Friday, April 08, 2011

Hail? Yes.


Beautiful warm spring day....
Chewing a real good stick, enjoying the sunshine in April.
Wind picks up and the next thing ya know...

Hail! 
Taken thru the screen door. Hail hurts...!

Herbed Baked Goat Cheese Salad
3 ounces Melba toasts , white (about 2 cups)
* 3 large eggs
* 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
* 1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme leaves
* 1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives
* 12 ounces goat cheese , firm
* extra-virgin olive oil
Vinaigrette and Salad
* 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
* 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
* 1 teaspoon minced shallot
* 1/4 teaspoon table salt
* 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
* 1 tablespoon fresh chives
* Ground black pepper
* 14 cups hearty greens (mixed), washed and dried

To make the vinaigrette, combine all ingredients in a jar, seal the lid, and shake vigorously until well combined. If you don't have a jar to use, combine all ingredients (except oil) in a small bowl and whisk together. While continuing to whisk, add the olive oil in a steady, small stream.

For the salad, place the pecans in a food processor and pulse until finely chopped, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl. Add the cheese, chives, and thyme to the food processor and process until smooth, about 30 seconds. Cover and chill until firm, at least an hour or up to a couple of days.

Scoop about 2 tablespoons of the chilled goat cheese mixture out at a time and roll into balls. You should have about a dozen or so. Beat the eggs in a small bowl. One at a time, dip the balls into the egg mixture (allow the excess egg to run off), then roll them in the nuts, pressing gently to adhere. Place the balls about 2 inches apart on a rimmed cookie sheet (a small 1/4 sheet pan works well if your low on freezer space). Grease the bottom of a measuring cup and use this to gently press the balls into disks (about 2-inches wide). Cover entire pan with plastic wrap and freeze until completely firm, at least 2 hours or up to 1 week.

Place oven rack to the upper position in your oven and preheat to 475 degrees F. Remove plastic wrap and spray the disks lightly with nonstick spray (or brush with a little oil or butter). Bake until the nuts are golden brown and the cheese is warmed through, about 7-10 minutes. Let them cool for a few minutes. Toss the greens with the prepared vinaigrette and serve the warm cheese rounds over the dressed salad.

Serves 6.

1 comment:

  1. Anonymous9:08 PM

    hate cooking and anything weird that sounds like 'goat cheese' but that looks good :) and your dog is SO grand looking....

    ReplyDelete

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