What should I eat with my cheese?

I have eaten more cheese and cheeseboards than you could shake a cocktail stick at. Something that I get asked a lot is what goes best with what cheese.

What my mum used to call ‘picky bits’ or a ‘buffet’ when I was growing up, has now had a modern upgrade with dazzling grazing boards full of colours and interesting flavour combinations (check out Morgan’s dazzling book: The Modern Cheeseboard). I still feel an intense nostalgia however, when it comes to what I have with my cheese.

I still love pickled onions or pineapple and cheddar on a stick - ideally fashioned into the shape of a hedgehog with raisins or cranberries for eyes. This is very worth a google, some are frankly a little terrifying. Give me a jar of tiny gherkins any day; I could eat the whole lot in one go. I still feel very fancy calling them cornichons. I grew up eating Branston pickle or Piccalilli sandwiches with cheddar so thick that the Plough would approve.

Nowadays, I really want to support local makers with high quality ingredients. Bishopston Pickle beats Branston any day and when we have Danielle’s piccalilli in stock, I practically eat it out of the jar, or carried on a piece of cheddar. Danielle makes an amazing selection of seasonal preserves and she also makes the most delicious chutneys.

Easton Chilli’s Black Garlic Chilli Jam is not only delicious, but Rikki makes it in his kitchen in Bristol and a pound of the cost of every jar is donated to the Trussell Trust in support of food banks. It earned 3 stars in the Great Taste Awards, which is an incredible achievement. We’ve tried it with almost all of our cheeses and it gives it gently spicy kick. I think it is especially good with Sparkenhoe blue.

Last but not least, I am obsessed with Bullace Butter made by Trish Maunder of Somerset Membrillo. I have never tried anything like it. When I was looking into what Bullace was, I very much enjoyed the description of it as ‘the only truly English wild plum’ in Harold Taylors book, The Plums of England. This does make me feel a little sorry for all the other plums. This rare and delicious fruit can only be found in some hedgerows and woodlands and has to be hand foraged. This means that there are not many jars in existence. Luckily for you, we have all of them which you can buy for yourself here.

However you have your cheeseboard, or cheese toasty this Christmas, I am sure that you will continue to have fun mixing up flavours or just enjoy some nostalgic classics. And remember…buffets and picky bits are for life, not just for Christmas.