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Posts tagged ‘goat cheese’

Aug 22

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Marinated goat cheese, with endless variations

I’m always looking for good ways to make something special out of an everyday ingredient, especially as we enter our grad school budget phase of life, and marinated goat cheese is definitely one of those things. I’m a little obsessed.

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Jun 23

Smoky, spicy watermelon and prosciutto bites with goat cheese and mint

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One of the weirdest things about this crazy year we’ve had is that my concept of seasons and time is completely off. We spent most of what should have been winter in South America and Southeast Asia, where it was plenty sunny and warm, then most of what should have been late spring/early summer in wet, cold, waterlogged Central Europe (aside from our last few blisteringly hot days in Budapest). We’ve been moving so much that we’ve become a little untethered, and I regularly find myself blanking on what day it is, what month it is, and sometimes even what city or country I’m in at the moment (that last one is a little disarming).

But now we’re back in the United States, and back for good, and I’m finally feeling a little more grounded in time and space. Here in Portland it’s definitely summer, despite a bit of rain. The markets are full of berries and tomatoes, there’s plenty of light late into the evenings, and the stores are full of supplies for picnics and camping and outdoor adventures.

So the recipe I’m sharing here is perfect for summer, wherever you are – quick and easy to do with no heat, great for entertaining or bringing to parties or picnics, and light and refreshing for when things are a bit hot and steamy outside. Read more

Mar 16

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Workshop recap: Foodcrafting 101 (more goat’s milk, please)

I’ve been spending quite a bit of time lately attending workshops and classes across the LA area, and despite the driving time I’ve been more than happy to spend my time meeting new colleagues and learning new skills. I spent this past Saturday with my hands deep in yeast, strawberries, mustard seeds, and fresh goat’s milk at the Institute of Domestic Technology‘s Foodcrafting 101 workshop, and it was certainly the best yet.

The workshop was hosted by the beautiful Zane Grey Estate in Altadena, a private residence that also functions as an urban micro-dairy and goat farm. Among those beautiful goats (seriously, they were beautiful) our group enjoyed farmstead meals, more goat milk than we could drink (so incredibly delicious, and very different than the store-bought stuff, which I’ve honestly never liked much), and five hours of in-depth instruction from the Institute’s talented instructors. An hour making bread, another hour jamming and canning, some great time mingling with goats and learning about the operation of the dairy, then two more hours making homemade mustard and fresh chevre (those last two after a delicious farm-style lunch, capped off with a warm chocolate chip cookie and fresh raw goat’s milk).

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Schedule

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Sep 11

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The joy of the challenge

{Note, April 13, 2013: Not sure why this post from three years ago was just republished on RSS feeds, and I’m not sure how to remove it … there are some great recipes here (but some incredibly old/poor quality photos), so you may want to revisit this post, but it’s not a new one! Sorry about that …}

I’d say about 75 percent of the time that I’m cooking, I like to do something just beyond my comfort level. Whether it’s doing a recipe I’ve never done before or changing one I know in a way that makes it slightly different, I generally like to learn a little something new when I’m cooking. But every once in a while – usually on a fairly empty weekend day, or when we have people over for dinner – I like to do something really new and different, or something that scares me a little. That’s part of the reason I put together Food List 2010 – to push me to make the more challenging things I want to have as a part of my arsenal. I figure this strategy will help me learn not only to cook the more everyday items with skill and comfort, but will also lend me the ability to reach out every once in a while and try something a little more ambitious with some reasonably certain rate of success. Read more

Aug 24

Beet-feta bruschetta

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What impresses me most in terms of culinary skill is the ability to make something out of nothing. Or, rather, the ability to make an interesting, tasty dish out of whatever you have lying around. Instead of picking a recipe and tracking down the ingredients, the ability to look around at what you have and put something together. This is something the CSA has forced us to do more than we ever did before – one of the many reasons I appreciate it. Read more