When entertaining, it’s great to wow your guests with an outstanding recipe, but it’s also very important to design a menu that’s not too demanding of yourself, otherwise, everybody will have fun but you. A great appetizer or simpler dish is a good way to work a menu that’s delicious but does not impose too much effort or time spent in the kitchen.

 Jacques Pepin’s Fromage Fort…perfect for cocktail time or an easy addition to have with a fresh salad for an easy lunch.  Easy to whiz up in an immersion blender jar for a few minutes with a few ingredients, wine, cheese, garlic cloves, and a dash of pepper or a favorite seasoning or herbs that will go with your choices of cheese.  Today I had a chunk of smoked cheddar which is pretty strong so my other cheeses were pretty mellow by comparison.    

• 3 to 4 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
• 1 pound leftover pieces of cheese, a combination of as many hard and soft varieties as you desire such as Brie, cheddar, Swiss, bleu, mozzarella, or goat cheese), trimmed to remove surface dryness and mold (see notes)
• ¹/₂ cup dry white wine 
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper melangé

Whiz up the garlic in the jar, toss in some of the cheese, and add the wine whiz until smooth and add more of the cheese, season as you wish, and whiz again until smooth.  Place into a serving dish, serve with crackers or bread and fresh fruit…