! But I"ll see what I can do.

Richard

Sun, 7 Dec 2008 06:39:44 GMT

I"d love to see that recipe for stilton quiche, it would be a great thing to make over Christmas...

fx

Sun, 7 Dec 2008 06:12:36 GMT

Marianne, thank you for your recipe! In fact I have bought a few sugar cones to try this but never quite new how to go about it. Do people light the alcohol up right on the table or only in the kitchen? Apart from the spectacular show, is there any added flavor due to the burning liquid poured over the sugar cone?

Marianne - Vaxholm

Sat, 6 Dec 2008 12:59:44 GMT

Wonderful article, Francois. I am also enjoying the fact that some British readers seem to think of this particular way of mixing stilton with port as a culinary faux pas, while the rest of us are quite happy to consider testing it :) In fact, the idea of a bottle of port stuck upside down in the cheese is in itself so hilarious that it"s worth trying!
Since Joanna mentioned Gl�gg, a Swedish seasonal, comforting and sweet drink to be had prior to and during X-Mas, here is a traditional recipe:
Gl�gg
1 bottle of red wine, for instance a "Bordeaux correct"
2 cm each of cinnamon, dried ginger and Seville orange peel (aka Pomeranz or arancia amaria etc)
5 whole cloves
2 teaspoons of cardamom, whole
400 g sugar, bit sized or a cone of sugar
1/2 bottle (35 cl) pure Aquavit or Vodka, make sure it is not flavoured
1-3 small handful of raisins and peeled almonds

Preparations
Heat up the wine and spices in a pot, no cooking. When hot, add the Aquavit or Vodka
Place the pieces of sugar on a rack, put rack on top of the pot covering half the pot
Set the wine/Aquavit mixture afire and ladle the burning concoction over the sugar
The sugar will melt and drip into the Gl�gg
Add almonds and raisins and serve with gingerbread cookies.
The term Gl�gg is derived from an old Scandinavian verb for heating up = gl�dga, and the quicker method of preparing Gl�gg of course is to simply add the sugar to the drink!
Enjoy!
Marianne

fx

Thu, 4 Dec 2008 08:35:53 GMT

Jennifer, I think that those end-of-year get-togethers can be quite dreadful when organized around crap industrial food out of a vacuum-sealed bag. Not my thing. I decided to play on the men gathered around the fire as the sun declines and days are getting shorter, celebrating their trust that in the future the sun will indeed come back. Sharing one large cheese around a round table really made for a memorable evening.

fx

Thu, 4 Dec 2008 08:34:10 GMT

Kurzhaar, oh yes, Port wine in a melon is the only way I knew how to eat a melon until I reached the age of 13. And ham of course!

fx

Thu, 4 Dec 2008 08:20:50 GMT

Oh I don"t think your arm and first-born would be necessary, I"ll let you know when we buy the next Stilton!

Choosy Beggar Tina

Wed, 3 Dec 2008 17:57:14 GMT

Jeez, FX! That"s THE BIGGEST STILTON I have ever SEEN! Wowza!!!

I would have given my right arm AND my first-born son to be at that party with you....

kurzhaar

Tue, 2 Dec 2008 23:13:19 GMT

I must thank Meramarina for that song, which is now rattling around in my head... :)

FX, a simple port recipe is to pour a little port into a Charantais melon half. This is something we would sometimes do in California when we found a nice melon at the farmers" market. (As an aside, we also discovered instead of the usual melon and prosciutto combination, papaya and prosciutto are a fabulous pair.)

Jennifer

Tue, 2 Dec 2008 21:48:52 GMT

LUCKY Collgeagues!!!! It looks wonderful, and thanks for reminding me that sometimes all you need are a few simple items to have a splendid time!

fx

Tue, 2 Dec 2008 03:09:48 GMT

Patrick, I"ll put this one on my list!

Patrick

Tue, 2 Dec 2008 01:37:23 GMT

If you get the chance try this with another English blue cheese called a Dorset Blue Vinney. Its a little bit more creamy than a Stilton and for sheer snob value, its only made in one place; a small farm outside of Sherbourne.I"m a Dorset boy originally so I do have a slight bias!!!

fx

Mon, 1 Dec 2008 03:05:12 GMT

Chiffy, yes I think my guests are rather pleased with the hours they spend at my table! Unfortunately I am no good with food styling and table decoration, there is vast potential for improvement on that side.

Shu

Mon, 1 Dec 2008 03:04:26 GMT

I"m curious as to the constitution of the Stilton after all that soaking, Do you drink the cheese or eat the port?

fx

Mon, 1 Dec 2008 03:03:11 GMT

Tim, I think for seeping the Stilton most people and all cheesemongers would use the cheapest Port they can fine. "Don"t want to ruin a good Port for this", they"d say, "... and anyway nobody will know the difference", they"d think. But in all fairness if you use a Port that you"d drink, it should work fine with both.

fx

Mon, 1 Dec 2008 02:56:31 GMT

Clive, indeed a lovely view from that office!
Do you concur with the commenter who said Stilton with Port is a shame on Britain - I find this rather silly for it works really well.

fx

Mon, 1 Dec 2008 02:54:31 GMT

Joanna, this glug thing looks amazing, I guess the ambiance must soon become quite warm!

fx

Mon, 1 Dec 2008 02:51:29 GMT

Tout le plaisir �tait pour nous!

Vuilleumier Alexandre

Mon, 1 Dec 2008 02:36:44 GMT

Merci beaucoup pour la d�gustation. Le Porto avec ce fromage
est vraiment un joli mariage. Il y a une explosion de go�ts
sans brutalit�. Rarement j"ai mang� un fromage aussi "sensuel".

Joanna

Sun, 30 Nov 2008 18:41:27 GMT

We did this one Christmas and thought it tasted OK but still prefer to have them separately but together, we only put the port into the stilton when it was nearly finished and was looking a bit sad and in need of cheering up..... Waitrose has a recipe for potted stilton with port, again as a way of using up the leftovers.... but you look like you had a great time and it certainly sparked comments !
PS I was just treated to the Swedish glug for Advent tradition: gluhwein with little bowls of blanched almonds and raisins and gingerbread biscuits, you put the almonds and raisins in the hot sweet spiced wine and then fish them out with a little spoon and eat them and dip your biscuits too. That was fun! I wish I had taken some photos of us popping the almond skins off....

Clive

Sun, 30 Nov 2008 16:02:05 GMT

Great stuff Francois - guaranteed to make it onto my debauched Christmas menu! And I just love the view from that window in the last pic :-)

tim - nice not dim

Sun, 30 Nov 2008 14:55:15 GMT

Interesting that you used aged tawny port - the very few times Ive had stilton as in your excellent article, a young ruby port was used - something to do with the red fruit / pepper attack of the young port ?

I must admit, I"d very much like to try both options & decide!

Chiffonade

Sun, 30 Nov 2008 13:28:19 GMT

Oh to be a lucky guest at one of your gatherings! Thanks for a great idea - especially with the holidays just "officially" begun here with Thanksgiving.

<3 Chiffy