Here's to a Cheesey 2011!

Another year gone, and a new one to face. Here are some of my cheesy thoughts and cheese resolutions for the year:

I will eat more goat cheese. Not only because it's lower in fat than other cheeses but there are now, on the market, so many excellent choices. And like any good cheese, a little goes a long way. Hmm... goat cheese omelette... some chevre on my multigrain bagel... some fresh feta on my pasta with fresh basil... mmm... the possibilities.

I will demand more Raclette! Watching the fat intake the majority of the time is well and good, but darn it, I'm going to enjoy myself and eat raclette a few more times than just during Christmas and New Years. Raclette can, in fact, be a very healthy meal-- all those roasted veggies, some meat or even fish and a modest amount of cheese-- I might even try to grill tofu.

More importantly, though, is my insistence on wanting to enjoy simple pleasures this year with people that mean the most to me, without the pressure of dazzling others with all I know and how creative I can be. Raclette grilling allows for this. Anyone can boil potatoes; anyone can buy deli meat, anyone can slice cheese and wash vegetables. But few of us take the time to enjoy one another. And somehow, this rather simple combination of ingredients results in something intangibly good and indeed healthy for us.

I will have at least 3 kinds of cheese in my refrigerator at all times (and I don't mean the Parmigianno Reggiano I need for just cooking). This year, I plan to venture out of my normal confines of Camembert, Humboldt Fog and Monterey Jack and set my sights on the likes of a Mahon of Spain, Chimay of Belgium, Bijou from Vermont... and the many more I'm increasingly seeing on display. For these special cheeses, I will reserve for my afternoon tea time and for all that stop by and visit, for this year will be a year of sharing and extending to others what good comes our way.

Great expectations, indeed... but that's really the only way to live... with thoughts of greatness and achieving something beyond just ourselves.