Tillamook cheese bread and White Zinfandel
I had never watched tennis until I met my husband. He was the cutest player on the University of Oregon men’s tennis team. Well, okay he was the only player I watched (or knew). Five years later we started our married life in Arizona, where of course, tennis was very popular. My husband’s parents also played tennis and his mom loved to celebrate Wimbledon. While she’s been gone for 28 years this August, I think about her every year when Wimbledon occurs. In the days before streaming, she’d plan her day — and sleep — around the time of a key match (her favorite was Chrissy Evert). For the finals, she would make chocolate-dipped strawberries and a toasty, gooey Tillamook Cheese bread meant to be enjoyed with a glass of White Zinfandel. After all, this was the late 80s. A few times a year I dig out the recipe card that’s in my mother-in-law’s handwriting and reminisce about watching tennis with my husband’s family. With the grand slam tournament being cancelled last year, this year’s Wimbledon (semifinals July 8/9 and finals July 10/11) calls for lots of cheesy bread and juicy chocolatey strawberries, and wine. But make mine rosé.
Tillamook cheese bread
There are two important things to remember for this bread. The number one rule is that you have to use Tillamook cheese. If you are from the PNW you just know why it needs to be Tillamook. And that’s the name of it. So, use Tillamook. Number two: it’s best made with some type of fresh sourdough bread. My mother-in-law typically used a wide, softer French sourdough loaf. I couldn’t find that this time and because it was just my husband and I eating it, I opted for a sourdough baguette, which made for a pretty chewy bite.
Below is her recipe, but I’ll give you a little more guidance! It’s totally fine to play around with the amounts and to add or subtract an ingredient. (Just not the Tillamook!) Hmm, I’m thinking a little dry mustard could be a nice addition.
To get started, slice the loaf of bread in half lengthwise with a serrated knife, being careful to make it even and not to cut yourself. This mixture will cover (at least) half of a large loaf or both sides of a baguette. Layer it on pretty thick.
Mix together:
1/3 cup mayonaise - Best Foods Olive Oil is my mayo of choice, but you decide. You can add a little more mayo if it ends up not being easily spreadable.
2 cups of grated Tillamook cheddar cheese (I used sharp cheddar this time, but the mild cheddar is great too.)
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese – Use freshly grated if you can, but the green shaker can works fine too.
1/4 cup finely diced onion – I used sweet onion but I’ve also used green onion in the past.
Garlic – Recipe calls for garlic powder, but I used one clove of minced garlic and just a shake of the powder.
Couple slugs of Worcestershire sauce.
Spread the mayo/cheese mixture onto the bread, smashing it as you go so it adheres and covers all the bread. Grind some fresh black pepper and kosher salt over the bread if desired, and bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. You may want to turn on the broiler for a minute or two at end to get it browner. For the baguette, I cut the bread on a diagonal. Easier eating and I like angles.
White Zinfandel vs. rosé
I actually asked the wine sommelier at my grocery, “Does anyone still drink or buy White Zinfandel?” She said “yes” and led me to the section. But, ha, there were only three options on the shelf. She suggested the popular Beringer White Zinfandel at $4.99 bottle. Almost broke the bank. You may be thinking, can’t I just drink a rosé? Well, yes, you can and that’s what I’d actually recommend after trying the Zinfandel. It was way sweeter than I remember from my younger days.
So what’s the difference between a White Zin and a rosé? White Zin uses Zinfandel grapes and it’s typically sweeter than a rosé. Wines that are labeled rosé are made using red grapes by allowing the skins of those grapes to only sit with the pressed juice for a very short time, resulting in a pink colored wine instead of a red one.
If you prefer your wine less sweet, one of my favorite dry rosés is the 2020 Salish Sea Rosé pictured above) from William Grassie Wine Estates in Fall City, WA. Six dollars from each bottle purchased is donated to Bellevue College, benefiting Experience Coral: Coral-on-a-Chip a Science/Earth & Space & Life Science program to save the coral.
Chocolate-dipped strawberries
Here in the U.S., the final matches will be broadcast in the morning hours. So, the evening before, prep your strawberries. Fruit for breakfast is a good thing. You really don’t need a recipe, yet there are lots of them on the Internet. Here’s a link to Grossy Pelosi’s strawberries — because I like Dan Pelosi and his strawberry glamour shots. His recipe gives you quantities that you can use as a guide, depending on how many berries you’re dipping.
Here are some things to keep in mind.
Make sure to wash your berries and give them ample time to dry thoroughly. Otherwise the chocolate won’t stick to the berries.
Use a good quality chocolate and add a bit of vegetable or coconut oil. I chopped up a baking bar of Ghirardelli 60% chocolate. It’s labeled bittersweet, but really it is semisweet.
Melt the chocolate. You can use a double boiler, but I was lazy and didn’t want to dirty a pan so used my microwave. Melt on 50% power in 30-second intervals, stirring after each time, until completely melted and glossy.
Dip the berries one at a time and lay on a cooling rack placed over a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. This way the extra chocolate will drip off instead of leaving a pool of chocolate at the base of your berries. Place berries in fridge for about 15 minutes to set.
I always have left over chocolate. That’s not a bad thing.
Then sit back and watch Wimbledon
Of course, you don’t have to watch tennis to enjoy the cheesy bread. But it makes for a pretty good match.