cheese

We may still be in the throes of wool coat and tights weather, but I'm already eagerly anticipating warmer days for one frivolous but fantastic reason: with Spring weather comes picnic season. Generally, these blissful afternoons spent relaxing in the park are fueled by a stop at my favorite specialty foods shop to pick up some cheese, bread, wine, and fruit, but occasionally I prepare a slightly more involved, less spontaneous spread. Often this centers around a portable, low-fuss, room-temperature-friendly, and — most importantly — delicious dish: the frittata.

This bulked-up, bacon-studded iteration will be no exception. I can already picture it: me, a few friends, a bottle of rosé, hearty slices of this frittata, a basket of berries, and, ultimately, sun-drenched bliss. Until then I'll have to satisfy my craving table-side, but hey, with a dish as lovely as the one at hand, I'm hardly complaining.

Keep reading for the picnic- and brunch-friendly recipe.

When I was first introduced to fondue as a child by my fromage-fiend mother, I simply didn't get it. Granted, at the time I was in the throes of a regrettable melted-cheese phobia, so when we'd dine on this cheesy delight, I'd sullenly munch on cubes of crusty bread and the other accoutrement. Thankfully, I came to my senses in my teens, and have since dived into fondue-fanaticism full force.

Gooey and rich, this Swiss dish is meant to be lingered over with friends or a loved one, and is especially apropos during the chilly Winter months. Better yet, fondue is one of those seemingly fussy dishes that's extremely easy to re-create at home, provided one has the requisite equipment. Here I'm using a vintage fondue stand and a standard saucepan, but if I were to invest in another set-up it'd be this ingenious set-up from Trudeau ($80) that comes highly recommended by the fine folk at Cook's Country. Other than that it's just a bit of minor prep work (cubing bread, assembling other accoutrement, shredding cheese) and a quick turn in a pot and you're good to go. Just don't forget to pair it with good company and a glass (or two) of crisp white wine!

Get the ooey-gooey and oh-so-easy recipe.

I try to avoid overarching statements, but I'm confident that if you make these easy yet impressive cheese straws for your next soirée, you will fall hard for store-bought puff pastry. That is, if you're not already on best-friend terms with the genius ingredient. These gloriously flaky cheese straws might seem complex to construct, but really, it's just the butter-filled layers of puff pastry and a kiss of heat from the oven at work.

Little more than a brush of egg wash, a sprinkling of cheese and herbs, and a few deft (but easy) twirls of the puff pastry strips are required, all in all making for a very low effort-to-reward ratio. So what are you waiting for? Bake a handful of these treats, and your friends will be begging for the recipe!

Some people care to receive flowers for Valentine's Day, but if you're like me, you would prefer an edible arrangement. While this salad isn't technically a bouquet of any kind, it does contain a colorful sprinkle of edible flowers. I chose purple pansies, snapdragon, and violets to keep in line with the Valentine's Day color scheme, but you can use bright yellow marigolds, orange nasturtiums, and other known edible flowers too. You'll find the flowers are mild in flavor and taste much like greens (slightly peppery and leaf-like).

Slices of pink grapefruit also adorn the salad. If you do not like the bitterness of grapefruit, try salting it before tossing the slices in with the greens. It neutralizes the tartness, letting the essence of the grapefruit flavor shine through. Slices of watermelon radish add a bit of crunch and vibrant color. Compared to other radishes out there, watermelon radish is mild in spiciness, plus it's fun to chomp on a naturally neon pink food!

Finally, Point Reyes Toma, a semihard cow's milk cheese, provides a creamy, buttery counterpart to the salad. Everything is tossed in a very simple vinaigrette to let the fresh ingredients dazzle your taste buds.

Click here to see the recipe.

Perhaps you've tried cheddar beer chips, cheddar beer fondue, or even beer-infused cheese, but I'm going to go out on a limb and say that this bacon-studded cheddar beer soup is a whole new frontier, unless you've dined at Jonathon's Oak Cliff in Dallas, TX, where this ridiculously indulgent dish hails from.

Now, let's address the hulking elephant in the room: unlike many soups, this soup is decidedly not diet food, but that's OK. Heck, I could barely finish one petite bacon-studded bowl before admitting defeat, even though I loved every dreamy-creamy spoonful. Rather, this luxuriously decadent soup is the sort that's meant to be shared and paired with a pint of beer and a heaping mound of the greenest salad you can get your hands on.

That said, it is very good — as in ditch your dinner plans and make it tonight good. I can say with absolute certainty that I'll be making it at any appropriate opportunity I can conjure — for starters, I can think of no better Super Bowl party treat — and suggest you follow suit. Treat yourself!

Keep reading for the can't-miss recipe.

If you've ever tasted a gougère — essentially savory cheese-flecked cousins of cream puffs and eclairs — then little needs to be said in order to convince you to head to the kitchen to whip up a batch of these luxurious appetizers. If not, I'll keep it simple: airy and light, with just enough nutty cheese to keep things lively, these pâte-à-choux party favorites will go fast if included in a party spread.

Put off by the slightly strange method of cookery that's outlined in the recipe below? Don't be. It may be a slight step outside of your baking repertoire if you've yet to try your hand at any treats in the choux-pastry family, but their assembly is actually quite simple and intuitive and can be made in large party-friendly quantities in precious few minutes. Keep reading for the easy yet impressive recipe.