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We celebrated our anniversary early last night. Went with a version of surf 'n' turf: Dungeness crab (delicious garlic/herb dipping butter); filet with mushroom/garlic/red wine reduction sauce; orzo (parsley, herbes de Provence, and Parmiggiano-Regiano); peas (butter and chervil); lacinato kale braised in ho-made chicken stock; a simple salad with grated Comtesse cheese and ho-made vinaigrette. All was delicious, except the kale: I ruined it by oversalting :slp . Washed down with a Gruet Blanc de Noirs, and a Primitivo from Puglia.

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One of those crab legs survived dinner last night, and was picked and combined with the dregs of the herbed butter. Served over a poached egg on buttered sourdough toast, and a side of leftover roasted asparagus with Comtesse cheese. I feel spoiled!

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What is this "Comtessa" cheese of which you speak...........

I concede that this is not a "known term," but not sure what else to say. I believe it is a marketing term of a particular Belgian cheesemaker, Brugge. (See: Brugge Comtesse .) Because "comtesse" means "countess" and "comté" means "count," I speculate that they are playing off of Comté cheese (i.e., Gruyère de Comté). (I should note that the word also means "county," which is really the source of the name of Comté cheese.) Those two cheeses are indeed quite similar. I have been tempted to just say "Gruyere" in these posts, but that did not seem quite the right thing to do, either! 🤷‍♂️

BRUGGE COMTESSE
Brugge Comtesse is the Grande Dame in the range of Brugge Cheeses. With its creamy texture, ivory coloured centre and fruity aroma it keeps on surprising.
Comtesse has a generous, multi-faceted flavour with notes of roasted hazelnut, vanilla and summer fruit. It goes extremely well with an aperitif, but also in a sandwich or fresh salad. It also combines particularly well with sun-ripened figs, slightly sweet chutneys and earthy root vegetables. The possibilities are endless.
Brugge Comtesse is made from completely naturally processed cow’s milk, without the addition of natural colourants. This gives the cheese its wonderful pale colour. A special feature is that the cheese is salted for a shorter time, so it contains less salt than other cheeses of its type. It is also naturally lactose-free.
Its deep blue fabric coating protects the cheese and hints at the luxurious velvet gowns of the Countesses of Flanders. But the link with Bruges “the beautiful” is never far away.
Our master cheese-makers have to take a lot of care with this noble lady. During the 7-month maturing process it has to be brushed and turned repeatedly. Air humidity and temperature are accurately controlled. Only in this way does it develop its specific fruitiness and creamy texture. This makes Comtesse a unique cheese with endless possibilities.
 
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Threw everything on the gas grill. Let a cast iron griddle get super hot and threw foil packets of corn and red potatoes off to the side. T-Bone came out great, quick sear on the cast iron then set off to the side till it hit 125. Cut the corn off the cob and added red pepper and chopped hatch chiles.
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Oh, hell yeah! :HB
 
Well the "Bobby Flay Throw Down" was not even close at all........

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The SRF Ribeye was hands down the winner over the Prime Filet Mignon. Used the same seasoning on both. The SRF Ribeye on the right. The Filet's are on the left. Mrs IB was my control taster. She had no idea what was up. LOL Just said which do you think taste better than the other.

Washed this all down with a 2010 Figgins Estate Red Wine which did not suck.

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We celebrated our anniversary early last night. Went with a version of surf 'n' turf: Dungeness crab (delicious garlic/herb dipping butter); filet with mushroom/garlic/red wine reduction sauce; orzo (parsley, herbes de Provence, and Parmiggiano-Regiano); peas (butter and chervil); lacinato kale braised in ho-made chicken stock; a simple salad with grated Comtesse cheese and ho-made vinaigrette. All was delicious, except the kale: I ruined it by oversalting :slp . Washed down with a Gruet Blanc de Noirs, and a Primitivo from Puglia.

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Happy Anniversary!
 
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