Little Bites of Herby Goodness

Dale and I celebrated Mother's Day at his mom's house a few weeks back. For an appetizer, his step-dad made crostini topped with a ricotta spread and a dollop of a ricotta-pea mixture. It was so good! When my sister and I were in Portland a few days later to celebrate with our parents, I wanted to do a similar appetizer. I found a recipe in my "Giada's Family Dinners" cookbook for Herb-Coated Goat Cheese. This sounded like the perfect spring-time treat. Oh, and I forgot to mention, I adore goat cheese! Two summers ago my mom and I would frequently go to the farmers market on the PSU campus. I loved the downtown atmosphere and the food vendors were great! One in particular sold the most scrumptious goat cheese! My mom would give in every once in a while and we would enjoy goat cheese on crackers as an appetizer before dinner. Mmmm... So yes, the goat cheese won me over on this recipe.

Make sure you use fresh herbs for this recipe. You will definitely taste the difference. The cheese balls can be made one day ahead of time and stored in the fridge. To serve, just place a cheese ball on a crostini and spread it with a knife. The goat cheese has such a warm, creamy flavor that goes great with the freshness of the herbs. This is a perfect recipe if you have company over for dinner. It would pair really well with a white wine.


Herb-Coated Goat Cheese
Makes around 35
Giada de Laurentiis

35 (1/2-inch thick) slices of baguette
3 Tbsp. olive oil
3 Tbsp. finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 1/2 tsp. finely chopped fresh thyme leaves
2 tsp. finely chopped fresh rosemary
1 tsp. chopped lemon zest
1 tsp. coarsely cracked black pepper
1/4 tsp. salt
1 (11-oz.) log soft fresh goat cheese
1 1/2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
Fresh herb sprigs, for garnish

Preheat the oven to 375-degrees F. Arrange the bread slices on two heavy large baking sheets. Brush the bread slices with olive oil and bake until the crostini are pale golden and crisp, about 15 minutes (don't cook for much longer or they'll be super crunchy).

Meanwhile, stir the herbs, lemon zest, pepper, and salt together in a medium bowl to blend. Form the goat cheese into 1-inch-diameter balls, using about 2 teaspoons of cheese for each. Roll the cheese balls in the herb mixture to coat completely. Arrange the cheese balls on a platter. Drizzle the extra-virgin olive oil over and around the cheese balls. Serve with the crostini.

Note: Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Store crostini in an airtight container at room temp. Cover and refrigerate the cheese balls.

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