We travel to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, for at least 3-4 long weekends during the summer. My daughter Feises (Irish Dance Competitions) during those weekends. One thing we do every trip is stop at Kopp’s for Frozen Custard, it is super yummy, and shop at Brennan’s which is right next door (oh, so handy) for cheese.

On our last trip I really wanted some cheese curd and Farmer cheese. We could not find the Farmer cheese in plain only in flavors. We finally chose a basil Farmer cheese. I love that the packages are vacuum packed so we can keep them in the cooler until we get home without fear of them getting water-logged by melting ice.

Once we opened the package of Farmer cheese we knew we had made a good choice. The smell of basil was sweet and strong. Each of us took a thin slice to try and were quickly asking for more! If you love basil it is delicious!

I created this dish after seeing a recipe for bacon wrapped brats on Pinterest. I thought that adding the basil Farmer cheese would add another whole level of flavor to the dish.

Step 1

Step 2

Verdict:

I made 10 brats. We each ate two and had two leftover for lunch the next day. They were a hit. I served them with a side of brown beans and a green side salad.

These were gluten-free so my mostly gluten-free son could eat the same meal every one else was eating.

Ingredients:

• 2 lb. brats, about 10 links
• 1/2 lb. basil Farmer cheese (or your other favorite cheese)
• 10 slices of raw bacon
• 30 toothpicks

Directions:

1. Slice each brat open with a sharp knife vertically so that they are not completely cut through but you can spread open the sausage.  See Step 1 picture above.
2. Thinly slice the cheese and place several slices in the brat pressing down slightly. Do not let any of the cheese hang over the edges or sides of the brats. Slightly squeeze the sausage back together to seal in the cheese.
3. Secure on slice of bacon to the brat with a toothpick. Wrap the sausage twisting it around the sausage link as you go securing the opposite end with a toothpick. Also, add a toothpick in the middle to avoid the bacon slipping during cooking. See Step 2 picture above.
4. Cook brats on grill over medium-high heat until cooked completely through and bacon is starting to crisp a bit.
5. Remove brats from grill and serve.