With Moosbacher (pronounced “MOOSE bocker”), the cheese masters wanted to combine the sweetness of a big-hole cheese with the spiciness of red-smearing culture, which they succeeded in doing by combining the two maturation processes. The Moosbacher has this method to thank for its unique flavor, juicy bite and fine spicy aroma.
The visual impression also underscores the uniqueness of the Moosbacher. It is wrapped in a linen cloth specially manufactured in a small weaving mill, symbolizing both the technical tradition as well as its Austrian origins.
It is made with milk from the Fleckveih and Simmental cows in Voitsberg, which is east of Salzburg. The cows are fed untreated grass except in the middle of winter when they are fed untreated hay and some GMO-free grain.
Try Moosbacher in this Onion Soup recipe!
ONION SOUP WITH MOOSBACHER CHEESE
Recipe from Fond O’ Foods
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 6 medium onions, thinly sliced
- Salt & freshly ground pepper, to taste
- 2 teaspoons fresh thyme, picked and chopped (or poultry seasoning)
- 1 bay leaf, fresh or dried
- 1/2 cup dry sherry
- 6 cups beef stock
- 4 thick slices crusty bread, toasted
- 2 1/2 cups shredded Moosbacher cheese
DIRECTIONS
Heat a deep pot over medium to medium-high heat. Work next to the stove to slice onions. Add oil and butter to the pot. Add onions to the pot as you slice them. When all the onions are in the pot, season with salt and pepper and 1 teaspoon fresh thyme. Cook onions 15 to 18 minutes, stirring frequently, until tender, sweet and caramel colored. Add bay leaf and sherry to the pot and deglaze the pan drippings. Add 6 cups stock and cover pot to bring soup up to a quick boil.
Arrange 4 small, deep soup bowls or crocks on a cookie sheet. Preheat broiler to high. Once soup reaches a boil, ladle it into bowls. Float toasted crusty bread on soup and cover each bowl with a mound of Moosbacher. Sprinkle remaining fresh thyme on Moosbacher and place cookie sheet with soup bowls on it under hot broiler until cheese melts and bubbles.
