In its classic form, fromage fort is not a fancy thing to begin with. Made from the remnants of various cheeses, hunks of garlic, butter, and glugs of white wine, it’s a clever French way to avoid food waste. This version isn’t too different in method, but I’ve knocked the ingredients down a few pegs to only include dried pantry herbs and spices and used hard cider instead of wine. (Mostly because I’m more partial to red wine than white.) Don’t fret if you don’t have exactly my ingredients because, well, that’s the opposite of the point. If you have some cheese, some seasonings, and some alcohol (or sparkling cider, for non-alcohol folks) that isn’t overly sweet, you can make this yummy snack for yourself.
Total Time: 30 minutes-1 day depending on how quickly you grate things and how impatient you are.
1 cup grated soft cheese (I used muenster)
1/2 cup grated nutty, hard cheese (I used aged white cheddar)
1 cup crumbled salty cheese (I used feta)
4 tbsp Greek yogurt, mayonnaise, cream cheese, or sour cream
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp dried mustard
1 tsp thyme leaves
1/2 cup-1 cup hard apple cider, or other alcohol of choice
- In a large bowl combine cheeses, Greek yogurt, and herbs and spices.
- Add alcohol in portions, making sure the mixture doesn’t get too runny.
- Taste for balance/seasoning, adding more salt, alcohol, or other flavors as needed.
- Chill for 30 minutes or overnight for best results, but really you can eat this immediately.
- Serve with crackers, bread, pretzels, potato chips (I’m partial to Voodoo or Evil Eye chips from Zapps’). Or, if you must, use vegetables.
The Heart and The Hunger 