In my several decades, I have never made New Year’s resolutions. I learned early from watching my parents and their friends that made resolutions which sounded good on January 1, by the end of the month, had become a pain in the ass… so for 2019, I made a resolution… my first… to visit a cheesemaker or specialty food producer every month. Probably “cheating” in my case but I had already visited Blue Haven Bee Company this month before getting the opportunity to visit Forx Farm.
A few weeks back Michelle Wetherbee, who had a wine and cheese shop in Habersham County back in the 00s, contacted me via my Facebook page asking if I had met the local Gouda cheesemakers. (Michelle and her husband had attended one of our cheese and wine tastings at Blue Haven in 2018.) Not only had I not met them, I didn’t know there were Gouda cheesemakers in the neighborhood… my bad (thank you Samuel Jackson)… Friday, Michelle called me and invited me to go meet the cheesemakers who were also hosting an indoor farmers’ market at their farm.
Let me digress for a moment, in addition to being a Wine and Cheese Professional, Michelle will soon launch a new website, “Hartwell and Beyond”; a go-to website for tourists and locals alike to know what’s happening in our little Kingdom of NE Georgia. Be sure to check out and “like” her Facebook page.
Forx Farm is located near Anderson, South Carolina, about thirty miles from The Manse. The indoor farmers’ market hosted about a dozen farmers, bakers, hand-made products including jams, jellies, meats, BBQ and one other cheesemaker, Split Creek Farm, an Award-Winning goat farm, also in Anderson. I bought a jar of their 2017 Good Food Award-Winning feta marinated in EVOO with dried tomatoes. I also bought a loaf of cinnamon bread from another producer.
But the highlight of the visit was meeting Ron, Tammy and John Lubsen, owners of Forx Farm. Ron and Tammy migrated to the US from Holland in 1980 and eventually settled in Anderson. In addition to making cheese and keeping bees on their farm, Ron and Tammy own a bent glass company. When their son Don decided to join the business, it lightened the load, giving them more time for making cheese and hanging with their bees.
Ron graciously welcomed me into the make room telling me his story. He showed me his first vat, a few gallon-sized stainless steel bucket. Today he uses a four-hundred gallon vat that produces about three-hundred-fifty pounds of cheese; about a nine to one yield (nine pounds of milk = one pound of cheese). His milk, both raw and pasteurized, is sourced from three South Carolina dairies: Hickory Hill, Happy Cow and Milky Way, making his raw milk Gouda “Certified South Carolina“.
One of his “favorite things” he showed me was a cheese knife, a gift from his dad thirty years ago. Prior to his cheesemaking days, he used it primarily to cut open watermelons. Today it keeps an honored place in the make room. By the way, the make room is immaculately clean (as it must be) and you could eat off the floor… seriously.
From the make room, we stepped through a double-doored entrance into the caves, long trailers converted into perfectly regulated temperature/humidity aging facilities. Each wheel is numbered and stamped for tracing, if needed, and marked with a make date and milk source.
After the tour, I purchased three wedges of Gouda and a wedge of their Colby cheese which I brought home to taste with The Man.
We started with the Mild Gouda, a raw Holstein milk cheese with a butterfat percentage of 3.85%. Aged three months, we found the cheese sweet and nutty. Creating the sweeter profile in Gouda comes from additional washing of the curd after the separation from the whey. Washing the curd (adding water) eliminates lactose which stops conversion to lactic acid. The absence of the acid creates the sweeter profile. Another benefit for those with lactose intolerance is that Gouda becomes a cheese they can eat. For more on lactose issues, please see my article.
Following the Mild Gouda, we moved to the Colby; a fine, respectable representation of the Colby style. Mild in taste and creamy on the palate, this is a cheese that works as both a snacker and ingredient in any mac n cheese recipe. It would also be excellent as part of a grilled cheese, especially combined with bacon, according to The Man.
Next up was the twelve-month aged raw milk Gouda. This is Gouda heaven for me. Robust with a bit of caramel and those amazing “crunchies” found in quality aged Goudas. The “crunchies” are tyrosine which is an amino acid and the crystals are also found in Parmigiano Reggiano. The cheese that started my “cheese journey” was an aged Gouda from the Beverly Hills Cheese Shop. The Gouda was part of a wine and cheese tasting event at Wally’s back in the 90s. I had no idea at the time that someday cheese would become so much of my daily life… funny how it works… all I knew at the time was that Gouda opened my heart and palate to specialty cheeses.
Because of the potency of Cumin, we tasted the Gouda with Cumin last; a good choice. Filled with lots of the spicy seeds, the Lubsen’s “take” on Leyden, is made with full-fat whole milk whereas traditional Leyden is made with part lower-fat milk. It’s been a while since I tasted Holland Leyden so I can’t make a judgment how the difference in butterfat might affect taste. The Lubsen’s take is an excellent flavored Gouda. I had purchased a large wedge and decided to use it, along with the Mild Gouda and the Colby to make a chicken enchilada casserole on Monday (I decided to reserve the aged Gouda for another snacking evening with The Man). The “recipe” is below. I use the term in quotes because I seldom use exact measurements, unless I’m baking… which is why I rarely bake…
In addition to being terrific people, the Lubsens are producing high quality artisan cheese. Their cheeses are available at several farmers’ markets and small markets in and around Anderson. Their website is in the process of being updated so I suggest you call them for more information. 864 328 1475.
My Chicken Enchilada Casserole (aka Mexican Lasagna per That’s What Bob’s Cooking)
Ingredients:
4 tortillas – The Man and I prefer flour but if you like corn, go for it
Roasted Chicken – Chopped or Shredded – I used about 3+ cups
Sweet Onion – Chopped – about 1/2 cup
Red Sauce – I used a commercial small-batch Hatch Chili Salsa – to taste
Green Sauce – I used a homemade tomatillo sauce that I made with fruit from my garden – to taste
Mild green chilis – chopped – I used a small can
Cheese – lots of cheese – I shredded Forx Farm Mild Gouda, Cumin Gouda and Colby cheeses – came out to about 4 big cups. Use any combination of cheeses that melt well. Do not use commercially shredded cheeses; they are coated with either cellulose (sawdust… yep, sawdust – at least it’s organic) or potato starch to minimize clumping but the coating makes melting a more challenging.
Preparation:
- Lightly brown tortillas in a large fry pan – this will help them “stand-up” to the liquids and maintain their crispness. I spray some canola oil on one side and on the pan.
- Layer starting with one of sauces in the bottom of a lined and oiled pan – you can split the two sauces down the middle or alternate them between layers which is what I did – sauce, tortilla, onion, chicken, chilis, cheese and repeat ending with lots of cheese on the top.
- Bake in 350 Degrees F oven for 35-45 minutes until cheese is melted and slightly brown on top.
- Let site for about 15 minutes. Serve
- Clean up the kitchen – I clean as I go…
- Serve with sour cream, guacamole and extra sauces.
4-6 servings.
Save the date and make your reservations now!!! February 14 at Blue Haven Bee – a night of wine and cheese hors d’oeuvres.
In addition to being an American Cheese Society Certified Cheese Professional, I am a Certified ServSafe Food Production Manager with certifications that also include ServSafe Certified Instructor and Proctor. I am available for cheese events, cheese program development, cheese training, food safety training and 3rd party food safety auditing. See my About Me and Resume pages for more details or call me at 360 921 9908 to discuss availability.
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