Foodie Friday: Cheese!

To kick off the new Foodie Friday feature, we're starting with my absolute favorite ingredient. No, it's not garlic, although that might be a close second. Behold the power of...

Cheddar. Brie. Gouda. Muenster. Mozzarella. Provolone. Monterrey Jack. Pepperjack. Colby. Goat. Camembert. Soft. Hard. Pressed. Blue. Any and all, please.

 And now I'm drooling just as much as I did yesterday.

Is this what heaven looks like?

If it weren't for chocolate and cheese, I swear I'd be at least 20 pounds thinner. I love cheese. All kinds of it. By itself or with just about anything. Isn't everything better with cheese?

That's one of the things I love best about it and why it's my favorite ingredient - just about anything can be improved with cheese. If a recipe doesn't turn out quite the way I expect, I can usually salvage it with the right kind of cheese. If I want to change up an old-but-tired favorite, I just use a different type of cheese than usual, changing the flavor just a tad or a lot, depending on the substitution. And anyone with kids knows the best way to get the rugrats to eat their veggies is by adding cheese.

While scrounging for something for lunch yesterday, I found a package of goat cheese I forgot I'd bought last week. Looking for something new to do with it, I found some cheese-worthy websites that I just have to share:

• I Love Cheese - The official cheese site for the American Dairy Association.
• Cheese - Everything you could possibly want to know about this melty delishness.
• Ile de France - The most drool worthy site of them all! Check out their to-die-for recipes. This one is definitely bookmarked for future reference.

Now you've been warned: expect to see some cheesy stuff here Fridays. But good cheese. Not B-rated-horror-romance-movie cheese. That's for the other days.

Are you a cheese freak? What's your favorite kind? If not cheese, what's your favorite ingredient?