HAVE YOU TASTED THAT CHEESE FROM MACEDONIA?

In THE DEADLIEST THIEF, Miriam’s latest adventure, she welcomes a guest to her table in a local café.

A moment later, a mousy-haired, knock-kneed waiter cuts a clean line around the empty tables. Shouldering a tray of finger foods and beverages, he sails right over. The glassware chinks as my guest grabs a goblet of pomegranate wine sweetened with honey and paws four apricot tarts and two hefty chunks of manouri, a creamy whey cheese from Macedonia. At the same time, a loose-jointed, freckle-faced girl places before him a glass plate and a clutch of flatware wrapped in a cotton napkin.

Manouri is a Greek semi-soft, fresh white whey cheese made from goat or sheep milk as a by-product of feta production. Produced primarily in Thessalia and Macedonia, it is used in salads, pastries, or as a dessert cheese. It has a clean, subtle, nutty flavor with the hint of tang and a slightly sour aroma, but it is most prized for its creamy texture.

Try serving a wedge of manouri for dessert with some fruit poached in wine or using it as a substitute for cream cheese in cheesecake. Enjoy some as you read THE DEADLIEST THIEF. You don’t have it yet? Then click here.