Kosher cheese at Whole Foods

[smtanen]

Today at Whole Foods I found kosher cheddar cheese slices, the 365 Whole Foods Brand. It bears the StarK Dairy symbol.

[joebenjamin]

While you are there check out the simply organic brand alfredo sauce mix--we had it for shevuos and it was good.I miss the kosher Ronzoni alfredo mix which had cheese in it.This requires you to add your own parmesan.

[shmuelsimja]

is there any roquefort cheese kosher?

[koshergourmetmart]

in france

[masteraleph]

To expand on what koshergourmetmart said- certainly not at Whole Foods. There are a few places that sometimes have French kosher blue cheeses (though I don't remember what varieties I've seen), like Zabar's, but it's hit or miss.

[azna29]

I got a kosher blue cheese from Fairway in Paramus, I think the Cheese Guys was the brand. very good but it was very much a blue cheese. I also bought a wedge of kosher cheese that was labelled blue cheese at Shoprite in Paramus (not in the kosher isle but on the large oval cheese display at the back of the produce isle, right across from the bakery). I think the company was "good and kosher" something like that. Anyway, this one was very much more like a roquefort than a blue.

[SoCal Mother]

My sister bought us some in Israel once. No one liked it. I have no idea if it was the brand or that none of us like blue cheese.

I have had some successes bringing food home from Israel, especially things like parmesan and spices.

[lenchik]

I picked up the kosher cheddar at whole foods and really enjoy it for lunch now. It is not sharp at all so if that's what you are looking for, then it wouldn't work. Thanks to this post I have also ordered some Havarti and Muentster from Harmony Specialty in Wisconsin. FYI, if you place an order over $35, there is free shipping and if you live outside of WI, then also no tax. Not sure how it tastes, but very excited to try it. The cheese ends up being $5.50/lb if you buy in one pound increments, or you can get a block of 5 lbs for $25. The only exception to this pricing is Kidwelly Castle, which I think is $8 per pound.
I wish I could try the Tilamook cheese, but it doesn't appear that they sell their products anywhere in Illinois, nor did they respond to my email inquiry regarding how the cheese could be ordered. Oh well, very excited about the other two.
I was wondering if anyone could shed some light on what the term "kosher cheese food" means. I have seen this written on some of the kosher cheeses at our local kosher supermarket and got to thinking: does this mean the cheese is not real cheese?

[avitrek]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Processe...

[lenchik]

So i take it as far as kids are concerned, better not serve this cheese.

[queenscook]

On the contrary . . . from what I have seen, this is precisely the type of cheese kids love. Now if you were talking health, that's another issue entirely.

[avitrek]

This is the definitive American Cheese. Go to a regular supermarket and you will see "cheese food" or "cheese product" on most of the classic American Cheese packages.

[kafka]

the 365 cheddar slices did not have any starD hecksher at the whole foods on houston street today..
maybe next batch.

[lenchik]

Just FYI, our whole foods had regular non-kosher cheddar but then a whole separate hanger/hook labeled "kosher" in giant letters on the front of the package with the hechsher both on the front and back.

[kafka]

I will have to try it thanks..
Other good kosher cheeses are Tillamook, which you can usually get at Trader Joes.
Sugar River is also really good but a bit more expensive.
Also Cabots does an OU run on occasion. I see the cheese at Fairway sometimes.

[EmpireState]

I tried the Whole Foods cheddar and it was really good. Much less salty than the traditional kosher brands..

[Prettypoodle]

How sharp is the WF cheddar? My husband likes his very sharp. I dunno, I dont eat it.

[EmpireState]

It was not sharp at all.

[Prettypoodle]

Bummer - thanks.

[SoCal Mother]

I went on a tour of the Tillimook factory in Oregon some years ago. They had a picture of their kosher cheddar but none for sale :(

That is seriously good cheddar.

Well I will have to go over to Whole Paycheck and check out the cheese. I usually just get my toasted sesame seeds and leave.

[seikoloco]

SoCalMother

Most Trader Joes I have been to carry the Tillmook kosher cheddar. Its mixed in with all the other cheese and is usually plentiful and easy to find. I think Trader Joes is in SoCal??

[SoCal Mother]

Ours does not. Our local Ralph's will sometimes stock it in the kosher section. I understand that it's available mail order. When I get cheddar these days I buy the huge bags of Kosher and Natural at Costco because my kids (and their friends) use it up so quickly.

[Hirscheys]

If you are open to considering mail order, Cabbot cheddar is a great option that is also pretty affordable.

[mamaleh]

A friend just told me about this http://www.harmonyspecialty.com/cart/...

She ordered the Cheddar and Kidwelly Castle and said they were both really good. I plan on trying it out.

[teajoygreye]

i'm also on the west coast -- out here TJ's dsnt carry it, but Fred Meyer does (at least in Washington & Oregon). It will be next to the non kosher Tillamook.

[masteraleph]

In Santa Barbara, the Whole Foods carries it. I'd imagine that it might in other places, too.

[naviw]

Just bought some Tillamook Kosher Cheddar at Trader Joe's in Westfield NJ and it was great. They don't have a separate section for kosher items... you have to look at every different kind of cheese to find the kosher ones. Even Empire Kosher Chicken is mixed in with other chicken by type (breast, thigh, boneless thigh, ground etc)

[kosherfoodfan]

Star-K has been giving their hechsher to some whole foods brand products for a while, which is a wonderful thing.

If you really want great cheese at whole foods, look for 5 spoke brand which is chof-k certified. It is made from raw milk, humane, grass fed, and delicious! See http://www.5spokecreamery.com/cheese.... for info. Not all Whole Foods carries this cheese, but most of the ones I buy from do. Highly recommended!

[koshergourmetmart]

it actually has the star k's non chalv yisrael symbol-a d with a star in it

[kosherfoodfan]

Not sure where you got this info from. 5 Spoke is exclusively certified by the Chof-K, not the Star-K.

[koshergourmetmart]

i was referring to the whole food cheese not 5 spoke

[smtanen]

I have had the 5 spoke - it's sold at a wine store in our neighborhood! It is excellent.

[Hirscheys]

I love that cheese! Seriously some of the best cheese I've ever had. I've found a few of the 5 spoke varieties at Whole Food. All good but I tend to like the ones that are slightly more aged (such as the redmond cheddar) best.

[avitrek]

Incidentally, if you check the cheese counter rather than the packaged cheese section, you can sometimes find the 5 spoke tumbleweed out with all the other unkosher cheeses. I don't want to get into an argument on if you can buy the cheese from there, but it speaks to the quality of 5 spoke that Whole Foods sells it with the regular high end cheeses.

[SoCal Mother]

WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
That's their store brand!!!!!

How'd it taste???
(This is such good news I feel like we ought to check the mislabeled kosher lists just to make sure!!)

[masteraleph]

Here's a direct (.pdf) link to the Star-D's letter: http://www.star-k.org/loc/kosher_lett...

[SoCal Mother]

Amazing...real cheese that happens to be kosher instead of kosher cheese pretending to be cheddar.

Wonder if we could talk Whole Foods into making parmesan???

[avitrek]

I'd rather they just carry the existing real kosher Parmigiano Regiano that exists. I'm not sure if Whole Foods even makes an uncertified 365 brand parmesan.