The Vermont Institute for Artisan Cheese (VIAC) at the University of Vermont in Burlington is offering three courses in October:
For descriptions and more information about signing up for one or more of these classes, visit www.uvm.edu/viac.
As I reported to the Guild last year, there is a lab at Harvard that is taking an unprecedented look into the microbial communities that make up the rind on aging cheese and they are finding astonishing interactions as well as residents that all help to create the local identity of our local foods. Now Dr. Rachel Dutton, a Bauer fellow at the FAS Center of Systems Biology, has piqued the interest of many gastronomists by studying the cheese rinds at The Cellers At Jasper Hill’s aging caves, and then opening up her appreciation of microbiological societies to look at other food fermentation processes like sourdough and yogurt. Her efforts have now been noticed by the New York Times Dining Pages quoting chefs that believe she is unlocking the mysteries of what makes the taste of place — what is terroir.
My grandmother used to drink a glass of buttermilk every afternoon at 4pm with a sprinkle of salt and pepper on top. Bakers swear by the use of buttermilk in biscuits as well as other quick breads where an acidic liquid helps the baking powder fluff up the dough. And those of you who attended the Culture Workshop in March will remember our instructor, Rex Infanger, waxing poetic about the enjoying good “real” buttermilk which can be hard to find these days. Read about how Kate’s Homemade Butter in Old Orchard Beach is leading the charge to regain TRUE buttermilk’s glory.