Family Cheese

Our family name translates as "cheese village" so it is no wonder that our fondness for kase is so strong and undeniable. Perhaps that urge is responsible for our gravitation to Wisconsin and why we have not strayed from it for 29 years.

And although we have not been able to suss out how the maternal and paternal grandparents got together perhaps it was the also draw of the cheese. Grandma's family was a family of bakers you see. Not the bakerei kind who make sturdy loaves and curly pretzels. The conditorei type who make the strudels and kuchens.

Here is the family recipe for kasekuchen written out by our cousin, a fourth generation baker who grew up and learned the craft in the same house in which our grandmother was born and raised.

On a visit to his home a few years ago he graciously gave us a lesson and tolerated us photographing each step of the process to turn out a heavenly heritage cheesecake.

The springform pan was greased (with real butter of course).

The previously prepared pastry was rolled out, 

fit into the pan,

trimmed to fit.

Filling ingredients were assembled and weighed.

The Kitchenaid was employed for mixing.

The eggs, quark, pudding, vanilla sugar, milk and cream came together as a satiny smooth batter.

The final step. A generous sprinkle of zimt and then, into the oven it went.

We waited.

In comfortable and colorful surroundings.

In good company.

Still not done, we strolled outdoors to wait some more,

while enjoying flaura we don't typically get to hang out with in our zone.

Back indoors the smells were becoming as alluring as the decor.

The glowing oven magically transformed high quality raw ingredients into a rich and lovely labor of cheesy love.

Ahhh...

The only way to keep from immediately digging into the hot delicacy was to leave the house while it cooled.

We distracted ourselves very well with a visit to the Germanisches Nationalmuseum.

The applied arts wing was a highlight.

Back at our home away from home....time to cut the cake.

Worth the wait?

Ja. Das is richtig!

Wunderbar! Schmeckt gut!

Days of Wine (and Cheese) and Roses

African marathon runners have nothing on gardeners in the stamina department.

A recent garden club field trip had members crossing several county lines in search of 

new greenhouses to explore. But first thing's first. 

Lunch and wine tasting at Munson Bridge Winery fueled the fond-of-foliage friends for plant shopping 

up and down and round about Hwy. 29 East.

Munson Bridge.

Well, you can't have wine without cheese so...the ladies had to stop at the world famous 

Holland's Family Cheese  home of prize-winning Marieke Gouda. 

They were driving right by for heaven's sake.

Here are the girls that really make the champion gouda possible.

It's all good, 

but may we recommend our favorite, the foenegreek?

Be patient, it's best when aged.

At the end of the day the cars could hold no more plants. 

But somehow, someone managed to wedge in a case of wine. 

Can't wait for the garden club Christmas party!

Le Petit Dejeuner

The French have their faults, but they know how to do breakfast right.

This one is at a hotel in Alsace. Are you American chain hotels taking notes?

This is also how we were able skip lunch most days and have a good appetite for wonderful evening meals at, yes you know it, French restaurants. 

Oh zose French, zey're cheezy and zey know it.

# 14

Another reason Canada is awesome.

They put gravy on cheese curds and french fries, and stay open late.

It's not Exactly Paris

But it does have its own exotic charms - Northwestern Wisconsin.




















Thank goodness we don't have to "Live Like We Mean It" anymore. In 2011 The Fonz is going to help us "Picture the Fun".

So Much Cheese, So Little Time

We went for a wedding, we got so much more. The gap in time between ceremony and reception gave us time to visit another amazing local landmark - Dairy State Cheese, where we shopped, saw curds being made, and looked at the hundreds of beautiful antique cheese keepers in their collection. It was a sunny fall day and the place was full of happy cheese and icecream seekers, many of them arriving on Harleys.