Razzle’s Choice (4-5 lb. wheels or 1 lb. wedges) Toma cheese made with hot red pepper flakes. This spicy cheese is not for the faint of heart!  Initially, the mild, creamy flavor of the young cheese tempers the sharp heat of the added chili pepper flakes. Typically, Tomas–which are from Northern Italy, are not found with red pepper; our cheese maker is a Sicilian! Of course we are going to make a Toma with spicy peppers! We have found it this cheese growing hotter as it ages.  Just like its tamer sister, Old Grey Mare,  Razzle’s Choice works well in recipes. We like adding it to omelets, sandwiches, and cheese dishes—often as a compliment to Old Grey Mare to warm things up a bit.

Pairs with: Beer! Slightly-sweet Dry Rieslings

Razzle’s Choice is named for a barn cat at the Cornell University Ruminant Center where Sue (and her husband, Bill) herd cats and some cows. Sue has a thing for cats, so does Bill. Razzle was a slightly disreputable, mostly wild, half-grown ginger kitten when Bill and Sue took on the project of taming him. Every day, when Bill ate his lunch, he would set aside cheese from his sandwich to lure Razzle in. Perseverance (and cheese) did the trick. After a long day of cheese making followed by a hastily contrived group dinner the suggestion that Razzle would definitely eat this cheese was decreed and the cheese thusly named.