(En Français plus bas)
This is such a simple “recipe”, that I will only need one sentence to tell it to you. So we have a little room here to go over what REAL Camembert is.
In 1790, a law is adopted by the republicans, placing the French catholic church under government control. A few priests refused to follow this law and went rogue. One of these priests, Charles-Jean Bonvoust, hiding from the revolutionaries, sought refuge in a manor house in Normandie called Manoir De Beaumoncel. The farm girl who rescued him was named Marie Harel. To thank her, the priest, who was from the Brie region, gave her his own recipe for Brie cheese. She created her own cheese from that recipe, which took the name of the village where she was from: Camembert. 
The name camembert or its original recipe, were never officially protected by “copyright”. As a result, any cheese that looks a bit like a Camembert can be called so. That is why some people actually dare selling pasteurized ersatz that taste like any other industrial crap.
Thus, when I am talking about Camembert here, I am referring to what is called “Camembert de Normandie” which is, since 1983, what we call an AOC (Appelation d’Origine Controllée). This basically means that the ONLY REAL Camembert is made with whole milk, NEVER pasteurized, produced in Normandie etc.
So here is today’s recipe: put a Camembert de Normandie in the oven for 20 minutes at 350°F
THAT’S IT! A three year old can manage this and the result is AMAZING! Just make sure that your cheese is mature enough. It should be soft all the way through when you buy it. In French we say “bien fait”…
By the way, I am being a big snobby idiot here. This recipe works very well with many different soft cheeses. My advice is always to use non pasteurized cheese though. The difference is huge. Please trust the snobby idiot!!
You can serve roasted Camembert with baguette, toast, nuts, honey on top, grapes etc… NO CRACKERS PLEASE. I beg of you! If you absolutely MUST, try to use unsalted, unflavored crackers…
Note: the pictures above are of the actual manor house and village of Camembert in Normandie.
Pour les Français qui savent déjà tout cela, mettez simplement un VRAI camembert bien fait au four pendant 20 minutes à 180°C. Servez avec du pain grillé. Vous pouvez aussi servir avec un peu de miel d’acacia, des noix etc. Idéal pour l’apéro!
MY FRENCH HEAVEN 
Ces photos de Camembert me font saliver lol, en plus c’est exactement ce dont j’ai besoin en ce moment !
On à toujours besoin de la douceur d’un ptit Camembert bien fait 😉 🙂
I LOVE Camembert, It is simply my FAVORITE cheese and I have a lot of good ones where I hang my palate. Hopefully, I can start the oven and recreate this quite difficult recipe. 🙂 Merci mon ami!
I put a lot of faith in this snobby idiot! 🙂 Beautiful technique and photos, as always, Stephane!
Looks phenomenal!
What a fabulous post! Love your delicious pics and the interesting story behind Camembert. I never realised how easy it is to roast it. Thanks for the recipe. 🙂
Why on earth had I ever not thought of roasting Camembert before? What I was missing out on, mon dieu!
Try and let me know how you liked it Sofia! It will make your soul sing. Perfect soul food 😉
I’m dying here!! Your photos are incredible!! Yes, I’m a convert – Bread with cheese!! Yes, the American said it – BREAD with cheese. There is is big difference, I agree. Maybe, I’ve lived in France too long, but I too can be a bit of a food snob! Lovely post – and thanks for the inspiration and love the story – always nice to have little facts! Happy Sunday!
Thanks dear! YES to proper bread I say! 😉
Oooooo! On my way to bed I had to stop to turn off my computer. I decided to pop over to see what is up and . . . . (drool!) . . . . cheese. Melted cheese. Warm cheese! Yummy. I am going to have cheese filled dreams. Thanks, Dear!
I read your comment just before I went to bed last evening and I actually had a dream about cheese… 😉
Oh fun. Cheese is so yummy!
So, does one eat the outside/white part? There are some parts of cheese that I am very unsure of. 🙂
That Camembert looks so creamy and delicious!
😉
Ah Stephane, thank you for the mini vacation…your photos are lovely!!! You are sooo right about unpasturized cheeses’ the difference is unparalleled!!!! I make our own soft cheeses here on our simple little homestead, although nothing that could compare to your lovely Camembert 🙂 perhaps one day….
Blessings~ Wendy
Let’s hope “one day” becomes “today” soon 😉 🙂
Ah, yes! I believe it will! Thank you for the encouragement 🙂
Love the little back story. This looks delicious, I will try this at my next girls’ wine night 🙂
What a perfect idea! 😉
Please tell me you have also enjoyed baked vacherin? Simply superb, you would love it. Also, gave a little bit of a mention on the blog today http://indiaalexandraworld.wordpress.com/2014/01/16/being-recognised/
I have and it is delicious… and so was your post… Delicious…
One of my favorite lunches. Delicious!
There is nothing better than gooey cheese.
When I was a student in France, one of my professors explained to us how the French choose their camembert in the store. Apparently, the proper thing to do is to poke each cheese gently until you find the softest one. I do this now, in America. I am sure no one finds it strange.
Gorgeous.
Beautiful photos as always, Stephane. You seem to have found much more beauty in the village of Camembert than I did when I was there – I could find nothing to photography except the “Welcome” sign!
And I’m so glad you didn’t actually open that bottle of Chateau Figeac 2001 for the photo!
This bottle was open a long time ago. It has become a favorite prop of mine 😉 🙂
Stephane, I must thank you my friend for such a wonderful post. Back here in India, we dont get good quality camembert. But that has been resolved, thanks to you. Hope you are doing fine otherwise 🙂
😉
I just drooled on my screen…
🙂 😉
And thank you for explaining about the real camembert too 🙂 Every time I look at your pictures I just want to hit the “like” button again and again! 😀
How could you not? So yummy looking 🙂
I can smell that cheese already to Colorado. Yum!
You must have great cheese in Colorado too!…
This looks so tempting…my mouth is watering! I have pinned this, and promised myself I will be eating camembert in Normandy soon 🙂
I hope you do Sam!!
Great, informative post. This is really helpful for me, here in China, because I can’t just ask the guy at Fresh, which ones are good, but need to be able to figure it out myself. But Alas, Carefour has a limited supply, so fingers crossed, for the non-pasturized one. Awesome photos as always.
Isn’t there really good Chinese cheese? With the incredible diversity of your culinary traditions, there has to be great cow cheese somewhere… 🙂
Actually, there isn’t. Chinese don’t make cheese. You can’t even buy it in the stores, only at two or three import stores. The Tibetans do make yak cheese. I like it when it is fresh, first day. But it doesn’t have a lot of flavor. Mostly it is best to dip it in sugar, cause it does have a slightly unfamiliar taste. And they usually will offer sugar to dip it in. The “old” cheese, is really an acquired taste I suppose. I just don’t like it. My husband can eat it, I try to pass. Funny though, when Tibetans come to my house, and I offer western import cheese, they HATE it. I’ve tried several kinds. And they will spit it out and scrape their tongue to get the taste off. Hilarious. But I don’t offer it any more.
Great ooooOOOOooooOOOOoozy photos! The great thing about buying ripe cheese is that it is often discounted. Great if you actually want to eat it within a few days.
That’s great indeed. I don’t like it too ripe though… Can you get good quality cheese in your area?
Yes, we have great cheese here. Not sure how authentic it is but our dairy is top notch.
A true weakness of mine…Enjoyed learning the history and love the photos!
Thanks Shauna!
Both beautiful and delicious! Appreciate the history lesson too. As far as I’m concerned, cheese is a food of the gods.
I completely agree! I wish people ate more real cheese and less pasteurized crap… 🙂
Oh yes.
Absolutely beautiful!
Thanks! I also like this recipe because, strangely, it doesn’t stink of cheese throughout the house when you make it like when one makes raclette or fondue…
Thank goodness for food snobs.
😉
I’m pretty sure I can eat a whole Camembert by myself too! 😀
🙂 😉
It would not only be quicker but easier to swim the Channel than find unpasteurised soft cheese over here. Unless I found a French deli. As I said, quicker to swim!
What a stunning manor house.
Well put on your bathing suit darling!!!
Those pictures are pure food porn!
I know right? Culinary orgasm! 😉 🙂
j’adore le camembert, avec le vin c’est un vrai delice, j’ai nommée ton blog aux awards tu peux le voir sur mon blog http://partagerlavie.wordpress.com/2014/01/12/awards/
Merci beaucoup!!!
De rien, j’ai hâte de lire tes réponses 🙂
Oh, you stinker, Stephane! Now I want Camembert and my “luxury” calories are used up for the day. 🙂
You need to save more luxury calories and indulge. This was absolutely divine Tamara! 😉
yum yum yum!!!
http://www.fashionforlunch.net
As a cheese, and Camembert, lover those photos send my heart racing. I can smell it…I can taste it. Mmmmm!
It is one of my favorites too Dorothy 😉
Trop bon trop bon trop bon !!!
😉 🙂
The photo’s speak volumes, j’adore camembert and served warm with bread and fruit and wine is heaven.
What’s scary is that I could eat a whole Camembert just by myself… 🙂
You are entitled to be a big snob about camembert, Stephane. It looks absolutely lovely.
Thanks Mimi! It’s strange how even the strongest smelling cheese seems milder once roasted… This particular one was perfection! 🙂