Each month, your Neighboring Food Co-ops feature our region’s artisan cheesemakers by offering a specially selected cheese at great price. Look for the “Cave to Co-op” sign in the cheese section at your local food co-op. To find one near you, visit www.nfca.coop/members.
This month’s special cheese is MT ALICE from Von Trapp Farmstead, Waitsfield, VT
Since 1959, when Werner and Erika von Trapp purchased the von Trapp Farm, the farm has transitioned (over the course of three generations) to a certified organic dairy and in 2009 added cheese making to the value-added operations. Striving for high-quality standards, the von Trapp Farm produces some of the sweetest organic milk for premium cheese production and have some of the happiest cows in Vermont.
Mt. Alice is named after a distinct mountain peak southeast of the farm. This bloomy rind Camembert-style cheese is an elegantly smooth, milky delight 
made from the farm’s organic pasteurized cows’ milk and aged for three to five weeks. Mt. Alice is perfect on a cheese plate and makes a great easy lunch, thickly smeared on a crusty baguette. If you are feeling more adventurous however, here are a few recipes that highlight its mushroomy and milky flavor.
Here are a couple of excellent recipes featuring the creamy-ness of Mt Alice. We featured MT Alice in 2018 and again in 2021. You can find more recipes here and here
Savory Tart with Broccoli, Guanciale and Mt. Alice
- 1 sheet puff pastry
- 14 oz. broccoli florets
- 9 oz. of Mt. Alice
- 1 thick slice guanciale or bacon
- 1/4 cup fresh cream
- 1/3 cup grated Grana Padano
- 2 eggs
- Nutmeg
- Salt & Pepper
1. Boil the broccoli florets in salted water for 4-5 minutes, then drain, cool in cold water and chop. Cut the guanciale into strips, fry in a dry pan on high heat for a couple minutes, so they brown and release their aroma.
2. Cut the Mt Alice into cubes, without removing the rind. Beat the eggs with the cream, a little grated nutmeg and a pinch of salt and pepper.
3. Trim sheet of puff pastry to a larger diameter than the pan you’ll be cooking it in. Line a baking pan with parchment paper, then with a round sheet of puff pastry, letting the extra dough hang over the sides.
4. Add the broccoli, Mt. Alice and guanciale, then pour the eggs in. You can use the scraps from the sheet of puff pastry to create a lattice on top of the tart. Grate some Grana Padano over the top.
5. Bake the tart at 350 °F for 40 minutes, covering if browning too quickly, then remove from the oven, wait 10 minutes and serve.
Mt. Alice Stuffed Garlic Bread
- 1 loaf of your favorite bread
- 6 tbsp. butter, melted
- 1 tsp. Italian seasoning
- 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
- Pinch red pepper flakes
- 8 oz. Mt. Alice
- 1 c. shredded mozzarella
- 1/4 c. grated Parmesan
- Preheat oven to 350° and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Using a serrated knife, cut slits 2″ apart in bread, being careful not to cut all the way through.
- In a small bowl, whisk together melted butter, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, salt, and red pepper flakes. Brush over and inside bread. Place bread on baking sheet.
- Slice Mt. Alice into small pieces, then stuff bread with shredded mozzarella and Mt. Alice slices. Sprinkle with Parmesan. Bake until bread is toasted on top and cheese is melty, about 15 minutes.
- Garnish with parsley and serve warm.
Cave to Co-op is a partnership between Provision International and the Neighboring Food Co-op Association (NFCA) to support local, artisanal cheese producers in our region and make their products more easily available to co-op shoppers. The NFCA is a network of more than 40 food co-ops in our region — including yours — that are working together to advance their vision of a thriving regional economy, rooted in a healthy, just and sustainable food system and a vibrant community of co-operative enterprise. For more information, please visit www.nfca.coop.