Fiery Feta Dip

Fiery Feta Dip.

This 4 Ingredient Fiery Feta Dip (Tirokafteri Inspired) is both savory and spicy and is sure to have you coming back for more.

One of my favorite weeknight restaurants when I lived in California was a cozy Greek-style spot called Opa!. They served a feta and pepper dip with a perfect spicy kick — creamy, tangy, and just a little fiery.

After moving back to Denmark, I decided to make my own version. This is what I came up with — simple, bold, and ready in minutes.

Enjoy it as a steak sauce, or serve it with warm pita bread, crisp vegetables, or even grilled chicken.

Ingredients:

• 16.5oz jar roasted red peppers

• 1 clove of garlic

• 5oz/150g crumbled feta cheese

• 1 serrano or jalapeño pepper — use your preferred pepper to adjust the spiciness.
  

Directions:

Drain your roasted red peppers and place them in a food processor or blender.

Add the garlic and chili pepper, then blend until smooth.

Add the feta cheese and pulse a few times until well mixed. For a chunkier texture, stir the feta in by hand after blending the other ingredients.

Chill for 30 minutes before serving to let the flavors meld.

Enjoy!

Salade de Chevre Chaud

Salade de Chevre Chaud

Goat cheese may be an acquired taste, but I’ve grown to really enjoy it. Heating it mellows the sharpness and brings out a creamier, more balanced flavor. Warm goat cheese paired with fresh salad, crispy bread, and sweet-and-tangy nuts creates a perfectly balanced combination of textures and flavors.

Salade de Chèvre Chaud or Green salad with warm goat cheese is a great appetizer or main course depending on serving size.

Serves 2.

Ingredients:

• 2 slices goat cheese

• 2 slices sourdough bread or similar

• balsamic glazed walnuts and cranberries

• romaine salad or mixed greens

• black berries (optional)

Dressing:

• 75 ml grapes seed oil

• 5 teaspoons dijon mustard

• 2 tablespoons applecider vinegar

• 1 tablespoon honey

• salt

• freshly ground pepper

Direction:

Preheat the oven to 400℉ (200℃).

Dressing:

Whisk together mustard, vinegar, honey, and a pinch of salt in a tall narrow container. Slowly add the oil, while whisking. I used my immersion blender, and my dressing became light and fluffy.

Slice, and toast the bread slightly in a toaster. The goat cheese I bought was pretty large, so I sliced it in two. If you use a smaller goat cheese roll, it will work great too. Place the cheese on top of the bread and toast it in the oven until the cheese is slightly melted and golden around the edges.

To serve, arrange the salad on a plate and drizzle some of the dressing over it. Place the toasted bread with the warm cheese on top, then finish with a spoonful of the glazed walnuts and cranberries. End to add a few fresh blackberries.

Enjoy!

Mrs. Child's Cheese Crackers

Southern Cheese Crackers

It’s no secret I LOVE cheese. So when a friend of mine told me about these cheese cracker, it was a no-brainer, I had to make them. The most surprising was, that it took me almost a month to do so.
These crackers a very addictive, and pair well with a cold beer or a nice glass of wine. If you’re not into the spiciness, then drop the cayenne.

Recipe by Robyn Stone.

Makes 40-60 crackers.

Ingredients:

• 200 g (2 cups) freshly shredded sharp cheddar cheese

• 112 g (1 stick) salted butter, softened

• 1 teaspoon salt

• ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper

• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

• ⅛ teaspoon garlic powder

• 60 g (½ cup) pecans, finely chopped

• 145 g (1½ cups) all-purpose flour

Directions:

Cream the butter with the grated cheese for about 3 minutes. Mix in the salt, cayenne, black pepper, and garlic powder. Add the flour a little at a time, stirring after each addition until the ingredients are well combined and a dough forms. If the dough seems a little dry, ad 1 or 2 tablespoons of water.

Shape the dough into two 1-inch (2½ cm) diameter logs. Wrap in parchment or plastic wrap. Twist the ends and refrigerate 30 minutes or overnight.

Preheat oven to 375℉ (190℃). Line 2-3 baking sheets with parchment paper.

Cut the logs into ⅛-inch (⅓ cm) thick slices and place ¼-inch (1 cm) apart on the prepared sheet.

Bake until light golden brown, about 12-15 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely. The crackers will keep in an airtight container for up to 1 week. This is theoretical because they evaporate faster in my house.

I can recommend making some extra dough, and freeze it, for an easy snack for when you have guests.

Enjoy!

Lemon Lavender Cheesecake

Lemon Lavender Cheesecake

For the longest time I have been wanting to include lavender in a cake, and this is my first take. Well, I made exactly the same cake for 4th of July last year. But I learned that you can't pour the fairly warm lavender jelly onto a barely set cheesecake part, without getting a clouding of the jelly layer. So no pictures, and no blog post for that try. But the taste was great, so I knew I had to revisit this cake. The lemon and lavender is a really good combination, I think I have to explore this further in the future.

Makes 4 cakes.

Ingredients:

Crust:

• 200 g shortbread cookies
• 4 tablespoons melted butter, salted

Cheese filling:

• 225 g (8oz) cream cheese 
• 100 g sugar
• 6 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste
• zest of 1 lemon
• 200 ml heavy whipping cream, whipped medium soft

Lavender jelly:

• 100 ml water
• 100 g sugar
• 2 teaspoon lavender flowers (dried or fresh)
• purple food coloring, optional
• 2 sheet gelatin (just under 4 g unflavored gelatin)

Directions:

Line serving-size cake rings with cake wrap/collar. 

Crust:

Crush the shortbread cookies, I used a food processor. Mix in the melted butter. In a medium bowl, mix together crumbs and melted butter until combined and crumbs are moistened. Press the mixture into the bottom of the cake ring using either your fingers or the bottom of a small glass to form a crust layer.

Cheese filing:

Whisk  the heavy whipping cream until medium soft peaks, set aside.

In another bowl whisk the cream cheese with the sugar until completely smooth. Add in vanilla paste, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Using a spatula, gently fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture.

Pipe the filling into cake rings and smooth the top. Cover the cakes and place them in the freezer for 30-45 minutes or until completely set, before pouring in the lavender jelly.

Lavender jelly:

Heat water, sugar and lavender in a saucepan, while stirring. When sugar has melted, turn off the heat and let sit to steep for 5-10 minutes. Drain the lavender from the syrup, so you have a clear syrup. Add a tiny amount of food coloring to the syrup. 

To make jelly. Let the gelatin bloom in some cold water for 10 minutes. (If using powder, follow the instructions on the package.) Heat the syrup and melt the gelatin in the syrup.
Pour the jelly on top of the cheesecake . You get the best result by pouring over the back of a spoon to avoid clouding the jelly with the cheesecake. Let the cakes set completely in the refrigerator before serving.

Enjoy!

Sommersalat - Summer Salad with Smoked Cheese

Sommersalat - Summer Salad with Smoked Cheese

This salad is summer. My mom made this fresh and crispy salad when the first radishes were big enough to harvest in our vegetable garden. Summer salad is made with a speciality cheese from the island of Funen, a smoked fresh cheese. Summer salad has a mild smoked flavor and is filled with fresh chrispy vegetables. 

Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

Dressing:

• 100-150 g rygeost Danish smoked cheese 
• 100 g creme fraiche or sour cream
• 1 tablespoon mayonnaise
• ½ teaspoon sugar
• salt & pepper to taste

Filling:

• 10-12 medium radishes, quartered and sliced thinly
• ½ english cucumber, quartered and sliced thinly
• a good handful finely chopped chives

Directions:

Mix the dressing, seasoning it with salt, pepper and sugar. I like a mild dressing, with a distinctive smoke flavor. Add all the vegetables and serve the salad on a slice of Danish rye bread. Sprinkle with a little extra chives.

Enjoy!