Potted Gouda Cheese Spread

I have made this many times through the years and it is great to have on hand. It mellows with age, as all cheese spreads/dips/dunks/balls do. I am not a fan of the classic cheese ball. Not how a cheese ball tastes, how it looks after a few folks have had a knife swipe at it. Pretty and then immediately messy. Potted cheese presentation eliminates all that.  For this batch I simply pressed it into one of the old fashioned refrigerator pans, put a date label on it and that was it. There it sits waiting to be served.

 Potted Gouda Cheese
adapted through the years, recipe most likely found in a magazine, source now forgotten, but thanked.

1 8 oz ball Gouda cheese - grated
3 T dry white wine
1 t mustard
1 dash hot pepper sauce - shake the bottle well and give it a definite dash of flavor!

Grate the cheese.

Add remaining ingredients.

Process until smooth, scrape down sides, process again if needed.

Smooth into your chosen container. 

Label and place in fridge to mellow. To make sure this was "sealed" I used a double thickness of wax paper as a gasket.

This is delicious on crackers and in celery, this was a given.Is there a better match than cheese and crackers or bread?

But this is also wonderful to place a small dollop on a saute'd chicken breast or thigh and let it melt into a delicious sauce.

Toss with fresh steamed broccoli before serving.

Serve with crisp and tart apple slices.

Individual balls ( about 1 Tablespoon ) of this can be rolled in toasted pecans, etc and used to dress an appetizer tray or plate. 

As always thanks to taking a moment to stop and say hello, have a great Sunday!

M