Whip it Up, Week Six

Who doesn't love a good cheese? When we lived in Washington, we would periodically visit this theme town called Leavenworth. It's built up in the Bavarian style and has some pretty nifty year-round activities. It also has some pretty nifty shops, but the Cheesemonger's Shop is a particular favourite of ours. English Cotswald, Garlic Herb Whirl, Applewood smoked cheddar and Dill Havarti are a few of my favourite cheeses; LJ favours anything smoked but is particularly fond of Cahills Irish Porter.

Another of my favourite cheeses is Boursin. If you've never tasted it, I can understand why. Over five dollars for a tiny little round is a bit pricey. Living in Washington, though, we were usually able to find it for 99 cents at the Grocery Outlet (yet another favourite store). It's got quite a soft creamy texture and a fine herby flavour. It's really nice with water crackers.

One day I was bumming around on Allrecipes.com and came across a blog wherein some very ingenius man posted his recipe for a homemade version of Boursin. What?! Homemade Boursin!? I'm IN!

So I looked around and compared a few recipes and finally settled on this one. I didn't have any marjoram (and still don't) so I have no clue how much it affects the taste, but the outcome is quite nice. Here follows my quartering of the recipe.

Fakie Boursin Cheese:
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/4 c. butter, softened
1/4 tsp. garlic salt
1/8 tsp. oregano
1/16 tsp. (pinch) each of: basil, dill, marjoram, thyme, pepper

Blend together the cream cheese and butter either using a mixer or by hand. Stir in spices until well-mixed. Store in the fridge. Makes about 1 cup.

The Big Three:
Was the recipe easy to follow? Indeed, after I nearly fried my brain quartering it. That is way too much math for a mama with a 7 week old (new pictures coming soon, I promise!).
Did it taste good? Yes! I was a bit skeptical, but it turned out to be just about right. The texture is a little different - it's creamier - but the taste is really nice. You just need to make sure you let it soften a little before eating it.
Would you make it again? Probably not all that often because cream cheese costs a small fortune here (yes, my American friends...you complain about your grocery prices, but until you've paid $4 for a bar of cream cheese or $8 for a box of cereal, you just keep silent), as does butter (anywhere from $4-6/lb). And we've always considered it more of a treat anyway. So far we've just eaten it with crackers and pretzels but we're thinking it would be nice in a butterflied chicken breast wrapped in bacon. Mmm....