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 Gore Dawn Zola from Green Mt. Blue Cheese, Highgate Center, VT
a raw milk, natural rind farmer’s cheese
The history of the Lake Champlain and St. Lawrence River Valleys is the history of the French farmers who settled the region. Tradesmen, trappers, and soldiers required a secure local food source that would allow them to pursue their interests, instead of spending all their time preparing, gathering, and hunting for food. Nearly 400 years ago, the Bouchers received several allotments in New France, which eventually became Quebec, Canada. They raised meat and work animals, grew crops, and made soap, butter, and flour – both for themselves and for sale. Wealth, respect, and additional land were the rewards for supporting the local community, but the risk was very high.
During the French and Indian Wars one ancestor, Pierre Boucher, took control of Fort Trois Rivieres after it was depleted of able-bodied men and made peace with the Iroquois, a pivotal event in the history of the province. Boucherville was named in his honor and his statue stands on the grounds of the National Assembly Building in Quebec City. The French legacy remains in the religion, language, culture, and cuisine of the province.
Over the centuries many have abandoned farming, but a line of Bouchers remained in active agriculture. Today Boucher Family Farm is run by the families of Daniel and Denis Boucher. Family members perform all the daily operations on the 90-cow dairy, cropping 800 acres and maintaining over 200 acres of managed forest, which includes deer yards and riparian corridors. For the past year, the Bouchers have shared the farm’s facilities with another dairying couple, a partnership that may be unique in the state; two farmers, one dairy, lots of possibilities, and lots of beautiful and delicious cheese.
Gore Dawn Zola is made in the Gorgonzola style, tangy, sharp and crumbly. The Bouchers live on Gore Road, and Dawn Boucher was the founding cheesemaker – her niece Kayleigh is learning the ropes to continue the creamery and cheesemaking into the future. This cheese is cured over a
three-week period attracting naturally occurring flora to form a rind. The surface is scraped down before wrapping and further aging in their cellar. It has a unique character and bitter chocolate aroma.
Gore Dawn Zola, Pear and Walnut Crumble
serves 6 to 8, pre-heat oven to 350°
- apples, red and thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons port or sweet sherry
- 1 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- ¼ cup cane sugar
- ½ cup plus 1 tablespoon flour
- ½ cup chopped toasted pecans or walnuts
- ¼ cup light brown sugar
- pinch of salt
- 6 tablespoon unsalted butter cut into small pieces
- 8 ounces Gore Dawn Zola cheese
Butter a 9 inch baking dish. In a medium bowl toss the pear slices with the lemon juice. Add 1 tablespoon of the flour, the cane sugar, the port and mix gently until the flour is absorbed by the liquid. Spread evenly in the bottom of the baking pan. In a dry medium bowl mix the remaining ½ cup flour, the nuts, the brown sugar and the salt. Add the butter pieces and work the mixture with your fingers, until it resembles large crumbs.
Sprinkle this over the pears and bake until the pears are tender and the mixture is bubbly, around 40 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and sprinkle the Gore Dawn Zola over the top. Return to the oven and cook until the cheese is melted, around 5 minutes. Remove from the oven. Let the crumble sit for 5 minutes, then serve with a little puddle of heavy cream or a big scoop of your favorite ice cream.
Gore Dawn Zola Blue Cheese Dressing
makes around 1 cup of dressing
- 4 ounces crumbled Gore Dawn Zola cheese
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
a few turns freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon finely chopped chives
1/4 cup sour cream - 1/4 cup buttermilk
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice or white wine vinegar
a few drops of red wine vinegar - In a medium bowl, mash the blue cheese with the salt and pepper with the back of a fork until the pieces of cheese are finely broken up. Stir in the chives, sour cream, buttermilk, and lemon juice or wine vinegar until well mixed. Add a few drops of red wine vinegar. Taste, and adjust any of the seasonings to your liking and if the dressing seems too thick, add a bit more buttermilk. Pour over Romaine wedges and sprinkle with crumbled crisp bacon if desired.
Try it on a wedge of romaine with crumbled bacon!
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
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.