18 Blue Cheese Recipes Even Haters Will Love (2024)

Love it or hate it, blue cheese crumbles add an undeniable punch of flavor to salads, sandwiches, burgers, and pizzas. Incorporating blue cheese into a recipe is a great gateway for learning to appreciate it if you typically stay away. Here are some of our favorite ways to use the wonderfully pungent cheese, from crostini to salad dressing.

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Grilled Summer Squash with Blue Cheese and Pecans

18 Blue Cheese Recipes Even Haters Will Love (1)

For grilled squash with a uniformly crisp texture, chef Vivian Howard cuts her squash lengthwise into quarters and then removes the seedy interior. This gorgeous summer salad is tossed with a bright, lemony dressing.

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Rosemary Flatbread with Blue Cheese, Grapes, and Honey

18 Blue Cheese Recipes Even Haters Will Love (2)

This rosemary flatbread is both fluffy and crusty, and the blue cheese — which goes from crumbly to creamy in the oven — melts in your mouth.

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Creamy Polenta with Three-Cheese Fonduta

18 Blue Cheese Recipes Even Haters Will Love (3)

This creamy polenta with three-cheese fonduta is a luxuriously rich mixture of thick, sweet polenta and three cheeses: whole-milk ricotta, crumbly Gorgonzola, and nutty Parmigiano-Reggiano. Thyme-infused brown butter adds a woodsy, nutty bite to this indulgent side.

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Chicken Quesadillas with Blue Cheese and Caramelized Onions

18 Blue Cheese Recipes Even Haters Will Love (4)

Cookbook author Melissa Clark's tangy twist on chicken quesadillas will leave you wondering how you've never tried this dish with blue cheese.

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Autumn Salad with Figs and Blue Cheese

18 Blue Cheese Recipes Even Haters Will Love (5)

Food blogger Mimi Thorisson's mesclun salad is sweetened with figs, apples, and grapes yet still maintains acidic and spicy flavors from the apple cider vinegar and whole-grain mustard.

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Firecracker Shrimp with Blue Cheese Dressing

18 Blue Cheese Recipes Even Haters Will Love (6)

Leave it to star chef Andrew Zimmern to cook up the ultimate football season (or any season, if you ask us) comfort food: fried shrimp dunked in blue cheese dressing.

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Beet and Blue Cheese Salad

18 Blue Cheese Recipes Even Haters Will Love (7)

Chef Nicolaus Balla's beet and blue cheese salad, made with scallions, herbs, and red wine, is bright and sweet.

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Focaccia with Caramelized Onions, Pear, and Blue Cheese

18 Blue Cheese Recipes Even Haters Will Love (8)

Pear and blue cheese are a classic pairing. This simple focaccia adds sweet caramelized onions and comes together in just four steps.

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Umami Burgers with Port and Stilton

18 Blue Cheese Recipes Even Haters Will Love (9)

Resist the urge to pile any of the usual toppings — lettuce, tomato, ketchup — onto these burgers. "The port is your condiment," explains restaurateur Adam Fleischman.

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Charred Broccoli with Blue Cheese Dressing and Spiced Crispies

18 Blue Cheese Recipes Even Haters Will Love (10)

Chicago chef Stephanie Izard amps up broccoli with a punchy vinaigrette, creamy blue cheese dressing, and an irresistibly crunchy, butter-toasted Rice Krispies topping.

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Three-Cheese Cauliflower Gratin

18 Blue Cheese Recipes Even Haters Will Love (11)

If there’s a better way to eat cauliflower than this gratin, we have yetto come across it. A powerhouse of English cheeses — Montgomery’s crumbly and nutty cheddar; Ogleshield, a washed-rind Jersey cow's milk cheese; and buttery, blue-veined Colston BassettStilton — blankets cauliflower florets in a béchamel.

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Stilton-Stuffed Pickled Peppers

18 Blue Cheese Recipes Even Haters Will Love (12)

Two high-impact ingredients — funky Stilton cheese and pickled sweet or spicy peppers — come together to form the ultimate one-bite snack. Pickled peppers, like spicy pepperoncini and mild Peppadew, are packed with enough flavor to stand up against strong cheeses. You can use most blue cheeses here, including Gorgonzola and Roquefort.

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Double-Cut Rib Eye with Sweet Gorgonzola Butter

18 Blue Cheese Recipes Even Haters Will Love (13)

At her modern chophouse, Jar, in Los Angeles, 2002 F&W Best New Chef Suzanne Tracht's menu changes with the seasons. To celebrate summer, she says, "This juicy, sweet combo of Gorgonzola and beef alongside fresh heirloom tomatoes is how I kick off the outdoor months."

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Restoration Salad with Farro, Orange, and Blue Cheese

18 Blue Cheese Recipes Even Haters Will Love (14)

"In each bite, you get a little nuttiness, a lot of chewiness, some juicy bits, a pleasant amount of bitterness, and some creamy richness," cookbook author Ann Taylor Pittman writes of this salad.

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Caramelized Onion and Bread Soup with Brûléed Blue Cheese

18 Blue Cheese Recipes Even Haters Will Love (15)

In their book Wine Food, sommelier Dana Frank and recipe developer Andrea Slonecker pair funky, bright wines with flavorful, vegetable-forward dishes. In this vegetarian version of classic French onion soup, blue cheese and oloroso sherry bring new layers of flavor and depth. Notes of toasted nuts and fruit compote in the sherry pair well with caramelized onions, and its briny acidity cuts through the richness of the cheese.

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Crostini with Grilled Sweet Onions and Blue Cheese

18 Blue Cheese Recipes Even Haters Will Love (16)

On the river, chef Andrae Bopp wraps whole sweet Walla Walla onions in foil and tosses them into the coals of the campfire to roast and caramelize; here we've adapted his recipe for your home grill. Don't skip the zippy honey-vinegar drizzle — it coaxes out even more flavor from the sweet onions and balances the blue cheese.

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Leftover Blue Cheese Chicken Salad Sandwich

18 Blue Cheese Recipes Even Haters Will Love (17)

Chef Jonathan Waxman’s tasty chicken salad is dressed with a mix of yogurt and Gorgonzola cheese. You needn't wait until you have "leftover" cheese to make it, but the recipe only calls for two ounces.

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Macaroni and Cheese with Bacon and Blue Cheese

18 Blue Cheese Recipes Even Haters Will Love (18)

This isn't your typical macaroni and cheese. Onion, bacon, and beautiful blue cheese bake together with pasta until the dish is golden and bubbling, then it's all topped with snipped chives.

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18 Blue Cheese Recipes Even Haters Will Love (2024)

FAQs

Are blue cheese crumbles bad for you? ›

Blue cheese is a fermented cheese that uses Penicillium roqueforti mold cultures. However, unlike other types of mold, these cultures are nontoxic and safe for human consumption. Blue cheese can help promote bone health, dental health, and heart health.

What meat pairs well with blue cheese? ›

FOR CREAMY BLUES: BEEF

Blue cheese has a natural meatiness that makes sweet love with some actual red meat.

How to eat Cashel Blue cheese? ›

Chutney: Fig chutney and Red onion marmalade are both good options. Quince jelly works well with mature Crozier Blue. A tomato based chutney such as Ballymaloe Relish works a treat with our Cashel Blue Cream Cheese. Honey: A drizzle of acacia honey over a mature piece of blue cheese is surprisingly delicate.

What pairs nicely with blue cheese? ›

To balance some of the bolder blues, caramelised onion jam, or fruit pastes like quince or fig are also a perfect combo. Also try a drizzle of honey, that is a personal favourite. Crunchy fresh bread and an arrangement of nuts is a fantastic way to enjoy blue cheese.

Who should not eat blue cheese? ›

Cheese can be part of a healthy diet, but it's still high in salt and saturated fat, so eat it in moderation. People who are prone to headaches or migraine may want to limit or avoid blue cheese. Aged cheeses, like blue, are a common headache trigger.

Is blue cheese bad for blood pressure? ›

Since blue cheese contains a high amount of sodium, it can increase your blood pressure levels. A high-sodium diet makes controlling blood pressure difficult, and healthy individuals should consume no more than 2,300 milligrammes of sodium per day.

What jam goes well with blue cheese? ›

A mild blue cheese, like Roth's Buttermilk Blue, offers a spicy, flavorful taste that is wonderfully tempered by a sweet blackberry jam.

What crackers go best with blue cheese? ›

Fig & Spelt Sourdough Crackers + Long Clawson Blue Stilton

This creates the perfect texture contrast with the crunch of the cracker. A classic pairing for any traditional cheeseboard.

What nut goes well with blue cheese? ›

Roasted pecans go well with semi-soft and springy cheese like gouda and blue cheese. These nuts have an earthy taste that will not clash with the unique flavors of the cheese. Try honey pecans to build the taste. Walnut halves are a popular addition to cheeseboard condiments.

How do French people eat blue cheese? ›

As we made our way around the cutting board of foreign treats, we finally landed upon a blue cheese called Saint Agur. To our complete amazement, we learned that the French often slather a baguette with cultured butter, then top it with creamy blue cheese. It sweetens and mellows out the funkiness.

Can you eat the rind on cashel blue cheese? ›

The rind, which with time can develop a film of surface mould is untreated and is therefore edible. It is intrinsic to the cheese and contributes to the breaking down of the paste, adding further flavour and complexity. N.B. the rind can taste saltier than the inner paste.

What spices go with blue cheese? ›

Blue Cheese: parsley, sage or garlic stand up against the pungent nature of this strong cheese. Brie: the creamy flavour of brie works best with thyme, chives, basil, and tarragon.

Can I freeze blue cheese? ›

As a general rule, it's best to freeze cheeses that are designed to be used in cooked dishes rather than eaten fresh. Hard and semi-hard cheeses like cheddar, Swiss, brick cheese, and blue cheese can be frozen, but their texture will often become crumbly and mealy.

Does honey go with blue cheese? ›

Blue cheese also pairs beautifully with honey. The subtlety of grocery store honey combined with the soft, mellow flavor of Président Le Bleu will make for a memorable splash of flavor. For honey with a bolder flavor, like eucalyptus honey or chestnut honey, try drizzling it over crumbled blue cheese.

Is blue cheese crumbles a healthy fat? ›

Though blue cheese is higher in saturated fats than healthy fats, it still provides a good serving of unsaturated fats that protect the heart.

When should you not eat blue cheese? ›

If you notice any signs of spoilage on your blue cheese, you should discard it immediately. In particular, fuzzy white, green, pink, or grey spots growing on the surface of blue cheese may indicate that it has gone bad. Additionally, cheese that develops a strong odor similar to ammonia may be spoiled.

Is blue cheese good for your gut health? ›

Researchers have proved it's actually good for you. Along with other aged cheeses, blue cheese is great for your gut health and therefore you're over all well-being. Cheese is one of the foods many dieters ditch in the new year, thinking it's calorific because of the high fat content and will cause weight gain.

Are blue cheese crumbles high in cholesterol? ›

High Cholesterol

Another reason why blue cheese may raise your cholesterol levels is that each ounce contains 21 milligrams of dietary cholesterol, and healthy individuals should not have more than 300 milligrams per day.

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