The Ghost in the Pantry is now up on DailyLit.com! To start receiving installments of the cookbook, just sign up here, and you’ll get a dose of Czech and American cooking in your inbox each day.
Next up on here, I’m looking forward to doing one of my favorites, nakládaný hermelín cheese, which isn’t in the cookbook because few people make it at home. However, hermelín is one of the major food groups in Czech snacking, along with beer and rolls, and is pub food at its finest.
To pickle hermelín cheese, you slice rounds of this cheese, the Czech camembert, into horizontal slices and then pack them into a jar with sliced onions, green and red peppers (even chiles, if you like), bay leaves, pepper, and garlic. Then you drench everything in oil (vegetable or olive) and let it marinate for a day or two–or for longer if refrigerated. Served with slices of bread and beer, it’s a heady mix of spices and creamy cheese. My favorite place in Prague for nakládaný hermelín is the Týnská literary cafe, just behind Týn Cathedral in Old Town Square.
After the cheese detour, we’ll plunge back into the realm of family recipes with soup. Indian Summer in New York is fading!
2 comments
Comments feed for this article
October 9, 2009 at 10:04 am
Richard in Cincy
Erin, I’ve read the first two installments and I am enthralled. This is such a beautiful cookbook. Better than a majority in print. I hope you will be pursuing a publisher when you’re finished.
October 9, 2009 at 6:55 pm
Erin
Richard, I’m so glad. :) Most of the recipes are not nearly as drawn out as the introduction, but I hope you continue to enjoy it! Thanks for your note!