Treat Yourself to an Artisanal Cheese

Get to Know the Real Thing

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30 Days to Green Your Diet - Explore artisanal cheese as part of a healthy diet.

Photo: Thomas Barwick / Getty Images

By Annie Bell Muzaurieta

30 Days to a Greener Diet - Day 20

If cheese to you means a bland block of yellow foodlike substance, or Parmesan flecks from a can, you owe it to yourself to dive into the pool of artisan cheese makers.

We’re not talking about decorative cheese — though a wheel of dairy wonder made with sustainable ingredients and old-world ways is a work of art. Artisanal refers to the method of making the cheese — primarily by hand, in small batches, using traditional techniques.

Where to begin? A creamy goat cheese from New York’s Coach Farm? A sharp cheddar from Oregon’s Tillamook Cheese company? Or perhaps a taste of the buttery signature cheese from California’s Cowgirl Creamery? Google your state and "artisan cheese maker guild" to find regional member farms and to learn where you can buy their products.

Here is a link to artisanal cheese suppliers to New York City’s Artisanal restaurant.