Fellow cheese lovers, we have a lot to be thankful for this time of year in The State of Cheese—our families, our farmers and Wisconsin’s rich cheesemaking heritage. Celebrate this abundance of blessings with your most precious people around a table set with a harvest feast. Delight in entrées and sides featuring the flavors of fall and best cheeses in the world. Whether you’re hosting Friendsgiving or Thanksgiving, this farm-to-table dinner experience will sow special memories for all.
Create a Farmhouse Feel
Folk Song Farm, a family farm established in 1853 in Richfield, Wisconsin, opened their refurbished yet rustic barn doors to create the picturesque scene for this farm dinner. Use the backdrop and simple entertaining ideas as inspiration to transform your home into an exciting and inviting place to gather.
If your heart is set on a rustic venue for your farm-to-table dinner, reach out to a farm like The Barn at Folk Song Farm. Dwight and Shelly Mayer, along with their children Devin, Cassandra and Dylan, own and operate this seventh-generation dairy farm and have restored their mid-1800s barn into a truly magical, private event space.
Create an upscale yet warm aesthetic by serving your meal on a rustic wood table. Mismatched chairs, cut blooms in brown bottles, tea light candles and unrefined linens keep the look casual, while elegant dinnerware, serving vessels and flatware set the tone that something significant awaits.
Set Out Notable Touches
Adding a few personalized details to your festivities can make a big impact. Arrange a beautiful centerpiece that will thrill the cheese connoisseurs in your life. A cheese box gives guests a taste of the cheeses to be served, allowing partygoers to sample them on their own before savoring them in the recipes. Packed with specialty cheeses, fruits, crackers, charcuterie, preserves and fresh herbs, this surprise feature will be the talk of the party.
Say “I appreciate you” to loved ones with their own cheese board place setting. It’s an ideal gift for kicking off the first course… that’s right, cheese.
Serve a signature drink. Set up a small bar where friends can chat over a seasonal cocktail like sparkling cranberry punch or spiked cider. Round out your beverages with offerings from local distilleries, breweries and wineries.
Serve a Seasonal Spread
What better way to enjoy nature’s bounty than with a farm-inspired menu? Our award-winning cheeses are matched with ingredients from Wisconsin like wild rice, cranberries, beef, honey and more. Each dish stuns with the beautiful colors and rich flavors of fall. Keep it as fresh as possible by shopping at the local farmers market.
We Wisconsinites truly believe that the right cheeses make all the difference, and they are at the center of this feast. Our cheeses, each with their own story, turn appetizers to entrées into tasty and memorable dishes. Learn more about the cheeses you’ll find in the recipes throughout this family-style meal.
Cheddar Gruyere Cheese by Wood River Creamery™: Handcrafted in limited quantities and small batches by Burnett Dairy’s Master Cheesemaker Bruce Willis, this one-of-a-kind, artisan cheese is a decadent fusion of two favorites, cheddar and gruyere. The aged specialty is creamy with sweet and nutty notes that are echoed in the salad’s fruity flavors and toasted walnuts.
Make it: Cranberry-Wild Rice Salad with Cheddar Gruyere
Gorgonzola Cheese by Hook's Cheese Company: Hook’s Cheese Company began making cheese in 1976, but it wasn’t until 2001 that Tony and Julie Hook started making gorgonzola. And we’re glad they did! An award-winning cheese, this tangy, blue-veined classic with notes of citrus is aged in caves to allow the flavors it’s loved for to develop. Its bold bite stands up to robust ingredients like pancetta and garlic.
Make it: Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Gorgonzola and Hot Honey
Maple Bourbon Cheddar Cheese by Henning's Wisconsin Cheese: Flex your culinary prowess with the decadent, melt-in-your-mouth creaminess of a cheddar spiked with savory-sweet hints of bourbon, maple, caramel and molasses. Henning’s Wisconsin Cheese uses natural ingredients. The company has won U.S. and World Championship Cheese Contest awards for their aged and uniquely flavored cheddars, as well as colby cheese.
Make it: Maple-Cheddar Hasselback Butternut Squash
LaBelle Cheese by Koepke Family Farms: A Wisconsin Original, LaBelle means “the beautiful” in French, which utterly describes this aged, farmstead cheese made with milk from Koepke's fifth-generation dairy. Experience the family’s heritage when you indulge in this semi-soft, gouda-style cheese that’s buttery and tangy with a hint of fruitiness. Pair LaBelle with charcuterie and fruit, or stir it into your favorite recipes.
Make it: Braised Beef Brisket and Creamy Polenta
Romano Cheese by Weyauwega Star Dairy: Owned and operated by the Knaus family since 1975, Weyauwega Star Dairy’s artisan cheesemakers have been handcrafting cheeses like parmesan, asiago and sharp, tangy (even maybe a bit assertive) romano for four generations. Cheesemaker Jim Knaus and his sons Dan, Gerard and Mike take great pride in their quality Italian cheeses—they all start with the finest ingredients that you can taste in every bite.
Make it: Sausage-Romano Agnolotti with Maple Brown Butter
