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Agela Abdullah is a “reformed” cook and chef who took her first job behind the cheese counter in 2008. She currently handles marketing for an Illinois cheesemaker and serves as a board member for the Cheese Culture Coalition. She lives in Chicago with two cats, two sourdough starters, and an old laptop named Harbison.
Cheese for the Culture: When Being Strong Isn’t Enough
Illustrated by Iris Busjahn I don’t want to leave my hotel room today. It’s the last day of the American Cheese Society (ACS) conference, and I’m full of emotions. Bubbling up to the surface is disappointment and rage. I should be celebrating and filled with joy! Last night, the Cheese Culture Coalition (CCC) had its […]
Exploring Culture: Challenging Eurocentrism in the Cheese Industry
In culinary school I learned knife skills; I learned the mother sauces and the sauces they spawned. Everything I learned was rooted in classic French style. Everything I was taught had a focus on European standards. But I wanted to cook like my Big Ma—Southern comfort food—biscuits, greens, and grits. I wanted to cook with […]
How Does the Cheese Industry Join In Community With Marginalized Peoples?
Agela Abdullah the president of the non-profit Cheese Culture Coalition reflects on her experience finding an inclusive cheese community.
Cheese for the Culture: On Cooking Through Grief
Cheese educator Agela Abdullah reflects on using gluten to cook through grief.
Summer Cheese Plate: Spicy and Sweet
Mary Tuthill of Vermont’s Mad River Taste Place shares her favorite summer cheese pairings.
Who Gets To Be A Cheese Educator?
To make the cheese industry more equitable requires doing work that makes you feel uncomfortable, consistency, and a commitment to change.
Reflections on a Year: Celebrating the Joys
I’m sitting in the living room of my new apartment, surrounded by the compartmentalization of my life in box form. My kitties are playing tag and are screaming what I imagine translates to “PARKOUR!” I’m listening to the debut album by the Bird and the Bee, and it is during this scene of joy and […]
Entertaining Hobbit Style
While I currently call Chicago home, I spent formative adult years living in Vermont. I miss it. I miss the greenness. I miss the smell of the woods after the rain. I miss the impossibly fluffy snow on trees. I miss all the bucolic beauty, but most of all, I miss my brother. He’s the […]
The Collective Culture of Grief
I’m struggling to write this column. Just a week ago there was a mass shooting in Buffalo, and ten people were murdered because they dared to shop at a grocery store while Black. By the time this piece hits your mailbox the news cycle will have moved on, and many of you will have as […]
Shopping with Intention and More in Portland, OR
Agela Abdullah shares the businesses she’ll be supporting during the 2022 ACS Conference.
