Fromage fort cheese appetizer

This adaptable recipe is a cook’s dream. You’ll nearly always have the ingredients on hand, it’s a snap to fix, and it’s a highly addictive substance that guests rave about.

Plus, it lets you use up those little bits of cheese that otherwise turn into green furry blobs in the cheese drawer, a waste of an often high-priced commodity. So save yourself the guilt: Grate leftover cheese chunks and store in the freezer; cheese freezes admirably. Then haul it out when you need to use it and feel both frugal and well-fed. Man, this stuff is good.

Fromage fort

Aka strong cheese, as in alcohol-strong. Adapted from Alton Brown. Oh, how I miss “Good Eats.”

Ingredients

1 pound cheese at room temperature (use a mix of whatever’s on hand: cheddar, Parmesan, provolone, Fontina, mozzarella or any hard or soft cheese)

¼ cup dry white wine (about)

4 tablespoons butter, room temperature or slightly softened

2 tablespoons fresh parsley (or other herbs work)

1 garlic clove, minced

Method

Remove any rinds from cheese. Grate any hard cheese. Cut soft cheese into cubes. Blend cheese and butter in food processor. Pulse in parsley and garlic. Add wine with motor running until smooth mixture forms; you may not need the entire amount depending on the nature of the cheese you’re using. Serve immediately with crackers or bread.

Make ahead: This can be made up to a week ahead, but you’ll want to give it plenty of time to soften before serving, and I’ve never found that it’s quite as creamy once it’s been refrigerated. Leftovers work well to flavor vegetables, pasta dishes or pizzas.

Note: If I’m serving this for a large group with unknown health concerns, I post a note that it contains alcohol, since obviously it's uncooked. Also, note that the recipe calls for no salt. I suppose depending on the cheeses you pick, you might need to add some, but generally if I've got at least Parmesan as one of the ingredients, it's salty enough as is.