Say cheese - learning to cook with cheddar in one of Monmouthshire's top restaurants

When you think of Wales, and the delights it has to offer its visitors and residents, cheese is probably not the first thing that comes to mind. Apart from our humble Caerphilly, our cheese is often in the shadow of English and French produce.
But, as I learnt while at a tasting experience with Collier’s cheese at Abergavenny’s The Hardwick, our cheese has a lot to offer the world stage.
Collier’s powerful Welsh cheddar is exactly what it says on the tin. It is a cheese made from a single creamery in North Wales and its taste and texture packs a punch. 
Its namesake on the front of its packaging – a stern looking miner with coal across his face – is a nod to founder Chris Swire’s grandfather and to the fact that cheese given to a miner had to be strong for it to be tasted through all the dirt and coal dust.
Once you have tried the cheese on it’s own – with its bold, complex taste – it’s easy to see why it’s used in The Hardwick kitchen by chef Stephen Terry to create his wonderful dishes. It is a cheese which can hold its own among big flavours but never overpowers its fellow ingredients.
While at the restaurant I tried an array of dishes showcasing the versatility of the cheese, including my personal favourite - cauliflower cheese soup. 
This was a creamy soup topped with grilled cheddar and chive. The mixture of the velvety smooth soup with the slightly charred taste of cheese was gorgeous –one of the best bowls of soup I have ever tasted.
While at the taster day, I was also treated to a cooking demonstration in the Hardwick kitchen with Stephen Terry. This is where I learnt to cook with polenta – something I hadn’t really had much experience with other than using it to make pizza dough and eating polenta chips at a well-known restaurant chain.
Stephen cooked polenta with cheese and served it with mushrooms and grilled lettuce (after this experience day, I have been a convert to cooking lettuce; it takes out all the water and leaves - pardon the pun – a wonderfully tasty leaf, especially when using quite bitter leaves like chicory).
I learnt that polenta is quite an easy ingredient to cook with and can make a speedy meal (just as long as you’ve prepped the polenta beforehand).
The end product from the demonstration was stunning – the polenta was light and spongy with a wonderfully rich taste that complimented its variety of garnishes. It’s definitely a recipe I’ll be making at home if I want to impress friends without putting in hours of work.
 

Recipe:

Collier’s Cheddar Polenta with Grilled Lettuce and Salsa Verde
 

Serves 6 people

Ingredients
650ml water
200g instant polenta
200g grated cheese
50g well-cooked Cavolo Nero, finely chopped
50g braised outer Puntarelle leaf, finely chopped
1 clove of garlic, peeled and finely chopped
1 small mild red chilli, finely chopped
Small plate of flour for dusting the set polenta

For the garnish
Watercress – 1 bunch, washed, picked (leaving on a little stalk) and spun Tardivo/Radicchio/Treviso – 1 small head, washed, picked and spun
Gem lettuces – 1 head, washed, picked and spun
Friseline – 1 head, picked, washed and spun
2 tablespoons of Salsa Verde
150g Oyster mushrooms,sliced
1 shallot, peeled and finely sliced
1 small clove of garlic, peeled and finely sliced
1 small bunch of flat leaf parsley, washed, picked and roughly chopped

Method
1 Place  water in a saucepan and bring to  boil
2 Add in  polenta, remove from heat and stir until smooth
3 Return to a low heat. Add cavolo nero, Puntarelle leaf, garlic and chilli
4 Cook for 5 mins, add cheddar and cook for a further 5 mins
5 Add a little crushed sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste 
6 Pour polenta into a small tray lined with cling film. Spread out evenly, cover with another sheet of cling film and place in fridge to cool and set. This will take approximately 3hrs
7 When polenta has set, remove from tray and cut into 6 equal portions
8 Place a heavy cast iron pan on a high heat 
9 Heat up a table top fryer to 180°C
10 Heat an oven to 160°C
11 Lightly coat set polenta in flour, gently pat off any excess and deep fry until lightly golden brown. Place on a tray and pop into oven for 8-10 mins
12 At same time grill all lettuce in batches of same leaf and place into a large bowl with  salsa verde. The lettuce is ready when it starts to wilt and takes on a little scorching from grill
13 In a separate medium-size frying pan, heat a little oil and put in sliced oyster mushrooms. Cook for two mins then add shallot, garlic and parsley. Cook for approximately 5 mins and season with a little salt.
14 Spread equal amounts of grilled mixed lettuces between 6 serving plates
15 Cut each polenta ‘cake’ into 3 and place on the salad 
16 Share the oyster mushrooms between plates and finish with sprigs of watercress
17 This dish is the perfect accompaniment for a grilled chicken breast or roast pork chop.