Goat Cheese Bruschetta

This has become one of our favorite appetizers.  I can't even begin to describe in words how amazingly, wonderfully delicious this is.  The creamy goat cheese, the perfect balance of balsamic vinegar with the salty capers....perfection.  I've been trying to find reasons to make this.  Maybe we need to host another party....

 

Nah, then I'd have to share!

 

Goat Cheese Bruschetta

 

Ingredients:
1 loaf of French bread cut into 1/2 inch slices

1 lb tomatoes

1 jar capers, drained

2-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp dried basil

1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

2 tbsp olive oil, divided

2 large garlic cloves, halved

4 oz goat cheese, room temperature

1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

1.  Seed and chop the tomatoes.  In a large bowl mix the tomatoes, capers, basil, minced garlic, balsamic vinegar and 1 tbsp olive oil.  Cover and set aside.

2.  Preheat the oven to 425.  Place the sliced bread on a large cookie sheet and drizzle the slices with the remaining olive oil.  Bake until just beginning to toast; approximately 5-8 minutes.
 

3.  Remove the bread and while still warm, rub with a piece of garlic, cut side down.  Spread 1-2 tsp of goat cheese on each slice of bread.  Top with a spoonful of the marinated topping and sprinkle with Parmesan.

   

4.  Place bruschetta back into the oven just until the Parmesan begins to melt; about 5 minutes.  Serve immediately and enjoy!
 

Homemade Nut Butter

I have been making my own nut butters for about six months now.  I'll never go back to buying it at the store!  It is seriously so easy and quick.  All you need is a food processor and 5 minutes.  For real.

 "Peanut. Hazelnut. Cashew nut. Macadamia nut...Pistachio nut. Red pistachio nut. Natural, all natural white pistachio nut."

(name that movie!)

The best part?  You can use any nut that you like.  Your favorite nuts are almonds?  Throw some in a food processor!  One of my favorites is walnut butter.  So creamy, smooth and delicious.  A nice to change to regular ol' peanut butter.  Not that there's anything wrong with peanut butter!

I've experimented with different kinds of peanuts and, surprisingly, the type I've found to work (and taste) the best are roasted, salted, skin on Spanish peanuts.  When I first tried them, I was skeptical because of them having the skin, but they work so well and the outcome is delicious!  Two of my favorite ways to enjoy nut butter is on English Muffins or Whole Grain Sandwich Bread.

Homemade Nut Butter

Walnut and Peanut Butter.  Deeeelicious!

Ingredients:

Nuts

That's it.

Directions:

1.  Place the nuts in a food processor - I usually do about 8 ounces at a time, you don't want a crowded processor.  Turn the processor on and let it run for 2-5 minutes until you have a smooth, buttery consistency.  You may need to stop and scrape down the sides once, but that's it!  How easy is that!?

You can also spice up your butter with anything you like: cinnamon and chocolate are two of my favorite add-ins :)

Hummus

I love hummus.  This recipe is so simple, but so delicious.  You can add in anything you'd like - cumin, roasted red peppers, jalapenos, or my favorite - roasted garlic.  My favorite way to eat hummus is with celery, pita bread or in a wrap with veggies.

Hummus
8 servings

Ingredients:
1/4 cup tahini
2-4 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp Kosher salt*
1-2 garlic cloves
2 tbsp olive oil
1 can no salt garbanzo beans or 1 1/2 cups cooked,dried garbanzo beans
1-2 tbsp water
Paprika

Directions:

1.  Combine tahini and lemon juice in a food processor.  Blend for one minute; scrape down sides and blend for an additional 30 seconds.  Add in the salt, garlic and olive oil and blend for another minute.

 

2.  Scrape down the sides and add in the garbanzo beans.  Process for a minute or so, scrape down sides and continue to process until beans have reached desired consistency.  While machine is running, slowly add in water until desired thickness is reached.  Transfer to a serving bowl and sprinkle with paprika and drizzle with additional olive oil if desired.  Enjoy!

*I've found that I do not need to add salt if I use canned beans.

Whole Wheat Cheddar Crackers

Like most kids, Redmond loves Goldfish crackers.  They're the perfect size for his little hands and great for on-the-go.  But, I don't love all of the unnecessary ingredients in them.  There are about 12 ingredients in Goldfish crackers with some of those ingredients containing more ingredients!  So, I decided to take it upon myself to make some from scratch with just five (yes, 5!) ingredients.  Cheese, flour, salt, butter and water.  You can make the crackers as big or as small as you'd like.  After I cut out my first batch, I rolled out the dough to cut out more.

We got a winner!!!

Whole Wheat Cheddar Crackers
Makes approx 8-9 dozen (depending on the size)

Ingredients:
8 oz sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1 cup whole wheat flour, plus 1-2 tbsp for rolling
4 tbsp unsalted cold butter, cut into cubes
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp cold water

Directions:
1.  In a food processor combine all ingredients except the water.  Pulse until the mixture resembles course sand.  Add in the water and continue to process until a dough ball forms.  Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 20 minutes. 

2.  Preheat oven to 375°.  Lightly sprinkle flour over a hard surface and roll out dough until about 1/4 inch thick.  Cut dough into crackers with a knife or cookie cutters and place on a baking sheet*. 


3.  Bake for about 13-18 minutes, removing from oven as soon as the crackers begin to brown.  Allow to cool and enjoy!


*My crackers were puffy and a little on the chewy side, they still taste good, but if you want a crisper cracker, you may want to prick the the crackers with a toothpick a few times before baking.