My feeling towards most savory foods is that, if it doesn’t have cheese, it ain’t good. Of course, this isn’t always true. But you would be hard-pressed to find something that isn’t better with a little bit of cheesy goodness.

In fact, the more cheese, the merrier. I always order extra cheese on my pizza, and yet it never seems to be enough. And my favorite meal ever is my Eggplant Parmigiana because it is loaded, stuffed, and oozing with mounds of endless melty cheese. It’s like a dream come true.

Naturally, for any cheese lover, fried cheese is the bomb. There is perhaps no greater way to experience cheese then breaded in a crispy suit of golden armor and fried until it reaches molten perfection. The standard fried cheese is mozzarella, chosen for its impeccable stringiness and mild flavor. But why not kick things up a notch with some hot and spicy pepper jack?

These Baked Pepper Jack Sticks were born from two things: my love for cheese and my need to use up a block of zesty pepper jack just waiting to come out of the fridge and party. But instead of frying it, I opted for oven-baking which provided the same golden brown crust and gooey interior as frying does, but without all the fatty oil and hassle.  Some of the sticks do bust open while baking, but that’s all part of the fun. In fact I most enjoyed the ones with cheese streaming out the edges; they were extra delicious. Continue reading →