what we make

We have all heard of small batch. Skagit Maid Creamery has a 26-gallon cheese vat, which means we make teeny batch cheeses. Our products are a reflection of the time and place where they are made - from the milk to the ripening and aging (affinage) processes to the inspirations of the cheesemaker. Each item is handmade and hand-wrapped.

All of our products are made from non-GMO guernsey cow milk from MyShan Dairy in Lynden, Washington. MyShan is a small family dairy devoted to its small Guernsey herd of happy, grassfed cows. Guernsey milk has more protein, butterfat, vitamins and calcium than store-bought milk. It has a beautiful golden color due to a higher percentage of beta carotene. It will make you like milk again, if you didn't already. Beautiful milk is necessary to make beautiful cheese, and we are lucky to have a relationship with such a high quality dairy.

Our cheese-making days start with an early morning trek to Lynden to pick up fresh, raw milk from MyShan Dairy. Upon return to Samish Island, the milk immediately goes into the vat for pasteurization and cheese-making.

skagit maid camembert

Beautiful white rind on the outside, gorgeous creamy golden deliciousness on the inside. Our camembert is good both on the young side, with "chalk" in the middle, as well as aged to perfect lovely gooiness. Ours has a nice mellow tang without being overpowering.

Camembert is a soft, mold-ripened French-style cheese. It is wonderful with bread or crackers, fruit, jam, honey, or as part of a decadent grilled cheese sandwich. It is also a necessary part of a romantic picnic.

Camembert is good paired with champagne, dry cider, and lighter red wines with soft fruit.  it is very good with some beers as well. Try a saison or stout with camembert at its ripest or experiment with a pale wheat ale with your next round. Let us know about good pairings you have discovered.

skagit maid ricotta

There is nothing better than fresh ricotta. We make ours with whole guernsey milk, freshly-squeezed lemon juice, sometimes a little vinegar, and salt. That's it. It's a revelation if the only ricotta you've had is store-bought. Creamy, golden and fresh tasting.

We make the ricotta in small batches (well-everything is made in small batches), so it can get out the door and into your mouth when it is as fresh as possible. It is good spread on toast with jam. It is amazing whipped with a little honey and served with fresh strawberries. A current favorite of ours is a savory ricotta pie with herbs and a roast tomato pesto. Ricotta is extremely versatile. Try some - and if you don't eat it all up as is, make up a recipe!

skagit maid fromage blanc

Fromage blanc is a fresh-ripened spreadable cheese--somewhere between cream cheese, sour cream and ricotta. It has a creamy, fresh taste with a bit of tang to it. Incredibly rich tasting, yet it is just milk and culture. It can be used in all the ways you would use ricotta; and serves as a lovely alternative to butter, cream cheese or sour cream. Skagit Maid makes four varieties: plain (nice schmeared on a bagel with lox), herbed (great on a chicken sandwich), truffled (mix in with some scrambled eggs), and honey-lemon (when served with a slice of pear, this tastes like a lemon ganache frosting). Sold in 4-ounce containers. Try 'em all!