September 15, 2004
Cabécou
Maxence and I have left the Vosges, and after a diagonal drive all across the Great Kingdom of France, we now find ourselves in the Périgord, the Land of Aplenty. We will spend a few days here, enjoying the breathtaking sights, walking around medieval villages, and eating as many Cabécous as we can lay our hands on.
Cabécou is this little jewel of a goat cheese, a thin little wheel of cheese perfection, ideally sized for a single serving (ha!). It can be enjoyed at its various stages of ripeness, from fresh and mild and mellow to aged and dry and sharp, but we tend to prefer them "bien faits", when they are starting to wrinkle and collapse, and the outer layer beneath the rind is getting to a thick, almost syrupy consistency. This is when the flavor develops fully, and this is when the piece of cheese can sit onto the piece of bread in all its majesty, arranging its soft edges like a robe around the firmness of its heart.
Cabécous are now protected by an AOC (Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée, a certification of origin) which labels them Rocamadour instead (from the name of a nearby village), but Cabécou is the traditional name and it sounds infinitely better, so in our hearts, on our lips and in our tummies, Cabécous shall remain thus named.
Special announcement! My dear friend Marie-Laure has her birthday today : Joyeux Anniversaire Marie!
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Comments (11)
Permalink | Posted by clotilde in Cheese & Dairy
Those little cheeses are the best! Meg introduced me to them and I look at them longingly whenever an authentic French one shows up in our stores.
Are they pricey in Paris? They're outrageous here.
Posted by barrett on September 16, 2004 12:19 AMPerigord, eh? Visiting any foie gras farms? (I suppose I could've asked the same about your Alsace trip, but f.g. is more associated with the Southwest)
Posted by Derrick Schneider on September 16, 2004 12:30 AMAccording to me, the best way to taste this cheese is to eat it with a fresh salad, a vinaigrette with a lot of mustard, and some caraway seeds... Just try it...
Posted by tsuki on September 16, 2004 9:15 AMRégale-toi bien de Cabécous !
Posted by Sylvie on September 16, 2004 11:14 AMet bon anniversaire, Marie-Laure !
Single serving! Comme le Vacherin? Delicieux!
Posted by Seattle Bon Vivant on September 17, 2004 12:46 AMMy little musician heart is happy - Rocamadour is one of the places we sang on the tour I mentioned in my other comment. I think it's also linked with Poulenc, one of my favourite composers... Anyway, back to the food. Goat's cheese is *good*.
Posted by nattie on September 17, 2004 2:10 AMOh, I miss cabecou. I did research in Rocamadour from 1997-1999 and grew addicted to these cheeses (in all states of ripeness, from fresh and soft to really runny). Haven't been able to find them in the Grand Rapids, Michigan area yet.
Posted by Deana on September 17, 2004 7:31 PMOnly once have I tasted this cheese.....i dream of it since.
Posted by susanne on September 18, 2004 9:29 PMMy absolute favourite cheese of all time - I am so jealous, Clotilde!! We drove past Rocamadour this summer but I didn't even want to slow down because at the moment I can't eat soft unpasteurized cheeses...can hardly wait until January just so that all my dietary restrictions will be over. Lucky you!
Posted by Meg in Paris on September 19, 2004 1:48 AMHi, Clotilde!!
Posted by catherine on September 20, 2004 12:15 PMI'm mania for chocolate, but I'm also mania for cheese.
I can't forget a distinctive smell of french cheese. As cheese industry is not well developped, it's not easy to taste french cheese like normal camembert.
From time to time, my french friends brought them for me. But due to awful smell, it was not agreeable for them.
At any rate, next time, I want to try cabecou.
We are spending a week centered in Perigord Noir at the end of June into early July. Other than the cheese (which we will certainly seek out), do you have other dining recommendations?
Posted by Caryn on May 11, 2005 4:08 PMPrivacy. The email addresses you enter will not be used for any other purpose than the sending of this message.