Beautiful Bleat

Welcome again to Prudence Dapperling's "Mouse in a Million" BIG CHEESE Blog!

Sheep. What do they remind you of? Wooly socks? Insomnia? Docility? Mutton? Lamb chops?

In Italy, sheep mostly mean CHEESE! (Just the thing I'm reminded of. Quite a lot actually.)

The milk of sheep is used to make a wonderfully flavorful cheese generally known in Italy by the name Pecorino (pen-koh-REE-noh), from the word "pecora" (sheep).

Pecorinos tend to be oily, as characteristic of sheep's milk cheeses. Sheep's milk has a very high butter fat content, which is why the cheeses made from it taste so good.

The best Pecorinos are produced in the regions of Tuscany, Umbria, the Marches, and Lazio in central and south central  Italy; and the islands of Sicily and Sardinia off Italy's west coast.

Of all the heavenly Pecorinos these regions have to offer, my personal favorite hails from Tuscany. Called Pecorino Toscano (ton-SKAH-noh), it can be young and un-aged, creamy and smooth and bursting with flavor.  If it comes from Siena, it's most likely rubbed with tomato paste and aged for about six months, making it firm, off-white in color, sort of flaky, and rich with the flavor of nuts and herbs. From the town of Pienza, it can be a Peperino infused with dried, hot peppers for a more piquant cheese experience. Or it might be rubbed with olive oil to yield a very nutty, rich flavor of herbs and grasses and wild flowers. Yum!

Pecorinos are hardly ever used as an ingredient in other dishes, so intense and assertive is their flavor. The cheese is a lovely accompaniment to other foods, such as salami, prosciutto, olive, fruit, crusty bread, or grated in salads.

Wherever the origin of your Pecorino, enjoy it with your antipasto favorites. You'll be sure to love it!

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