In a effort to use up my basil, goat cheese and pine nuts, I came across the recipe and thought I’d give it a try. You have to be a goat cheese lover to enjoy this recipe because there’s a lot of it! Chèvre is a generic term which denotes a cheese made from the milk of goats (chèvre means “goat” in French). Surprisingly, my little 1.5 year old gobbled one of these up! I think she mainly enjoyed the pine nuts and tomatoes.
If you are looking for a nice & elegant hors d’oeuvre to serve, give this recipe a try! Something a little different from cheese & crackers. I served these with “mini croccantini” rosemary crackers made by La Panzanella. Simply delicious. Maybe next time, I’ll splash some balsamic vinegar on these babies. I also should have photographed these with more freshly ground pepper as well. Hope you enjoy!
Basil Leaves Topped with Chèvre and Pine Nuts
Basil Leaves Topped with Chèvre and Pine Nuts
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup pine nuts
- 4 ounces soft goat cheese at room temperature
- 2 tablespoons heavy cream
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
- 20 large unblemished basil leaves about 3 inches long
- 1 medium tomato finely chopped
- Extra-virgin olive oil for drizzling
Instructions
- In a small, dry skillet, toast the pine nuts over low heat, shaking the pan occasionally, until golden and fragrant, about 3 minutes; let cool.
- In a small bowl, mix the goat cheese with the heavy cream and season with salt and pepper.
- Spread 1 teaspoon of the cheese on each basil leaf.
- Sprinkle with the pine nuts, pressing them into the cheese. Scatter the chopped tomato on top.
- Pinch each leaf together near the center to form slightly rounded bowls. (I did not attempt this)
- Drizzle lightly with olive oil and serve.
Recipe from Food & Wine, can be found here.
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