In praise of Ardrahan

Ardrahan is a semi-soft, washed-rind cheese. It has been produced by the Burns family on their farm in Kanturk, Co. Cork since the 1980's. It has a mild, nutty flavour that favours those like myself, for whom soft cheeses can be a bit stinky and uninviting. Ardrahan is made from vegetarian rennet and contains only 25% fat, which lessens the guilt I feel when scoffing it.

I first fell in love with it last Christmas, when I tried them spread over Digestive biscuits. The sweetness of the biscuits and the slight saltiness of the cheese was just heaven. I have also discovered that it goes wonderfully in omelettes, such as this one that I discovered today:

• 5 free range eggs
• 2 medium eggs
• 2 medium potatoes
• handful of spinach
• splash of milk
• seasoning
• Ardrahan cheese to taste

Preheat oven to 200C. Mix eggs and milk and season. Fry the onions in a little olive oil until soft. Add potatoes and soften, followed by the spinach for a few seconds. Add the egg mixture and the cheese and place in the oven for 10 minutes.

The omelette is deliciously fluffy and creamy - the Ardrahan adding a nice savoury contrast to the eggs - and has become my all-time favourite omelette recipe.