Alice Waters’s Baked Goat Cheese Salad
Description
It’s hard to find fault in a warm round of herb-marinated, breadcrumb-encrusted goat cheese. But, if you can believe it, the goat cheese was not the star of this salad. See those greens up there? The tender green leaves and the baby red romaine? I cannot tell you how delicious they are.
Ingreadient :
- ½ pound fresh goat cheese (one 2 by 5-inch log)
- 1 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 3 to 4 sprigs fresh thyme, chopped
- 1 small sprig rosemary, chopped
- ½ sour baguette, preferably a day old (I used panko bread crumbs)
- salad greens, however many you need
- Finely dice a shallot or two. Place in a bowl and cover with the juice of one orange. Add 1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar. Season with a pinch of kosher salt and a pinch of sugar. Let macerate for 15 minutes, if you have the time, or less, if you don’t. Whisk in about 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil. It’s ok if the dressing is not totally emulsified. Just give it a stir when you’re ready to use it and make sure to scoop out some of those delicious shallots over your greens when you’re ready to toss them.
Direction :
- Carefully slice the goat cheese into 8 disks about ½ inch thick. Pour the olive oil over the disks and sprinkle with the chopped herbs. Cover and store in a cool place for several hours or up to a week.
- Preheat the oven to 300°F. Cut the baguette in half lengthwise and dry out in the oven for 20 minutes or so, until dry and lightly colored. Grate into fine crumbs on a box grater or in a food processor. The crumbs can be made in advance and stored until needed. (Note: Using panko makes this process much simpler)
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. (Note: Cookstr says a toaster oven works well.) Remove the cheese disks from the marinade and roll them in the bread crumbs, coating them thoroughly. Place the cheeses on a small baking sheet and bake for about 6 minutes, until the cheese is warm.
- Toss the lettuces lightly with the vinaigrette and arrange on salad plates. With a metal spatula, carefully place 2 disks of the baked cheese on each plate and serve.
