Cheese ~ Storytelling ~ Authenticity ~ Creativity

Something Tasty: A cheese pairing to try

Quicke’s Mature Cheddar

An English clothbound cheddar is one of my favorite things to put on a cheese board- especially in mixed food company like holiday parties where you may not know how adventurous people may be. 

The stats: Pasteurized Cow ~ Aged 6ish months ~ Devon, England

Everyone knows generally what to expect with a cheddar- but clothbound cheddars tend to be a bit more grassy, earthy, sometimes brothy- there’s a lot going on. 

The cheesemaker Mary Quicke is a UK legend in cheese and an absolute master of her craft. Pair it with some nuts or caramel or your favorite jam- or my favorite holiday treats to pair with ANY cheddar and featured in this photo- Stroopwafels and Moose Munch. 

Something True: A truth about myself

The Beauty and Substance of Romantic Comedies

Here’s the truth.

I love romantic comedies. 

I think it’s a genre of film that often gets cast aside or patronized to “chick-flicks” ( don’t get me started on the misogyny of discounting movies that are “just for women” 🙄 )

If you know me well or have been following this newsletter for a bit, you probably know I am a big Nancy Meyers fan (to the point of including most of her movies in my upcoming book of cheese pairings inspired by romantic comedies: stay tuned ) 

One of the reasons I love her writing/directing (in addition to her use of food and having gorgeous interiors that make you want to do a major home reno immediately) is her female protagonist’s are always whip smart, creative, and wildly funny. They are also mostly 40+ years old. 

My mom had me when she was 45, so the first love story I ever witnessed featured a woman in her 40’s. 

My mom loves Nancy Meyers movies, so I grew up watching my fair share- she has 3 copies of the Something’s Gotta Give DVD “just in case”. Her movies have been a life-long love.

In part because of this- I’ve never been too interested in all the standard stories of a 23-year old city gal who has a miserable breakup, moves back home to her parents Christmas tree farm, runs into an old flame that got away, realizes the true meaning of love AND Christmas, and figures out her entire life in a crisp 120 minutes (with commercials).

Working on this book has made me reflect a lot on what Nancy Meyers movies have actually meant to me besides being entertaining and comfy. 

They gave me a continuous point of contact for bonding with my mother. They also gave me the gift of being able to, as a young girl, watch nuanced, comedic tellings of love and women finding new parts of themselves later in life. 

I had my mom as an example of all that at home… and then saw it reflected on-screen, so that was the norm for me. 

And for that I’m profoundly grateful.

Farm to Fable: How food shows up in storytelling 

The Holiday

The Holiday is something I watch at least once every holiday season. Food shows up in this movie mostly as a form of comfort and love- Cameron Diaz grocery shopping and eating/drinking to sooth her breakup, Kate Winslet making pasta for Jack Black (and vice versa?) to soothe their respective heartbreak, the AMAZING Hanukkah dinner scene, morning-after coffee, etc. 

The photo at the top of the newsletter is from my book, and is meant to represent The Holiday. 

Two cheddars, both alike in dignity, one English (Quicke’s cheddar), one American (Prairie Breeze). Cheeses that are looped into the same category, but have very different personalities- much like our main characters.

If you know the movie at all, this makes sense- pretty on the nose. One of the hidden reasons for this pairing is The Holiday talks a lot about women with “gumption”. And whenever I hear it, I think of Mary Quicke. 

Until next time,

Anne-Marie

P.S. - Sunday Scaries

A terrifying AI image to help us all rest knowing AI bots could never replace a real human artist:

This week the prompt was “Romantic comedy leading characters eating cheddar by a Christmas tree”.

Merry nightmares to you all- and to all a horrifying night.

www.annemariepietersma.com