Spiced Tomato Cooler With Herb Salad And Goat Cheese Toasts Recipes

SPICED TOMATO COOLER WITH HERB SALAD AND GOAT-CHEESE TOASTS

Steps:

• In a small sauté pan over medium heat, toast the pumpkin seeds or pepitas with a little salt to just heat through and color a bit. Set aside for the salad.
• In the same pan, heat the oil with the garlic clove and the cumin, paprika and cayenne, stirring until it smells spicy. Take care not to burn. Set aside.
• Pass the tomatoes through the medium plate of a food mill set over a nonreactive bowl. (If you don't have a food mill, use a cheese grater.) Add 1/4 cup cold water.
• Scrape the spices and oil into the tomato purée, discarding the garlic. Stir in the salt, pepper, lemon juice, Angostura bitters, Worcestershire sauce and cilantro sprigs. Taste for seasoning, cover and refrigerate.
• Assemble the salad: Put the sautéed pumpkin seeds, celery, watercress and arugula, scallion, cucumber and cilantro into a bowl. Dress with the oil and vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Toss lightly.
• Divide the salad among 4 plates, with 2 toasts on each. Gently spoon a teaspoon or so of goat cheese onto each toast. Divide the tomato juice (discarding the cilantro stems) among 4 tumblers. Add a sliver of lemon, a couple of ice cubes, a grind of black pepper and a sprig of cilantro over each and serve.

SPICY TOMATO COOLER

Steps:

• Stir tomato-vegetable juice cocktail, beef broth, steak sauce, lime juice, hot pepper sauce, horseradish, and celery salt together in a pitcher.
• Fill 2 cocktail glasses with crushed ice. Pour cooler over ice; garnish with celery stalks and lime slices.

CHERRY TOMATO CAESAR SALAD

Steps:

• In a small bowl, whisk together garlic, salt, lemon juice and Worcestershire. Whisk in olive oil.
• Spread lettuce on a platter and drizzle with dressing. Scatter tomatoes and anchovies over lettuce and drizzle with more dressing. Using a vegetable peeler or coarse grater, grate or shave cheese over the salad. Drizzle dressing over the plate and finish with pepper.

HERBED GOAT-CHEESE TOASTS

Steps:

• Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 350°F.
• Divide baguette slices between 2 shallow baking pans. Lightly brush tops of slices with oil, then lightly season with salt and pepper. Bake, switching position of pans halfway through baking, until toasts are crisp but not hard, about 10 minutes.
• Stir together goat cheese, herbs, shallot, and pepper. Season with salt.
• Beat cream with a whisk until it just holds soft peaks, then fold into cheese mixture. Serve with toasts.

TOMATO STEAK WITH BAKED GOAT CHEESE AND HERB SALAD

Steps:

• In a small, shallow bowl, mix the bread crumbs with salt and pepper, to taste. In another small, shallow bowl, beat the egg just until blended. Dip each goat cheese round in the egg, and then in bread crumbs, patting the crumbs in place. Cover and refrigerate the coated cheese rounds for about 15 minutes.
• Center the tomato slices on 4 salad plates and season with salt and pepper.
• Heat a large nonstick skillet over moderately high heat and pour in 2 tablespoons olive oil. When the oil is almost smoking, add the cheese rounds. Cook until lightly browned, about 45 seconds. Turn them over and cook on the other side until the cheese just feels quivery, about 45 seconds longer, depending on the thickness of the rounds. Place a cheese round on each tomato slice.
• In a bowl, toss the herbs with a light drizzle of olive oil, a splash of red wine vinegar, and salt and pepper, to taste. Mound the herbs on top of the cheese, dividing them evenly. Serve immediately.
• Michael's Notes: This salad looks best when the tomato slice and the goat cheese slice are about the same size. So if you can only find goat cheese in small logs, you may want to serve 2 goat cheese rounds to each diner and perch them on slices of smaller tomatoes.
• Be sure you take all the stems off the herbs carefully so your guests can enjoy just the soft leaves.

HERBED GOAT CHEESE AND ROASTED PEPPER TOASTS

Steps:

• Roast the pepper: Place the bell pepper directly over the open flame of a gas burner, under the broiler or on a hot, glowing charcoal grill. Let the skin of the pepper blacken and blister, using tongs to turn the pepper frequently. When completely blackened, after 5 to 8 minutes, transfer to a plate to cool.
• Using a paring knife, cut pepper in half lengthwise. Cut away seeds and stem and discard. Scrape away the skin and discard. Do not rinse. It's OK if a few bits of charred skin remain.
• Cut pepper halves into long strips about 1-inch wide. Season lightly with salt. (The pepper can be prepared up to 24 hours ahead of serving.)
• Marinate the goat cheese: Slice the goat cheese log into 10 pieces (each about 3/4-inch thick). Place pieces in a single layer on a plate and pour 1/4 cup oil over.
• Strip leaves from a few thyme sprigs and a rosemary sprig, roughly chop and sprinkle over the cheese. Finish with a bit of freshly ground black pepper, and a small pinch of red-pepper flakes. Cover and set aside. (This can also be done up to 24 hours ahead.)
• Set oven to 350 degrees. Cut the baguette on a diagonal into 10 slices, each about 1/4-inch thick. (If using ciabatta, cut into similar-size pieces.) Arrange on a baking sheet in a single layer, then place in oven for about 5 minutes, until bread is barely toasted.
• Remove from oven and carefully give each toast a light swipe with the garlic clove. Lay a strip of roasted pepper across each toast to cover. Place a goat cheese round in the center of each toast. Spoon the remaining olive oil from the plate generously over each piece of cheese and any exposed toast.
• To finish, return to the oven and bake, uncovered, until the bread is nicely browned and the cheese has gotten a bit of color, 8 to 10 minutes. Let toasts cool a bit, then arrange on a platter and serve. (They taste best at room temperature or just barely warm.) Toasts can be baked up to 1 hour ahead and popped in the oven to reheat slightly.

HERBED WARM GOAT CHEESE SALAD

Steps:

• Cheese:.
• Combine garlic, thyme, pepper, salt, and oil in a bowl.
• Whisk to incorporate ingredients.
• Place the cheese slices into the mixture making sure to coat all sides.
• Cover and refrigerate overnight.
• Dressing:.
• Using a whisk mix all ingredients except olive oil in a bowl. After all are well mixed use whisk and slowly add oil to emulsify. Refrigerate till ready to serve.
• Before serving place a cookie sheet in oven and preheat to 350°.
• Spread bread crumbs onto plate and roll the cheese in them. Make sure to press the crumbs into the cheese.
• Transfer the cheese onto the hot pan and cook for 8 minutes.
• Toss the greens and all desired add ins together w/ desired amount of dressing and top each salad with cheese.
• Serve while cheese is warm.
• Prep time does not include chilling time.

INCREDIBLE FRENCH ENDIVE SALAD WITH AGED HERB GOAT CHEESE TOASTS

Steps:

• Heat a grill pan to medium high. Turn on the broiler and place a rack at least 10 inches from the heat.
• In a blender, combine the garlic, lemon juice, a little salt, and the parsley. Turn the blender on the "puree" setting. Stream the EVOO into the blender and puree the dressing until smooth and emulsified.
• Trim the endives of tough ends and peel away any dry or badly scarred outer leaves. Place the endives in a shallow dish and pour the dressing over them. Turn them in the dressing to coat them evenly. Place on the hot grill pan and gently cook the endives for 6 to 7 minutes, until tender, turning frequently.
• Lightly toast the bread under the broiler on each side and remove. Cut the bread corner to corner to make 16 triangles. Trim the ends off the logs of cheese and cut each log into 8 disks. (Cut across the middle of each log, then keep halving the sections until you have 16 equal disks from the 2 logs.) Scatter the Herbes de Provence onto the cutting board. Gently turn each disk of cheese in the dried herbs and situate a disk on each toast. Return the toasts to the oven and broil for 2 to 3 minutes to warm the cheese through and darken the toast to a light, even golden brown.
• Remove the endives 3 at a time to a plate. Carefully halve them lengthwise with a small sharp knife and fan the halved grilled endives across the plate. Add 4 triangles of toast with warm goat cheese to the same plate and serve. Repeat with the remaining portions.

TOMATO SALAD WITH GOAT CHEESE

Steps:

• Cover each plate with a layer of mesclun or mixed greens. Place sliced tomatoes on top. Salt generously.
• Mix the dressing ingredients into an emulsion.
• Crumble the goat cheese onto the tomato slices.
• Season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Pour dressing on top lightly and add the chopped parsley or basil.

HEIRLOOM TOMATO SALAD WITH CRUMBLED GOAT CHEESE

Steps:

• Whisk mayonnaise, buttermilk, green onions, lemon juice, garlic, and salt for dressing together in a small bowl. Chill in the refrigerator until ready to use if not serving immediately.
• Combine tomatoes, onion, lemon juice, salt, and pepper for salad in a bowl.
• Divide mixture between plates. Drizzle with dressing and top with crumbled goat cheese.

COLD TOMATO & CHEESE SALAD

Steps:

• Combine ingredients in a large bowl.
• Refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.