I’ve seen some images floating around online of sushi rolls made with mac and cheese. Could it be that a marriage between sushi and mac and cheese, two of my favorite foods, really exists? There was only one way to find out if this urban legend was as scrumptious as it looked.

My experiment began with creating three different flavors of mac and cheese. The first was your standard fare, not too gooey, but certainly cheese laden. The second, I made extra cheesy. Something inside me said, the more cheese I added, the closer to sticky rice the consistency would get. The third was all about flavor. I used Tillamook Garlic White Cheddar to kick it up a notch. Once my mac and cheese was prepped, I let it cool in the fridge for an hour. You know how when you refrigerate leftover mac and cheese, it firms up? Well that’s exactly what I was going for!

An hour later, I removed it from the fridge and started making my rolls…easier said than done. I covered my sushi rolling mat in plastic wrap and sprinkled breadcrumbs over one third of the mat. Then, I scooped the mac and cheese onto the breadcrumbs and spread it out into a long rectangle, trying to make sure there were no gaps. I tried placing a few different things inside the rolls: pesto sauce, parmesan, more breadcrumbs, and thin strips of cheese. Rolling the rolls proved pretty difficult, especially with the plastic wrap. I ended up trying aluminum foil as well, which held its shape much better. The mac and cheese oozed out the ends of my rolling mat on my first few tries. Once I had the rolls complete and wrapped, I placed them in the fresezer for another hour.

I took the rolls out, unwrapped them, and sliced them into sushi pieces using a sharp knife. I let the rolls sit out and warm to room temperature before eating (I highly recommend this, they’ll hold their shape and taste much better). I sprinkled some cayenne pepper on top of a few of the rolls for good measure, and dipped the sushi pieces in pesto sauce, Tabasco sauce, and Secret Aardvark Habanero sauce.

As far as execution, the rolls with strips of cheese in the center held up the best. The pesto sauce leaked through the center of the roll, but still tasted great. I really recommend trying this experiment with the flavored cheddars. The Garlic White Cheddar rolls were my favorite!

Would you try this cheestastic sushi experiment!?

By Amalya

Apple & Golden Raisin Pie with Cheddar Crust

Looking for the perfect gift for a host this Thanksgiving? What about helping them create 8 tasty dishes?! The Deli Counter Gift Box offers 8 tasty flavors of Tillamook Cheese and is the perfect gift for a friend (or for yourself)!

The Deli Counter Gift Box

These 8 recipes highlight each of our cheeses in the gift box, and can help ensure a cheesy Thanksgiving!

1. To make a cheesy version of a classic, use Sharp Cheddar in the crust for this Apple & Golden Raisin Pie!

2. Add some Special Reserve Extra Sharp Cheddar to this Apple Cheddar Salad.

3. Put Medium Cheddar in this fall favorite: Butternut Squash Cheddar Gratin.

4. Put plenty of Pepper Jack in your Pepper Jack Macaroni & Cheese from Moms Confession!

5. Stuff your Stuffed Peppers with Smoked Black Pepper White Cheddar!

Stuffed Peppers with Smoked Black Pepper White Cheddar

6. Use Garlic Chili Pepper in a sandwich for a pre-Thanksgiving lunch, like in this Garlic-ity Roasted Chicken Melt!

7. Hot Habanero Jack is tasty in this Cheesy Cauliflower. The recipe says use Monterey Jack, but I have a secret for you…Hot Habanero Jack is Monterey Jack with habaneros in it! This will add a tasty kick to the original.

8. Garlic White Cheddar is delicious in almost anything, but especially this Greek Lasagna!

I hope these recipes add some cheese to your Thanksgiving! Share your tastiest recipes with us on Facebook.

By Katie

Greek Lasagna Recipe by Eating With Angie

While there are some mighty fine traditional lasagna recipes out there, this Greek Lasagna with Feta recipe caught our eye here at Tillamook. Using a combo of three cheeses, including our Tillamook Garlic White Cheddar Cheese, this lasagna recipe will excite the whole family! Thanks for the delicious, simple lasagna recipe, Angie!

Not a lasagna person? Tillamook Kitchen has more recipes for you!

Image courtesy of Eating with Angie

By Laura

The best part of this burger (Tillamook Cheese!) is hidden on the inside.

This Father’s Day, impress Dad with cheese-stuffed burgers! While this isn’t a play-by-play recipe, this is what I learned from making a stuffed burger of my own. Best part: I got to do it with the help of a grill master, my Dad!

My Dad - ready to grill!

 What you’ll need (for making about 4 burgers):
- Your favorite hamburger meat (about 2 lbs)
- Cheese to stuff in the burger (about 1 cup shredded cheese or 8 slices)
- All other hamburger makings that you fancy

We used Tillamook Garlic White Cheddar in our stuffed burgers.

What to do:
1. Divide meat into 8 equal patties
2. Put cheese on top of 4 of the patties.
3. Then top the chees-ified patties with the remaining patties
4. Pinch the sides of the patties together so that they form one big stuffed patty. If you are having trouble pinching the thin patties together, wet the edges and press them together to seal the cheese inside!
5. Cook the stuffed patties like you would any other hamburger. I prefer grilling them… Ahem, excuse me, having my Dad grill them for me! (Thanks, Dad!)

Add the cheese between the patties.

Pinch the edges closed!

 Tips:
- This will make a big burger – make sure you’re really hungry!
- Use a cheese with a lot of flavor. I used Tillamook Garlic White Cheddar since it’s potent, but any sharp or extra sharp cheddar will also be perfect stuffed in a burger!
- Don’t mix the cheese in with the meat! That will make the meat less dense and more likely to fall apart.
- I prefer to use shredded cheese because I like the way it melts, but slices work too! I recommend using 2 slices of cheese per stuffed burger.
- Place the cheese in the middle of the burger and don’t spread it to the very edge. This will give you plenty of room to pinch the burger and seal the cheese inside. Sometimes a little cheese sneaks out while cooking – and that’s okay!
- If you’re feeling adventurous, you can put more than just cheese on the inside of your burger. Other fillings to use: chilies, mushrooms, peppers, olives, onions, or even a different kind of meat.
- If you like kitchen tools, there are stuffed burger makers that make stuffing a burger really simple!

What are your favorite ingredients to stuff in a burger?

Cheers! Me with my Dad.

Happy Father's Day to my Dad and all the other Dads out there!

By Laura

Here we are, just a week away from the unofficial start to summer at the Cheese Factory! What better way to start off a new season than with a new name for our popular café. From now on when you dine with us, you’ll be enjoying your cheesy meal at the Creamery Café! All your favorite menu items are still here, as well as our delicious daily specials.

In honor of our new name, and to help celebrate National Cheeseburger Month, we have some awesome burger specials to offer at the Creamery Café starting this Sunday. Here’s the mouth-watering line up:

Sunday, 5/22: Tillapeno Cheeseburger with Hot Habanero Jack. If you like it hot and spicy, this is the burger for you!
Monday, 5/23: Pizza Cheeseburger with Mozzarella and Marinara. When in Rome. . . .
Tuesday, 5/24: Garlic Cheddar Cheeseburger with roasted garlic spread. This one should keep the vampires away.
Wednesday, 5/25: Smoked Black Pepper Cheddar Burger Hoagie. Steak au poive’s baby brother.
Thursday, 5/26: Squeaky Cheeseburger. How do you make a burger squeak? Add some Cheddar Cheese Curds, of course!
Friday, 5/27: Muenster Patty Melt with grilled onions on rye. Creamy, mild Tillamook Muenster tames the tang of grilled onions – no tears here!
Saturday, 5/28: Swiss Mushroom Cheeseburger. Nutty cheese and earthy mushrooms for a hearty weekend lunch.

Join us this week at the Cheese Factory to sample our celebration burgers! Let us know which one is your favorite and it could become a regular feature at the Creamery Café. We look forward to seeing you here!

By Tillamook