Last Minute Dinner Guests and No Appetizer?
Well, if you have a log or two of goat cheese, herbs, olive oil, and some crackers, you can throw this together and look like you planned it all along.
My cousin had a party not too long ago, and her sister-in-law served something similar to this (and that, my non-southern friends is how recipes travel down here: my sister said she had such and such at a party and got the recipe from so and so, who got it from her aunt and so on…).
It was so pretty, I resolved to assemble it (it seems unfair to call this cooking) the next time we had people over. And so I did.
Besides how easy it is to do, the other great thing about this appetizer is that it can be assembled beforehand (and I think it tastes better after the herby flavor has had time to soak in). Just pull it out of the fridge up to an hour before you expect guests so it can soften, and you’re set. It’s the perfect thing to have with wine while you’re finishing up dinner.
What you need:
A long, thin, dish with a lip at the edges
Goat cheese (I used 2 4-ounce logs)
Good olive oil
Kosher or sea salt
Cracked black pepper
An assortment of herbs (I used lemon basil, rosemary, and Cuban oregano)
Crackers (We love the rosemary-olive oil Triscuits)
Up to a day before you want to serve it: Form the goat cheese into a long, thin log shape, and puncture the top with a fork several times. Drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt, black pepper, and minced herbs. Cover and refrigerate.
An hour before serving: Uncover and lay sprigs of fresh herbs all around the cheese. Drizzle the whole plate with more olive oil, salt, pepper, and finish by sprinkling with more minced herbs.
We are not wine connoisseurs, but if you’re looking for an inexpensive and mellow red wine, Foxy compliments the herbed goat cheese quite nicely.
July 15th, 2006 at 10:27 am
Call it cooking or not, it tastes great!! Certainly fits in with my schedule.
July 16th, 2006 at 1:42 pm
You are most definitely cool under pressure to throw that together! Well done!
July 17th, 2006 at 6:26 am
My mother-in-law makes this frequently. I absolutely adore it!
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