With that said, I must admit I have a very abnormal affinity for something Wisconsin is famous for, CHEESE. Okay, maybe it would be better said that I have a minor cheese addiction. That’s right! I love cheese in all shapes, sizes, and flavors.

As a continuation from my last post on Gettting back to my roots, I wanted  to add a post on one of my favorite cheese snacks that are common in Wisconsin, but not so common to come across elsewhere….CHEESE CURDS.

My grandfather, a cheesemaker in Mindoro, Wisconsin, would be proud that I hold the cheese curd to such a high pedestal.  Many are not familiar with cheese curds, which are bite size morsels of cheese, typically yellow or orange like American cheddar.  They have been separated from the liquid whey, but have not been formed into the large rectangular blocks nor aged like what most associate with cheddar cheese. The flavor is mild, but they have a very squeaky, rubbery texture. I’m not sure if that would typically be a good texture for an edible item, but for cheese curds, it’s a sign of good curd.

Now, my favorite way to eat cheese curds is actually fried. Yes, you guessed it, frying just about anything makes it better and so it goes with cheese curds too.  The squeaky mild curds turn into a melty, stringy cheese explosion. One can eat cheese curds plain once fried, but the tried and true still dip them in Wisconsin salsa (aka ketchup). I’ll be visiting my dairy state roots and saluting to my genetic cheesemaker background by ordering a plate full of cheese curds with a bottle of ketchup.

I will share, but you better be fast. And, might I add that no plate of cheese curds would be complete without a chaser of local beer. My favorites come from Heileman’s, but that doesn’t’ rule out some of the others like Spotted Cow, Leinenkugels, etc.

Please share your cheese stories and other cheesehead fun facts with the Ms Traveling Pants’ (aka Miss Fish) audience with your comments.

**Photo of cheesehead hat courtesy of click here

**Photo of cheese curds from click here

With the vast majority of Wisconsinites either of German or Norwegian decent, there is seldom a special occasion, festival, or holiday that doesn’t honor delicacies from those mother cultures. Thus, my family took me on an adventure to the basement of a community church in our neighboring town, where the local Norwegian women were in charge of cooking and serving a lutefisk (looooooot-a-fisk) and lefse (lef-sa) dinner. (My accent comes back quickly.)

Lutefisk is a traditional Nordic fish dish made of dried stockfish then soaked in lye.  Yes, you read that correctly, fish soaked in lye, the same stuff that you use to make soap.  I can only rationalize that the process has been passed along since the time before modern day refrigerators or ice boxes existed. However, the traditional taste, texture (jelly-like), and smell of the dish have continued; be forewarned, lutefisk is somewhat notorious for its intense offensive odor. Uffda!

Lutefisk is usually served with, but not limited to potatoes, gravy, melted butter, meatballs, and of course lefse. Unlike lutefisk, lefse is really easy to understand. Basically, it is the Norwegian version of a flour or corn tortilla; however, it is made from potatoes.  It is most commonly served with butter, but many prefer lefse with a sprinkle of sugar. As an addition, lefse is easy to eat and has been a staple in special shipments from Wisconsin for years to wherever I hang my hat.

Now, little did I know that this adventure would be my first appearance in the press. Yes, the local newspaper caught me in the act. Young with a skeptical palate and the overly fishy smell wafting through the hall, I was caught with an ear to ear grin of enjoyment of my lumberjack’s plateful of mashed potatoes and gravy. (Even to this day, I cannot pass up a plate of good mashed potatoes.)

So, on this trip back to my roots, will I be diving into a lutefisk and lefse dinner? Uffda!

**Photo from Official Lutefisk Chef Site