Beyond the Book: National Cheese Lover's Day

Bet you don't know what today is. Oh. You looked at the title. Yeah, it's National Cheese Lover's Day. Okay, do you know how much cheese the average American eats each year? Would you believe 31 pounds? Sounds like a lot, but the French eat 50 pounds per year. 

There are more than 900 known kinds of cheese in the world, and they're classified according to texture. The primary classifications are: fresh cheese, soft cheese, semi-soft cheese, semi-hard cheese, hard cheese, double or triple creme cheese, blue cheese, washed rind cheese, and bloomy rind cheese.

People have been making cheese for at least 8,000 years so we know that people have always loved it. 

The recipe below is the one served at Rest Thy Head. It's simple but very tasty. Let me know if you try it.

  

Jake's Macaroni and Cheese

1 1/2 cups macaroni noodles

12 oz shredded cheddar cheese

1 egg

3 1/2 cups milk

crumbled ritz crackers

salt to taste

black pepper

Cook the macaroni noodles, but don't overcook them. It won't matter if they're still a little firm. 

Beat the milk and egg together and combine it with the noodles and cheese. If you like, crumble ritz crackers on the top. (Jake decided not to do this.) Salt and pepper to taste, but don't skimp on the pepper. Bake at 350 until browned on top, but leave it a little juicy. Don't overcook it.