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baking goat cheese

2K views 12 replies 9 participants last post by  someday 
#1 ·
So I got put in charge of making a baked goat cheese appetizer for our new menu. It's basically a wilted salad among other things served with an almond crusted baked piece of cheese.

I figured the chevre would be brittle on it's own and decided to whip cream cheese with it. Did 2 parts goat cheese to 1 part cream cheese, let it set-up in the fridge, then cut it and rolled it in toasted almond crumbs. Thought it would be more stable in the oven by adding the cream cheese. We also wanted customers to get a more smooth taste as some people may not like the power of chevre by itself, especially if this is their first time trying it. I love it by itself personally. The taste of the mixture was very nice... but it did not hold it's shape in the oven.

So anyways, what did I do wrong? It's still somewhat presentable out of the oven. I just want to make sure I do it right when I make them again next week. Any suggestions on how to keep it together?
 
#3 ·
It sounds like a good idea, and I'm sorry I can't help.

In reading the post, I wondered if you'll be letting your customers know that there's something other than goat cheese in the "goat cheese," for allergies/lactose intolerance issues. As a customer, I would want to know.

Good luck getting it to work for you. I'm sure it will be delicious.
 
#6 ·
I don't think you have to mix anything in with the goat cheese -- a soft chèvre will not be too dry. In fact, the cream cheese may have been the problem; it probably melted in the heat. Coating the cheese in a crust helps hold it together, as does chilling well before cooking. The crust makes a nice contrast to the creaminess of the warm cheese, too.

In this recipe by Michael Chiarello, rounds of goat cheese are dipped in egg and crumbs and sauteed quickly. In this one from Chez Panisse, they are marinated in oil and herbs, coated completely with crumbs, and baked at 400 degrees. I'm sure that in either one you could substitute sliced almonds for at least part of the crumbs.
 
#7 ·
I'm with Suzanne on this one. In fact, I think I'd be offended if I detected any cream cheese in my baked goat cheese; cream cheese is EVIL!! It's too fatty, and the mouthfeel is characteristically non-goat. Allergy concerns are legitimate as cream cheese has significant lactose whereas goat cheese has very little.

If you use a nice log of fresh goat cheese, it should hold up perfectly, especially if pre-chilled. Baked cheese is not usually done in a crust, it's done in phyllo or some kind of pastry. Finally, the simple act of blending goat cheese will render it incapable of any structure. It breaks down and gets runny right away.

A nice addition to a nut crust would be cinnamon, nutmeg, etc. Experiment: goat cheese can take it. It's also nice topped with a nice concord grape coulis.
 
#9 ·
I think phyllo is a better idea. Pastry is just way too thick. How fast do they need to come out? 5 minutes? 10 minutes? If it were a 5 minute app I would have them in 2" triangles and bake them. Only problem is... it's not a very elegant solution. You can't get that much goat cheese into a triangle.

If you had more time then do them in different molded shapes, beggar's purse, or something else.

One caveat. As a trend, phyllo is interesting, good to eat, but also, a little past its time. :)
 
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