Bakedapplesstuffedwithgoatcheeseandleeks Recipes

BACON AND GOAT CHEESE STUFFED MUSHROOMS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• If your mushrooms caps are very rounded, trim a very thin slice from the top of the caps to help them sit upright for baking. Toss the mushroom caps with the olive oil and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a large bowl.
• Heat the butter over medium-high heat. Add the chopped mushroom stems, celery and shallots and cook, stirring occasionally, until just soft, 6 to 8 minutes. Scrape into a large bowl, season with 3/4 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper and set aside to cool.
• Add the bacon, goat cheese and chives to the cooled mushroom stem mixture. Stir in the breadcrumbs until well moistened.
• Pack each mushroom with an equal amount of filling and transfer the filled mushrooms to a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until the mushrooms are tender and the filling is brown and crispy on top, about 15 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes before removing from the baking sheet.

CHEESY LEEK AND POTATO BAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 220°C.
• Boil potatoes. Cut leeks into 1 cm slices. Melt 1/2 of the butter in a pan and cook leeks for about 10 minutes.
• Drain and mash potatoes with the other 1/2 of butter, the egg and 3/4 of the cheese.
• Season to taste, stir in the leeks and turn into a large ovenproof dish.
• Top with remaining cheese and bake for about 10 minutes, until golden. Will take longer if you have prepared the dish in advance.

BAKED APPLES STUFFED WITH GOAT CHEESE AND LEEKS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400°F.
• Place 1 tablespoon butter and leeks in heavy pan; cook, shaking pan and stirring, until leeks begin to turn transparent.
• Add 1 tablespoon water, stir and cover pan.
• Continue cooking until leeks are tender, 10 minutes, adding more water if necessary to prevent leeks from sticking.
• When leeks are cooked, transfer them to bowl and blend inches Add goat cheese and cream.
• Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Gently stuff each apple with an equal amount of the goat-cheese-and-leek mixture, pressing it into cavity and mounding on top.
• Core the apples and remove strip of peel from circumference of each apple (lemon juice will keeping them from oxidizing and discoloring); place apples in baking dish.
• Pour wine around apples, put bay leaf in wine and lightly salt interior of each apple.
• Top each apple with 1/4 of the remaining tablespoon of butter.
• Bake apples in center of oven until tender and cheese is dark golden on top, 35 to 45 minutes.
• Transfer to plates, garnish with parsley and serve immediately as appetizer or side dish.

BAKED GOAT CHEESE PASTA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425°F. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
• Add the tomatoes, garlic, shallot, oregano and red pepper flakes to a 9 x 13 baking dish. Add 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Toss to combine. Nestle the goat cheese in the dish among the other ingredients and drizzle with the last tablespoon of olive oil. Bake until the tomatoes have blistered and the goat cheese has melted slightly, 22 to 25 minutes.
• While the tomatoes and goat cheese bake, cook the pasta according to the package instructions. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup of pasta water, and set aside.
• Remove the tomatoes and goat cheese from the oven. Add the pesto and begin tossing everything together, breaking up the goat cheese as you go and adding a little pasta water, until you have a creamy consistency. Add the cooked pasta and toss to coat. Serve hot garnished with the fresh basil.

LEEK & GOAT'S CHEESE TRAYBAKE TART

Steps:

• Heat oven to 200/180C fan/gas 6. Line a non-stick tin (24cm x 20cm x 3cm deep) with baking parchment. Unravel the pastry and use it to line the tin. It should fit almost perfectly except for a slight overhang at the ends. If there are any cracks in the pastry, gently press them together with your fingers, then prick the base. Line with more baking parchment, fill with baking beans and bake for 15 mins. Remove the paper and beans and bake 5 mins more to dry the base.
• Meanwhile, in a large non-stick frying pan, fry the leeks in the butter with most of the thyme until soft - about 8 mins. Tip into a bowl and pour in the milk, then add the nutmeg, some seasoning and the eggs. Beat until well mixed, then stir in the chopped goat's cheese.
• When the pastry case comes out of the oven, tip in the leek mixture, arrange the sliced cheese on top and scatter over the hazelnuts and the remaining thyme. Return to the oven for 25-30 mins until the filling is set. Trim away the excess pastry at the ends if you like and serve warm or at room temperature with a tomato salad.