How to Create Delicious Duos by Pairing Cheese & Flavored Honey
Editor’s note: Contributor Liz Susman Karp recently shared Why it's Worth Exploring the Magic of Honey Paired with Cheese. Now she’s back with flavored honeys and honey based spreads, which open up a whole new range of delectable possibilities.
In the world of cheese, honey is considered a universal condiment because its sweetness and viscosity so beautifully complement the tangy, salty dairy product.
With over 300 unique kinds of honey available in the United States alone, each originating from a different floral source, the opportunities for pairing honey with cheese are diverse and wide-ranging. Experimentation is the name of the game say cheesemongers and honey sommeliers, and personal preferences rule.
“There's no wrong and there's no right way,” says C. Marina Marchese, honey sommelier and author of The Honey Connoisseur. That goes for choosing honey that is flavored as well.
Some like it hot
“Sometimes if you have honeys that have a flavor added to them, whether it's chilies or truffle or something along those lines,” says Ivy Ronquillo, owner of Second Mouse Cheese in Pleasantville, New York, “you're creating a whole another level of pairing. That becomes an adventure.” One of her favorite matches is hot honey with fontina. “And then {with} spicy Salami it’s insane,” she raves. “You would never put honey on meat under normal circumstances. But the three together are gorgeous.”
Ronquillo is partial to Red Clay Hot Honey, which comes from South Carolina. “In addition to the chili in there, there's also a hint of vinegar,” she explains. “So there's a tanginess and the whole thing is balanced out once you put it with something that's a little bit more alkaline.”
"File:Ossau-iraty 04.jpg" by Pierre-Yves Beaudouin is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0 and Lavender Honey
Savory and sweet
“Cheese is to honey-like peanut butter is to jelly,” declares Gayle Martin, CCP (Certified Cheese Professional) and owner of Plum Plums Cheese in New Canaan, Connecticut. “The yin and yang of savory and sweet is a perfect pairing.” At Plum Plums, they offer lavender honey that Martin says, “takes the pairing one step further by adding another aromatic element that's just heavenly. I'll take a dollop of that on top of a hard sheep's milk cheese like aged Ossau-Iraty any day!”
Aromas are important components of pairing. “Your sense of smell influences your tastebuds,” comments Martin, “so the tingle of a sweet lavender aroma wakes up your mouth and brings forth the sweetness in the milk.”
Marchese agrees. “Eating and tasting is a total combination of sight, smell, taste, and flavor, and mouthfeel, all of those senses together equal what we would maybe define as ultimately, flavor. It's a whole package. You can't have one without the other.”
Karen Mosholder, owner of Bumbleberry Farms, a honey producer and sourcer, tinkered with honey and some family recipes to create a line of honey-flavored spreads including savory caramel pear cardamon and sweet maple. She usually pairs the spreads with “like-minded” cheeses, which she says, “makes logical sense to me” so the cheese and honey spread enhance and don’t overpower the other.
Chocolate honey spread and cheese photo credit Bumbleberry Farms
When Mosholder prepares a baked brie, she often includes a layer of her sea salt caramel spread and serves it with apple slices or crackers. “It’s an easy peasy hostess entertaining appetizer. And it's delicious!” she says. She likes coupling Bumbleberry Farms’ dark chocolate spread with whipped ricotta cheese on toast for dessert. She’s not one for pairing rules. Bottom line she says, “If it tastes good to you, it almost doesn't matter!”