CHEESE

No need to overload the cheeseboard. While one soft, one hard, one blue and one creamy is the usual mantra, bear in mind that hard cheeses keep much better than soft, so limit the soft and creamy purchases. Even a cheapo supermarket camembert tastes great if it is really ripe, so make sure you buy far enough ahead – it’ll probably be at its peak in the last week before the sell-by date. Store it in a plastic box with a clean, damp J-cloth alongside (camembert loves humidity) in a cool place out of the fridge, but away from central heating (10-13C is ideal) until it’s properly molten in the middle.

Inexpensive blocks of Lancashire or Cheshire can be given a boost by storing them with herbs: fresh thyme or leaves from a head of celery work well. Put the cheese on a layer of foil, greaseproof paper, beeswax wrap or clingfilm, and scatter liberally with the herbs. Wrap tightly and store in the fridge for one to two weeks.