The Culinary Institute Of America And The Cheeses Of France Marketing Council Announce Landmark Cooking With Fromage: Comfort Cuisine Project

An innovative new project, "Cooking with Fromage: Comfort Cuisine," was formally launched today by The Cheeses of France Marketing Council (www.cheesesoffrance.com) and The Culinary Institute of America (www.ciachef.edu), the world's premier culinary college. The Comfort Cuisine project features a collection of easy-to-prepare, tempting recipes that feature French cheeses and that put a creative twist on standard American recipes. All of the recipes are geared toward being "home cook-friendly."

The recipe collection (http://tinyurl.com/yj5pm7y or www.cheesesoffrance.com/recipe_collection.php), complete with photos and detailed instructions for busy cooks at home, is expected to translate into an increased awareness of the pleasures of cooking with fromage selections, and into greater amounts and varieties of all-natural cheeses from France hitting many more American dinner tables.

"Awareness of the varieties and availability of French cheeses in America is spreading, but the Comfort Cuisine recipes we've developed will illustrate what a difference actually cooking with fromage at mealtime can make to the final dish," noted Scott Samuel, Chef Instructor with The Culinary Institute of America. "Cheeses from France serve as the essential ingredient in our new Comfort Cuisine recipes, in that they add a lot of rich, unique flavors that really enhance the meal."

Cooking with Fromage: Comfort Cuisine recipes range from appetizers to desserts, and include:

Apple Pie a la Versailles with Triple Cr�me Ice Cream
Bing Cherry Compote and Brillat Savarin
Bleu Burger d' Ambert
Fondue au Fromage
Fromage Frittata
Fromage Lasagne with B�chamel
Grilled Camembert Sandwiches with Summer Tomato Soup
Ham and Cantal Casserole
Macaroni and Fromage Rustique
Petite Ch�vre Pizzas with Fresh Tomato Sauce
Gratin au Comte

"Active consumers today are hungry for great-tasting, easy-to-prepare, healthy dishes. They want more innovative, world flavors at mealtime, but not with recipes that would take hours to prepare on busy weeknights," said Michael Collins, marketing director for The Cheeses of France campaign in the U.S.

Later this fall, Collins added, Cooking with Fromage: Comfort Cuisine will showcase educational elements of cooking with French cheeses from both a nutrition and cooking perspective, as well as via video podcasts and Web content demonstrating related cooking techniques, to be filmed in the world-class kitchen facilities at The Culinary Institute of America's Greystone campus in Napa Valley. Easy-to-replicate recipes will be offered that illustrate how and why French cheeses can play a lead role in creating sensational comfort foods that balance flavor, texture and nutrition. The educational content is scheduled to launch on www.prochef.com by the end of October.

The announcement of the Comfort Cuisine project comes at an opportune time, as U.S. dining trends indicate a shift not only toward more meals being prepared at home, but a greater awareness of ingredients' health factors. Numerous national outlets including The New York Times and USA Today recently have reported that American consumers increasingly want products that are natural, authentic, and healthy. And earlier this year, National Public Radio food commentator Bonny Wolf predicted that the economic recession would impact food trends throughout the year. "Comfort, value and simplicity," she said, would sum up the culinary scene. "We're in uncertain times, and this is the time when we crave comfort food," Wolf reported.

Enter the Comfort Cuisine project, which will offer a wide variety of recipes showcasing classic fromage selections, such as "Homemade Goat Cheese Pizza&qu