New Cheese Days recipe book shares the dishes and stories that define a Green County tradition

With Cheese Days often noted as the oldest food festival in the Midwest, board members Kay Argue and Gary Neuenschwander felt that creating a Cheese Days recipe book was a natural fit.

The festival has always been rooted in food — whether it’s food trucks on the Square, parade-day picnics and potlucks, or cherished traditions as family and friends return home for the weekend. That love of food begins in the home, as reflected in a new cookbook, Cheese Days: Recipes for a Homecoming, now available.

The idea for the cookbook began when Argue and Neuenschwander were sorting through the Cheese Days archives. From the very first festival in 1914 to the 2024 celebration, they noticed a common thread: food.

“Clippings from every festival, every event, mentioned the food available,” Neuenschwander said. “Many also described home preparations for visitors, with recipes for what to serve guests, along with what local restaurants were offering.”

“Cheese Days is more than a festival — it’s a homecoming,” Argue said. “It’s a time to reconnect with family and friends, welcome visitors, and celebrate our community. And wherever there is community, there is good food.”

Argue and Neuenschwander turned to those who bring the festival to life — committee chairs, board members, dignitaries, entertainers, longtime volunteers, and Cheese Days fans — and invited them to share recipes. Responses came quickly.

The result is a 100-page cookbook featuring more than 150 recipes that reflect Green County’s deep Swiss roots, as well as the many other cultures that have shaped the area. Many of the recipes are paired with personal stories.

“What truly makes the cookbook special,” Argue said, “are the stories shared alongside the recipes. Many of the recipes hold special meaning, and those memories are part of what we’re preserving. You’ll find breakfast and brunch dishes, potluck favorites traditionally served before Sunday’s parade, and recipes passed down through generations.”

One such story accompanies a recipe from Diana (Elmer) Prien, whose great-grandson, Braun King, was the 2022 Cheese Days Prince. Prien’s dinner rolls were legendary — so much so that her family noticed when they no longer tasted the same. Even as dementia dimmed Diana’s memory, her family said she would have been “over the moon” to see Braun represent the festival. Through this recipe and its story, her legacy lives on.

Just in time for Mother’s Day, Cheese Days is also offering custom-engraved cake pans featuring Ivory, the goat whose image graces the 2026 Cheese Days collector button.

Cookbooks and cake pans are available online at cheesedays.com, at The Artful Gourmet in downtown Monroe, and at the Cheese Days Store when it opens for the season in June.

— Noreen Rueckert is director for Green County Tourism and for Green County Cheese Days. She can be reached at tourism@greencounty.org.