There’s nothing like a cheese plate to get everyone in a festive mood, even on the go! Whether you’re camping, road-tripping or spending time at the beach, a cheese plate is always a welcome snack.
Here’s a great recipe for cheesy, homemade crackers that’ll go great with your movable feast – crispy and delicious!
Ingredients
8 oz finely shredded cheese – mix of Toma, Asiago and Parmesan
1 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for kneading
½ cup fine semolina flour (we like Bob’s Red Mill)
1 Tbsp cornstarch or 2 tsp arrowroot starch
½ – ¾ tsp kosher salt, divided
½ tsp garlic granules
¼ tsp pepper
½ cup cold unsalted butter, ½” pieces
4 Tbsp water, divided
1 egg, plus water for egg wash
Sesame seeds for sprinkling
½ cup toasted pinenuts, cooled and chopped
Directions
In a medium sauté pan or iron skillet over low-medium heat, put semolina flour in an even layer and warm until it smells toasty. Swirl/stir as needed for even toasting. Remove from pan and set aside to cool slightly, about 10 minutes.
Process cheese, flour, semolina, corn or arrowroot starch, salt, garlic granules and pepper in a food processor until combined, about 5 seconds. Add butter and process until mixture resembles wet sand, about 20 seconds. With processor running, add 3 Tbsp water through food chute; process until dough forms a ball, 10 to 15 seconds.
Remove dough from food processor and place on lightly floured surface. Flatten slightly and place pine nuts on top. Fold dough over everything and knead slightly to evenly incorporate without overworking.
Shape dough into two even 6-inch logs, about 1 3/4 inches in diameter. Wrap logs individually in plastic wrap; chill for 1 hour – 2 days.
Preheat oven to 350° with oven racks in upper and lower thirds. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a small bowl, beat egg and add 1 Tbsp water and a pinch of salt. Mix thoroughly to create egg wash.
Unwrap logs, slice into 1/8-¼ inch rounds. Place dough rounds ½ inch apart on prepared baking sheets. Using a fork, make a few holes in each one. Brush lightly with egg wash and sprinkle with sesame seeds.
Bake until edges are golden brown, about 13-15 minutes, rotating baking sheets between oven racks and front-to-back halfway through baking time. Cool crackers on baking sheets 5 minutes then transfer to wire rack to cool completely – 15 minutes more.
Stone Fruit Crostini with Whipped Ricotta and Feta
24 servings
Here’s a nice, light combo with a tantalizing twist of sweet and savory that makes the most of summer’s bounty of stone fruits. Choose fruit that’s not too mushy or overripe.
Ciabatta with herbs or olives baked right in adds another dimension to the flavor mix.
Raise a toast to summertime!
Learn more about crostini in our The Union article.
Ingredients
1 loaf rosemary or kalamata ciabatta
3-4 Tbsp olive oil
Salt
8 oz feta cheese, crumbled small
4 oz ricotta cheese
2 pluots
1 large nectarine
12-14 cherries
Juice from ½ lemon
2 Tbsp mint leaves, hand-torn into small pieces
Salt/Pepper to taste
Directions
Preheat oven to 400°. Slice bread into ½ inch thick slices. If using bread larger than a baguette, cut slices in half so the size is good for 1-2 bites. Brush both sides of bread with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
Bake 6-8 minutes until lightly toasted and crisp, flipping once at the 3–4-minute mark. Remove from oven and allow to cool.
Add feta to a food processor and pulse to crumble into very small pieces. Scrape down the bowl and add ricotta. Blend until combined and fluffy. Taste salt level and adjust/re-blend as needed.
Finely dice fruit and place together in a medium bowl. Add a squeeze of lemon juice and gently fold ingredients together. Wait a few minutes for flavors to meld, then taste and adjust lemon juice. Place fruit in a strainer to drain excess liquid before assembling crostini.
Place crostini on serving plate and one by one spread on a layer of whipped cheese. Top with stone fruit mixture and pieces of mint.
Puntarelle is the most interesting-looking member of the chicory family – think escarole, endive, radicchio – but with long pointy leaves encircling hollow, pointed tubes with a bitter but pleasant flavor Italians call amarognolo (ah-mahr-own-YOlo).
The tubes are traditionally sliced thinly and enjoyed raw as a salad with an anchovy-based dressing similar to what you’d put on a Caesar salad. This version was inspired by a recipe from a San Francisco firehouse. If you want to make your puntarelle salad “alla California,” use the optional avocado and lemon for a simple, guac-like base to top with the salad.
No puntarelle? Thinly-sliced endive is a good substitute.
Ingredients
2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
3-4 cloves garlic
1.5 oz jar anchovy filets in oil
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup olive oil
Salt/pepper to taste
1 head puntarelle (about 1 lb)
½ lemon
Optional: 1 avocado, ½ lemon
Directions
Cut bottom off puntarelle and remove large (more bitter) outer leaves to be used for something cooked like a soup or sauté.
Take a small tube and, slicing from the open end towards the pointy top, cut into thin ribbons that are held together by the top. Alternately, julienne tubes into separate strips.
Place puntarelle strips in a bowl with cold water, some ice cubes, and the ½ lemon (squeeze slight to release juice into water). Let rest for an hour, taste for bitterness. If you want less bitterness, change water and continue soaking for another ½ hour. This will also cause the cut tubes/strips to curl.
While puntarelle soaks, make dressing: Add lemon juice, Dijon, vinegar, Worcestershire, garlic, anchovy filets and their oil, Parmesan and olive oil to a blender and blend until creamy. Adjust taste with salt/pepper.
Drain puntarelle and dry in a salad spinner
Optional avocado layer: Mash avocado with juice from ½ lemon and salt/pepper to taste. Thinly spread a dollop of mashed avocado onto serving plates. Top with dressed puntarelle divided into equal portions.
For a vegan version, sub 1 Tbsp chopped capers for anchovies and use a vegan Worcestershire sauce. To maintain texture, stir capers into blended dressing right before adding to puntarelle.
There are many traditions around eating greens for a prosperous new year. Those big leaves represent stacks and stacks of paper money, and they are so good for you. Serve up a big dish of greens slowly braised with olive oil, garlic and a little bacon, and some will say you’ll find your pockets lined with money. Beans such as black-eyed peas or lentils represent gold coins, so be sure to prepare a dish or two of these protein- and fiber-rich legumes.
Here’s a great way to cash in on a wealth of flavor while you savor greens and beans together in a glorious soup.
1 large bunch collard greens, leaves only, thinly sliced
1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions
To a large pot over medium heat, add olive oil and onions. Cook/stir until softened, about 4-5 minutes. Add chopped garlic and cook 1 minute more.
Add smoked turkey, carrots, spices, broth, and black-eyed peas. Increase heat and bring to a quick simmer. Simmer 2 minutes, reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer about 1 hour, until meat becomes tender.
Remove smoked meat from pot. Remove meat from bone and set it aside, chopping into smaller pieces.
Add tomatoes and collard greens to pot. Simmer 20 minutes until greens are tender. Add meat and apple cider vinegar to pot and salt/pepper to taste.
Note: If using canned black-eyed peas, add to pot during the last 10 minutes of cooking.
Whether you’re craving something comforting for a quiet weeknight dinner or an indulgent yet light showstopper you can whip up with just a few simple ingredients, the iconic shrimp scampi is the way to go. Its luxurious butter sauce infused with garlic and a splash of vermouth (we like its depth over the classic white wine), and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice is a velvety symphony of flavors enveloping the plump, juicy shrimp and bed of al dente pasta. A sprinkling of fresh herbs lends a visual, textural and gustatory counterpoint…in other words, all kinds of “YUM.”
Ingredients
2 lb raw shrimp – rinsed, peeled, deveined and patted dry with paper towels – 16/20 size or similar
8 Tbsp unsalted butter
4-6 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup dry white vermouth
¼ cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
¼ tsp lemon zest
1 lb linguine
Salt/Pepper to taste
For serving: lemon wedges and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil
Directions
Cook linguine to al dente, according to package directions. Set aside.
Arrange shrimp on a paper plate or disposable pie pan so they’re evenly spaced and lay flat. Season with salt and pepper.
Add butter to a large sauté pan over medium heat, allowing butter to melt and foam. Once foaming subsides, raise heat to high and invert plate of shrimp over the pan so they all go in at once.
Cook shrimp one minute without moving them. Add garlic and cook one minute more. Flip shrimp over and cook two more minutes. Remove shrimp from pan and set aside.
Return pan to heat and add vermouth and lemon juice to deglaze, allowing liquid to boil slightly and reduce/thicken without breaking. Scrape pan with a wooden spatula or spoon to get any browned bits from the pan. Stir in lemon zest and half the parsley.
Add cooked linguine to the pan and toss to combine. Add shrimp and sprinkle in remaining parsley. Gently toss again, adjust salt/pepper and serve immediately with lemon wedges and a drizzle of olive oil.
Among the many squash varieties, kabocha probably tastes the sweetest. Its flavor and dense, velvety texture are like a sweet potato and a pumpkin combined.
The skin may look deceptively hard, but it’s edible and actually quite enjoyable. Some folks eat it, and some folks don’t, but it’s thin and when you cook the squash right the skin can be a nice part of the kabocha experience.
Ingredients
3–4-pound kabocha squash, seeds removed, cut into 1-inch wedges
2 leeks, white and tender light green part up until where leaves split, cut into ½-inch rounds
2-3 sprigs rosemary
¼ cup olive oil, divided
2 Fresno, Jimmy Nardello, or other mild chiles – thinly sliced
¾ cup red wine vinegar
¼ cup honey
2 Tbsp golden raisins, chopped
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 cup full-fat plain Greek yogurt
2-3 garlic cloves, pressed with a garlic press
3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
½ tsp onion powder
Kosher salt and freshly-ground pepper
Fresh herbs for garnish
Directions
Preheat oven to 400°. Place kabocha and leeks on separate large, rimmed sheet pans. Add rosemary sprigs to the kabocha sheet pan. Drizzle with oil (3 Tbsp); season with salt and pepper. Roast, tossing occasionally, until golden brown and tender, about 30-35 minutes. Remove squash to a large plate and leeks to a small bowl.
Meanwhile, bring chiles, vinegar, honey, raisins, red pepper flakes, and a pinch of salt to a boil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Reduce heat and simmer until syrupy, 8–10 minutes.
Brush half of warm agrodolce over warm squash.
Add yogurt, garlic, lemon juice, onion powder and 1 Tbsp olive oil to a small bowl and stir until fully combined. Add salt to taste.
When ready to serve, warm the remaining agrodolce with a little water to loosen if needed. Spoon yogurt sauce onto plates and swirl outwards to create a nice landing spot for squash and leeks. Divide kabocha into four equal portions and gently lay atop yogurt sauce.
Spoon warm agrodolce over kabocha. Add leeks around the squash, Garnish with fresh herbs as desired and finish with a drizzle of olive oil and a few grinds of fresh pepper.
