Hemp-crusted chèvre and dried pears on winter greens with a beer dressing Serves 4

10 to 12 ounces chèvre, Le Petite Démone from Fromagerie les Folies Bergères
1 cup hemp seed, toasted
Dried pears (see recipe below)
4 cups greens
Beer dressing, to taste (see recipe below)

Dried Pears

2 pears, Bartlett or your favourite
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon canola oil
salt to taste

Preheat oven to 250F. Cut the pears in half and remove the cores and stems. Slice the pears into 1/8-inch slices and place into a mixing bowl. Add the sugar, salt, lemon juice and oil. Lay the slices out onto a lined baking sheet. Bake pear slices for approximately 1 to 1½ hours or until the pears have dried, but have not turned brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool (the pears can still have a little moisture in them when you remove them from the oven) Reserve.

Beer Dressing

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
¼ cup beer, Tooth and Nail Valor
½ cup canola oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Optional: 1 tablespoon apple cider or beer vinegar to increase the acidity

In a small bowl add the Dijon mustard, beer, salt and pepper. Slowly whisk in the oil. Reserve.

In a pan over medium-low heat, toast the hemp seeds until they take on a light brown colour. Remove the seeds into a small bowl. Reserve.

Cut the chèvre into four equal portions. Using the palm of your hand, form each of these portions into a disk. Put the chèvre into the bowl of toasted hemp seeds and roll until the disk is fully coated. Place the hemp-crusted chèvre onto a plate and keep in the refrigerator until you are ready to serve.

To Serve

Place the greens into a mixing bowl and add as much dressing as you like. Place one cup of greens onto a plate for each person. Place the hemp-crusted chèvre onto the plate and garnish with the dried pears and any remaining toasted hemp seeds. Enjoy with slices of good baguette or sourdough.

Tooth and Nail Brewing Company

Matt Tweedy, who opened Tooth and Nail Brewing Company with his wife Dayna Guy in Ottawa's trendy Hintonburg neighbourhood, believes that beer and cheese are a natural fit — and superior to wine and cheese. "Beer and cheese simply have a natural affinity for one another,” says Tweedy. “Beer is made from cereal grain; cheese from milk. We like to put milk on our cereal as they taste very good together. Would you put milk on grapes?”

Tweedy had his sights set on brewing from the beginning. He studied at The American Brewers' Guild in Salisbury, Vermont, completing the intensive program with a two-month internship at a brewery in San Diego. Tweedy went on to work at Toronto's Beer Bistro, where he also lead staff through beer and cheese tastings — demonstrating his expertise in the field.

“The bi-products of fermentation are fruity and often spicy flavours, sometimes sulphurous aromas, that can often be found in pungent cheeses. These compounds create much of what is known as beer flavours and are one of the many things that link beer and cheese together. It doesn't hurt as well that the bubbles from carbonation help to scrub the mouth-coating fats from the cheese away, refreshing the palate so the second mouthful tastes just as good as the first."

The cozy brewpub was formerly a mechanic's shop for heavy machinery in the 1920s before switching gears to become a small-print factory in 1968. Paying homage to its previous life, a circa-1951, hand-drawn map of Ottawa, discovered among the old print factory's reminents, is displayed on the wall. With an extensive list of brews, many exclusive to the brewpub, long farmhouse tables and a cleverly designed menu complete with cheese and charcuterie boards, Tooth and Nail is an ideal location to explore your own beer and cheese pairings.

Tooth and Nail Brewing Company
3 Irving Ave, Ottawa, Ont.
toothandnailbeer.com, 613.695.4677
 

La Fromagerie les Folies Bergères

Named for a Parisian music hall known for its frivolity, fun and foolishness, La Fromagerie les Folies Bergères loosely translated means crazy shepherds. Enter owners Maggie and Christian Paradis, who started milking their herd of East Friesian sheep in 1999, selling the milk to several cheesemakers around Québec. When the listeriosis crisis hit Maple Leaf Foods in 2008, fear spread and demand for sheep's milk evaporated and they were left with a tough decision — stop milking or start their own cheese-making business.

Don’t let their sense of humour and cheeky product names, such as The Fou Fou Feta, La Petite Folie and Le Jupon Frivole, fool you. Maggie, the cheesemaker and Christian, the shepherd, have a solid combination of knowledge and discipline — both are ex-military with degrees in agriculture.

Their product offering is innovative and diverse — from silky, spreadable chèvres and pillow-soft cow milk cheese curds to a robust feta, halloumi and washed-rind aged cheeses. The award-winning cheeses are made with love and packed with personality. Give them a try, you would be crazy not to.

La Fromagerie les Folies Bergères
955 Route 317 St-Sixte, Qué.
lafromagerielesfoliesbergeres.ca, 819.983.4010