The list of cheese dishes in the culinary literature of this and other countries is a long one, but most of them are variations of a comparatively small number of general types. Those which have been selected and studied experimentally represent the principal types and in many cases have been adapted to American methods of preparations and tastes. In some instances, this has resulted in new and perhaps more rational combinations than those which served as models.
For convenience, the cheese dishes included in this bulletin have been grouped under the following heads:
(1) Cheese dishes which may serve as meat substitutes.
(2) Cheese soups and vegetables cooked with cheese.
(3) Cheese salads, sandwiches, and similar dishes.
(4) Cheese pastry, cheese sweets, and similar dishes.
Variety may be obtained in the recipes by varying the flavorings. Among the best flavorings for cheese dishes are onion, chives, and the ordinary green sweet pepper. Since the cheese needs very little cooking, however, and onion or the pepper needs a great deal, they should always be previously cooked, either by stewing in a very little water, or by cooking in butter. The seeds of the pepper, of course, should be removed before cooking. Where chopped celery is used, as it may be in most of these dishes, it, too, should be cooked beforehand until tender. Other good flavors are mustard, curry powder, onion juice, chopped olives, pimiento, and, according to European recipes, nutmeg or mace.
In preparing the cheese it often has been found convenient to use a very coarse grater having slits instead of the usual rounded holes. Such a grater, in spite of its name, shaves the cheese instead of grating it. When the cheese is soft this is an advantage, since the grater does not become clogged.
CHEESE DISHES WHICH MAY BE USED IN THE SAME WAY AS MEAT.
Meat is wholesome and relished by most persons, yet it is not essential to a well-balanced meal and there are many housekeepers who for one reason or another are interested in lessening the amount of meat which they provide or to substitute some other foods for it. The problem with the average family is undoubtedly more often the occasional substitution of other palatable dishes for the sake of variety, for reasons of economy, or for some other reason than the general replacement of meat dishes by other things.