Braided Caciocavera

oil on wood, 10x8"

Braided Caciocavera, original artwork by Mike Geno

From the Cheese Portraits series.

This smoked, stretched and braided mozzarella is made by Lovera's in Oklahoma. Instead of forming the traditional gourd-like shaped Caciocavera, the curd is stretched into ribbons and then braided. They explain that each is "slow-smoked with hickory wood. Each cheese is braided by hand, brine salted and air dried to perfection. The braids are then carefully smoked with smoldering logs of locally harvested Mockernut Hickery. Also the Jersey cow milk used in making Lovera's cheese is hormone and pesticide free from family-owned single-source dairies."

It was an especially fun challenge painting this a-typical shaped cheese with it's complexities. The braided cheese was folded once and sealed in plastic when I received it, and when I first started the painting, it wasnt very flexible, so I left it in that position. By the time I'd finished this painting, it was easy to maneuver and delicious. I am a sucker for smoked cheeses of all kinds!

Origin: USA, Oklahoma

Availability: sold