Every now and then, you stumble upon a new product that is unbelievably good.  I had the great fortune of that happening just recently.  I was at a PRP International sale and they had Just Enough Heat there showcasing some of their products.  I had never seen them there before so we went to look at the products they had.  I am not a “heat” lover.  I don’t really care for spicy food too much.  I want to be able to taste the flavor of the food I’m eating, not burn my mouth.  The first thing I tried was their Savory Saltine Flavoring.   While I did not end up purchasing this, I was impressed.  With this flavoring packet, you change the flavor of basic, saltine crackers and give them a nice pop of flavor.  It is mild, but packed with flavor.  I avoided a lot of their products because of the heat factor, but they recommended I try their Jalapeno Marinated Asiago & Parmesan Cheese spread.  They gave me a little sample with a small piece of bread and I was hooked!  Even though it has “Jalapeno” in the title, it was classified as mild.  I bought a jar of it.

I happened to be having a small gathering later that day at my home so I put the jar on the counter away from all of the other food.  I didn’t want to share it with everyone, I wanted to be able to enjoy it later.  I looked at the jar a little later and saw that it was supposed to be refrigerated.  I was surprised because it wasn’t refrigerated or even kept cold when I purchased it, so I was a little concerned.  I double checked and no where did it say “Refrigerate after opening” it simply said “Keep Refrigerated.”  I put it in the refrigerator and forgot about it for a couple of days.  I hadn’t been feeling all that great so I wasn’t really trying to eat a lot.  I had a couple of Kings Hawaiian Rolls left over from my party  and decided to munch on one.  I remembered my cheese purchase and opened it up.  The first thing I noticed was how oily it was.  I remembered being told you had to stir it up really well before using it.

As you can see, the oil is all at the top.

After stirring it, the cheeses are very evident.

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I scooped out a little bit and put it on the roll.  It was as good as I remembered it!  The combination of the hard cheeses with the olive oil and garlic is amazing.  You do not need a lot because the flavor is so rich.  The mild Jalapeno gives it a bold flavor without the burn.   Over the course of the week, I also tried the spread on pretzel chips and found it to be pretty tasty.

I wanted to get some recipe ideas and since it had a Loredana’s label instead of  Just Enough Heat label, I looked up the company.  They are a small company in Denver.  As I was looking through their site, I saw some great recipe ideas, including putting a small amount into a hamburger patty.  Yes, I will be trying that as soon as I am feeling better!  I also discovered they have additional Asiago & Parmesan Cheese Spreads.  One in particular that caught my eye is their Garlic Marinated Asiago & Parmesan Hard Cheese.  They also have the same recipe but without as much garlic.  It still has garlic in it, but apparently not as much.  Since I like garlic, I think I would like the extra garlic.  They also have a Winter Truffle version I am a little curious about.

At $15 a jar, this is a little expensive for me to have on a regular basis.  I appreciate the cheeses used are not cheap and the quality and flavor is well worth the cost, it just isn’t in my budget right now.  I definetely will be purchasing a few more jars though so I can try some of the recipes.  As I do, I will make sure to share my thoughts on the other flavors.

I am so happy to have discovered this great new company.  They have other products besides spreads, including a vinaigrette section I will keep my eye on to see if they add a raspberry version.

I encourage you to check out Just Enough Heat and Loredana’s….two new companies with some great products, tell them you heard about them from me, maybe they’ll be nice and offer a discount on some of their other cheese spreads!  Hey, a girl can hope!