Liz Donaldson, the multitalented chef at Walt Churchill’s Market, 26625 Dixie Hwy., Perrysburg, has some sweet and savory suggestions for Christmas, New Year’s Eve, or any other seasonal celebrations.
Her career has taken her to some of the area’s top food sites, including Sofo Foods and The Andersons’ Toledo store, where she was a renowned cheesemonger. So she is the perfect person to consult about your party planning.
“Cheese isn’t just for cheese,” Ms. Donaldson said, so she chose to showcase its versatility for holiday hospitality. It can be offered with or without embellishment, used as an ingredient, or highlighted as an accent, as she showed during a demonstration at design consultant Maumee Bay Kitchen and Bath’s showroom, 5758 Main St., Sylvania.
After a nearly two-year hiatus, Ms. Donaldson has started teaching cooking classes at MBKB again, where she is the resident chef instructor. Other area chefs are being added to the rotation, with classes offered twice per month for $30 to $35 per session, usually. Ms. Donaldson will also be teaching an upcoming class through Lourdes University’s Lifelong Learning Program. (For more information, go to lourdes.edu.)
“It’s just a real special time,” she said about sharing her wealth of knowledge with fellow food aficionados, as she does here. “It’s just a fun experience.”
For the first festive dish, “I’ve simply taken a brie, topped it with cranberry chutney, chopped nuts, and wrapped it in puff pastry,” Ms. Donaldson said.
She used French Belletoile double cream brie — a kilo that’s larger than the size usually seen at stores (which would be available from cheesemongers); it provides a more generous offering and an impressive visual for guests. To add some sweetness and, especially, some crunch to contrast with the creaminess of the cheese, Ms. Donaldson chose frosted pecans from the selection of nuts that Walt Churchill’s Market roasts in-house.
“Realistically, that’s really easy,” she said of the elegant appetizer. Even the homemade chutney, which offers bright tartness to the dish’s richness, is simple to prepare: It requires only fresh cranberries and small amounts of honey and brown sugar. The recipe can be made even more easily, though, if you purchase a prepared jar rather than making it yourself.
“How pretty is that?” Ms. Donaldson said admiringly, with a bright smile, as she brought it out of the oven. The baked brie was enticingly golden, waiting to be sliced open to release a flow of melting cheese to scoop up with bread, fruit, and/or crackers.
Another party essential is an artful array of meats and cheeses that is constructed, and thus a great option for those who don’t have either the time or the desire to cook.
“If there’s cheese laid out beautifully at a party, I’m in heaven,” said Rhonda Long, Ms. Donaldson’s friend, as she styled the food so artistically that the display resembled a museum-worthy still life.
“The different things you need for a holiday charcuterie board,” Ms. Donaldson said as she helped to put things into place, include meats and accompaniments such as fruits and nuts. As a cheese expert, she built her presentation around a selection both familiar and distinctive.
“The first place to start is with your cheeses,” she said. “Each cheese, I’ve chosen for a reason. I’ve got a blue, I’ve got a brie, I’ve got a goat ... you want to find that perfect cheese.”
One of Ms. Donaldson’s favorites is Milton Creamery’s Prairie Breeze, an aged white cheddar made with vegetable rennet. “They started in Pennsylvania, and didn’t like the soil for the cows,” she said. So the Musser family, who produce it, packed up their herd and relocated to Iowa. She also included the Christmas Cheddar prepared by Hennings Wisconsin Cheese for Churchill’s.
“I chose a Spanish Manchego,” aged for 12 months, Ms. Donaldson continued, and Port Salut, a semi-soft cow’s milk cheese from the Loire Valley in France. Covadonga, a soft Spanish variety of blue cheese made with both cow and sheep milk, “has a real rich creamy taste to it, a smokiness to it,” she said. “It’s the best blue cheese available,” and even costs less than some more famous brands.
Finally, the display wouldn’t have been complete without “one of my favorite local cheeses,” Ms. Donaldson said: Turkeyfoot Creamery’s goat gouda, hand-crafted by Del Burkholder of Wauseon.
Once the cheese assortment has been selected, “you try to choose things that go with it,” she continued. She presented several salumi (a.k.a.: sophisticated Italian cold cuts): richly marbled capocollo (a thinly sliced, seasoned pork), dried cured salami, and sopressata (garlicky and aged).
You’ll want a baguette, sliced and ready to eat, as well as fresh and dried fruits (such as apples, pears, apricots), assorted olives (Ms. Donaldson particularly likes small black Niçoises), jams or chutneys, and nuts. “You want to get that crunch in there,” she said.
These items “will all work together, so your guests can pick and find what they like,” she continued. “And, of course, you need a good bottle of wine.”
Of her not-too-sweet cheesecake topped with ruby red jam, Ms. Donaldson said, “I like it, ’cause it’s not using cream cheese.” Instead, it features a blend of ricotta and mascarpone. “Then you whip the egg whites, so it’s real light and airy, delicate,” rather than heavy and filling, she said.
The dessert carried Ms. Donaldson’s theme and took it on yet another tangent, showcasing cheese’s variety and variation in the display of delicious holiday dishes.
Summing up the array succinctly, she said with an inviting smile as she surveyed the delicacies: That’s “a party, in a nutshell.”
Baked Brie with Cranberry-Orange Chutney
1 12-ounce package fresh cranberries
Zest of 1 orange
3 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoons light brown sugar
2 sheets puff pastry
1 1-kilo wheel Brie cheese (see note)
½ cup chopped Walt Churchill’s Market Frosted Pecans
1 egg, for wash
In a food processor, pulse the fresh cranberries and the orange zest. Transfer to a saucepan and add the honey and brown sugar. Cook on low heat until the cranberries are tender, about 12 to 15 minutes.
Thin out one sheet of the puff pastry. Place the wheel of Brie in the center. Fold up the sides and trim off excess pastry. Place the chopped pecans on top of the Brie. Spread the cranberry topping over the pecans.
Thin out the second sheet of puff pastry and place over the cranberries. Trim any excess, saving the pieces if you want to decorate the top. Place onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and refrigerate until well chilled.
Remove the baking sheet from the refrigerator. Lightly beat the egg and brush the top of the pastry thoroughly. Immediately place in a 375F oven and bake 25 to 30 minutes, until golden brown. Serve warm with fruit and sliced baguettes.
Note: Ms. Donaldson used Belletoile double cream brie. She said that smaller wheels of cheese could also be used.
Yield: About 25 servings
Source: Liz Donaldson
Mascarpone-Ricotta Cheesecake with Holiday Jam
1 cup mascarpone (see note)
2 cups whole milk ricotta cheese
¾ cup sugar, divided
4 large eggs, separated
2 tablespoons dry Marsala wine
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Zest from 1 lemon
¾ teaspoon salt
¼ cup semolina flour, plus 1 tablespoon for the pan
Jam, for topping (see note)
In a large mixing bowl, cream the two cheeses with ½ cup of the sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg yolks, the Marsala, the lemon juice and zest, the salt, and the ¼ cup semolina. Mix well. Set aside.
In a clean bowl, whip the egg whites with clean beaters until you have soft peaks. Add the remaining ¼ cup sugar. Gently fold the egg whites into the cheese mixture.
Spray a 9-inch springform pan with cooking spray and dust it with the 1 tablespoon of semolina, shaking out excess. Pour the cheese mixture into the pan, place the pan on a cookie sheet, and bake at 350F for 40 to 45 minutes or until lightly browned. Let cool, then remove ring from the pan.
For serving, top with your favorite jam and then slice.
Note: Ms. Donaldson used BelGioioso brand mascarpone in the filling and Stonewall Kitchen’s Holiday Jam for the topping.
Yield: 10 to 12 slices
Source: Liz Donaldson
First Published December 11, 2018, 11:30 a.m.
