SAMPLE RECIPES:

1. Storing Cheese

2. Gorgonzola Mascarpone Torta

3. Fresh Sheep's Milk Ricotta with Peaches and Pistachio-Currant Biscotti

4. Three French Cheeses with an Apple, Fennel, and Walnut Salad

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The Cheese Course
Enjoying the World's Best Cheeses at Your Table
by Janet Fletcher,
Victoria Pearson (photographer)
Chronicle Books
Date: July 2000
ISBN: 0811825418
$19.95 - Hardcover
Amazon@TKL
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At the Oakville Grocery in the Napa Valley, this dramatic layered torta is the most popular choice at the cheese counter. Company employees Richard Tarlov and Joyce McCollum kindly shared the method with me. I would serve it with a sweet dessert wine.

Servings: 12

• 1 pound aged Gorgonzola, well chilled
• 10 to 12 ounces mascarpone, well chilled
• 1/4 cup slivered almonds

1. Have the cheese merchant cut the Gorgonzola horizontally with a cheese wire into 3 layers, each about 1 inch thick. You can also do this at home with a length of dental floss held taut between your hands.
2. Put the bottom wedge of Gorgonzola on a small tray or cutting board. Top with a 1/2-inch-thick layer of mascarpone, spreading it evenly. Top the mascarpone with the middle wedge of Gorgonzola. Top that wedge with another 1/2-inch-thick layer of mascarpone. Top the mascarpone with the remaining wedge of Gorgonzola. Frost the top and rind of the torta with 1/4 inch of mascarpone. Cover the torta with an inverted crock or plastic container to protect it from the drying air of the refrigerator. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours or as long as overnight.
3. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Toast the almonds on a baking sheet until lightly browned, about lo minutes. Let cool completely.
4. Remove the torta from the refrigerator at least 4 hours before serving and press the almonds lightly on the mascarpone frosted top and rind. If you would like to cut the torta in half so you can put a portion on each of two cheese boards, do it while it is cold. Set the torta on its side so that the layers are face up, cover again, and let come to room temperature before serving.