Two specialties that combine coffee and cheese from two distant corners of the world
One of the most interesting things in the world of coffee is the dozens of different ways of serving it all over the world. Who would have imagined that there are coffee cultures that love to enjoy it with ... cheese?
A lool in the coffee beverages served around the world can reveal particularly unusual beverages. From spices used in Arabic countries to sweetened milk and egg or even tea in Asian countries and the large amounts of syrups, chocolate and sugar commonly used in the United States, coffee has seen hundreds of companions. However, cheese remains one of the most unusual accompaniments to coffee, at least for our own palate.
However, there are two coffee cultures, Colombian and Scandinavian, who not only use cheese as a coffee accompaniment, but have also developed specialties based on this unexpected combination. Despite their differences, Colombian Café Con Queso and Scandinavian Kaffeost are the most typical examples of coffee marriage with an unexpected material - cheese!
Two specialties that combine coffee and cheese from two distant corners of the world
Café con queso from Colombia
Café con queso simply means "coffee with cheese" and is perhaps the most special specialty of Colombia in what concerns coffee. Although Colombia is a real power in the coffee world, being the world's third largest coffee-producing country and while Colombian coffees are famous for their flavor and aroma, the Colombian coffee culture was not, until recently, highly developed in country. The Colombians especially love the cheap, instant coffee, sold by itinerant vendors at extremely cheap prices and called tinto, meaning "ink" - a name indicative of its low quality. At the same time, Colombia has developed special and original ways of serving, such as Café con Queso!
In Colombia they especially love melted cheese to the point where sliced bread with melted cheese is one of the most popular snacks, literally accompanying everything - from alcohol and juices to hot chocolate and coffee. In some parts of Colombia, this custom went a step further. Hot coffee is served with pieces of cheese, which are placed inside the mug to melt. Typically, traditional serving requires a mug of hot coffee, accompanied by slices of cheese and a long spoon, for easier shuffle of coffee in order to melt the cheese easily.
The cheese used is usually unsalted and must melt easily in order to prepare for this Latin American delicacy. Many cafés in Colombia serve not only Café qon queso but also Chocolata qon queso, that is, hot chocolate with cheese. However, it is a fact that in recent years this way of servicing has begun to be considered an old-fashioned one and is mainly addressed to tourists visiting the Latin American country.
Kaffeost, from Scandinavia
Scandinavians have the largest per capita consumption of coffee in the world and love the filter coffee. Consuming generous amounts of coffee every day, they have developed some fanciful recipes, one of which is Kaffeost - the coffee served with cheese.
Unlike Café con Queso, Kaffeost does not use melting cheese, but a certain cheese, which has a strange sounding name juustoleipä and is soft and spongy. Previously it was made from reindeer milk, but today it is usually goat's and can be easily cut into small cubes. Because of its texture, it absorbs hot coffee and softens - the traditional serving of kaffeost requires a deep cup full of juustoleipä pieces and a jug of hot coffee so the coffee is added little by little and the cubes absorb the taste and aroma of the coffee .
Although it sounds strange, the Kaffeost is widely spread in the Scandinavian countries as well as in some parts of Russia, and its enthusiasts argue that the dipped in the brown cheese results in a taste reminiscent of Tiramisu. Kaffeost is common in both cafes and family tables, especially in the mornings or celebrations.
There are no limits in coffee - two strange recipes that marry coffee with cheese prove it! If you happen to be in a hot Swedish cafeteria or in a sunny Colombian coffee shop, dare to try it. You will have tried something that certainly few Greeks had the chance to taste.
