What are your thoughts on American Cheese ?

[lunarpollen]

I've not tried Little Wallop yet, but I am going to order some.

I'm a self-confessed cheese enthusiast and spend a lot on cheese, but I wouldn't call myself a cheese snob. There are some occasions when only a Kraft cheese slice will do.

Snobbery is a social phenomenon. As I'm sure you know, being an enthusiast, no matter how passionate you are about something, is not snobbery. Snobbery is where you stubbornly consume or patronize one particular thing for it's social association (i.e., identifying with a certain perceived class of people) rather than it's quality. In fact, often the things people are snobbish about are rather poor in quality. A good way to tell an enthusiast from a snob is that an enthusiast will readily make recommendations for or against things, and loves to share his/her treasured finds with others (it's all about inclusivity and goodwill). A snob usually won't do this, and prefers to keep very exclusive (not necessarily good or virtuous) company that he/she wishes to be identified with.

 

[Bruce Lindfield]

Yup it's not snobbery to want to something good to eat!

 

[Jeremy Crockett]

It's the upside down is right side up thread!

snob

a person who believes himself or herself an expert or connoisseur in a given field and is condescending toward or disdainful of those who hold other opinions or have different tastes regarding this field: a musical snob.

processed crap cheese that us Americans gladly accept

just like alot (sic) of real America: over processed and fake

You have Cheddar? How can you have Cheddar?

stuff you put under carpets to help insulate your house

American Cheese? One nation, with over 300 million people living there, and there's ONE type of cheese?

But America doesn't seem to have even one type of cheese - well that people would want to eat anyway.

Yup! No snobbery here.

 

[Bruce Lindfield]

But many of those comments are from Americans - how can they be snobbish about themselves...

They just want some good cheese!

 

[mlowe]

Apparently, Land O' Lakes offers this fine product under 2 names, and three colors. See the Wiki.

Apparently, it's available in white, yellow, and "what-the-hell-is-that?" orange.

Yep, that's the one! Every time i see that stuff it freaks me out.


Also, Haloumi I believe is from Cyprus. Also, I read somewhere that although Fetta and Greece go together, the danish own the name legally and haves little bitching matches with Greece about it. ????

Don't know if it's true, but weird yes.

 

[mlowe]

Yup it's not snobbery to want to something good to eat!

+1 Bruce, many people will eat trash.

Thanks to that pom on TV Jamie Oliver, every time he comes on I end up hungry. Now that guy comes up with some ripper food. Not sure he is English though.

 

[dlloyd]

Yep, that's the one! Every time i see that stuff it freaks me out.


Also, Haloumi I believe is from Cyprus. Also, I read somewhere that although Fetta and Greece go together, the danish own the name legally and haves little bitching matches with Greece about it. ????

Don't know if it's true, but weird yes.

Feta has been granted PDO status as a greek cheese. The Danes and French want the decision reversed, arguing that it's a generic term like 'cheddar'.

Invalid Link Removed

 

[fenderhutz]

I compare it to Scott Stapps vocals.

Over-processed.

 

[CallMeBlind]

During my stay in US I learned that food there is terrible, maybe not all the food, but at least bread, cheese, meat and especially cakes. On my first day in NY I bought chicken in a food store, I had to throw it away. There is also normal food but it is very expensive.
I prefer Danish, French and German cheese. Also I bought some good cheese during my stay in Belgium.

 

[bradjonesbass]

MY MIL used to make lasagna with velveeta cheese! EWW YUCK! Her kids loved it, the neighborhood kids loved it, my FIL barely tolerated it. I tried once and politely (sort of) asked her to never make it when I was there again. Vile. My mom used to use "cottage cheese" for lasagna because it was approximately 20cents cheaper than ricotta... I hate american cheese (the stuff that's called american cheese anyway). There are some wonderful american made varieties of European developed cheeses though. Amish made swiss is wonderful. Vermont and Wisconsin cheddar varieties are quite good. And for the record California wine is much better than French wine

 

[Bruce Lindfield]

+1 Bruce, many people will eat trash.

Thanks to that pom on TV Jamie Oliver, every time he comes on I end up hungry. Now that guy comes up with some ripper food. Not sure he is English though.

Jamie Oliver is definitely English - but he has become something of a joke now...?

 

[Bruce Lindfield]

I hate american cheese (the stuff that's called american cheese anyway). There are some wonderful american made varieties of European developed cheeses though.

Yes I have no doubt there is decent Cheese in America - my point though, is that they are basically European types of cheese that have emerged from European cultures and there is nothing intrinsically "American" about them!

 

[mlowe]

Feta has been granted PDO status as a greek cheese. The Danes and French want the decision reversed, arguing that it's a generic term like 'cheddar'.

Invalid Link Removed

That would make more sense.

 

[mlowe]

Jamie Oliver is definitely English - but he has become something of a joke now...?

I'm not sure why, despite being a pom he seems to be one of the more in tune chefs and tend to show a good attitude mostly. This is not a crack at the English (family is from shefield and portsmouth) but english cooking in general here gets a hard thumbs down. Old Jamie seem to be bringing it up a few notches even if he is using foreign styles.

 

[dlloyd]

I'm not sure why, despite being a pom he seems to be one of the more in tune chefs and tend to show a good attitude mostly. This is not a crack at the English (family is from shefield and portsmouth) but english cooking in general here gets a hard thumbs down. Old Jamie seem to be bringing it up a few notches even if he is using foreign styles.

British cuisine took a major hammering during and following WWII. Rationing continued to the mid-fifties, at which time there was a fairly sizable emmigration from Britain to Australia, and it took decades for it to recover. Nowadays the reputation it has abroad (and I'm not including the fast food nightmares I mentioned in the other thread) is pretty much undeserved.

Jamie Oliver is hardly the pinnacle of British Cuisine, but if he's challenging that particular prejudice, I guess its a good thing.

 

[dlloyd]

Yes I have no doubt there is decent Cheese in America - my point though, is that they are basically European types of cheese that have emerged from European cultures and there is nothing intrinsically "American" about them!

Who cares? American culture, by definition, is largely European anyway.

We're not so different, our nation has been built through successive invasion and immigration over the last several thousand years. Nothing we have is intrinsically British... everything can be traced to other countries.

Cheesemaking, particularly the method of making hard pressed cheeses like cheddar, was brought to Britain by the Romans.

 

[morf]

MY MIL used to make lasagna with velveeta cheese! EWW YUCK! Her kids loved it, the neighborhood kids loved it, my FIL barely tolerated it. I tried once and politely (sort of) asked her to never make it when I was there again. Vile. My mom used to use "cottage cheese" for lasagna because it was approximately 20cents cheaper than ricotta... I hate american cheese (the stuff that's called american cheese anyway). There are some wonderful american made varieties of European developed cheeses though. Amish made swiss is wonderful. Vermont and Wisconsin cheddar varieties are quite good. And for the record California wine is much better than French wine

1) You know nothing about cheese.

2) You know even less about wine.

 

[SuperDuck]

Grilled cheese sandwiches made with Velveeta are a tasty treat.

 

[bradjonesbass]

1) You know nothing about cheese.

2) You know even less about wine.

I prefer beer

 

[Alex]

American cheese is destroying our nation's youth. It must be stopped.