Sunday, August 16, 2009

August 23rd 1792: Invention of the Camembert Cheese

Nobody wants to buy these little ugly yellowish greasy cheeses made by Madame Harel. And she is trying so hard to comply with her duty of making cheese as it was written down in her prenuptial. She just lacks the talent. In the evening of August 23 1792 somebody is knocking at her door. Abbe Gobert, a young priest, is running away from his followers. Rebellious priests live dangerously during the French revolution. To thank her for the asylum that she had granted him, the holy man shows her a few tricks.

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Monks have always been gourmets, and Gobert grew up in an area where the monks know how to make good brie cheese.
As a result Madame Harel's little cheeses have become more flavourful and lighter until one day the today known "Camembert" cheese resulted from this agricultural-clerical co-production. The cheese with the silky mold outside layer is named after the little village of Camembert situated in the Normandy. And from this windy northern town the cheese started its triumphant culinary journey around the world.

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By the way... a slice of freshly baked Basic 1/2 Whole Wheat Bread goes very well with Camembert cheese.

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