Miss Kris Kitchen

LYONNAISE GARLIC AND HERB CHEESE USED AS A VEGE DIP

Hubby makes a great vege dip that he shares with his friends every holiday season.  It began as an alternative to all the sweet treats going around the neighborhood, and it is an item that he can make really well without my input.  He uses a base of cream cheese and sour cream and adds minced onion, peppers, garlic, carrots, scallions, and other flavorful vegetables.  To that mixture he adds fresh herbs and seasonings.  This concoction ripens in the fridge for a day allowing all the flavors to come together.  Each year, several neighborhood young men who seem to know when Hubby is putting together his dip,  knock on our door requesting  their own LARGE container of this dip...not to be shared with their families.  I incorporated a couple of hubby’s seasoning ideas to make today’s cheese dip even more flavorful.

The Lyonaise Garlic  and Herb Cheese recipe that I used as a vege dip similar to Hubby’s was perfect for a hot summer day.   My neighbor, Bob, surprised me this morning with an armful of produce from his garden.  Sadly, it is his last picking of the season as the hot Summer temperatures have fried his plants.  He will grow his garden again beginning in the Fall...we are a little backwards from the rest of this country...most of you have a freeze, we have the roasting heat.

Early this morning I set out 2 cups of ricotta cheese in a mesh basket to drain.  Before dipping it out I poured off the liquid that had collected at the top of the container.  At that point, the cheese looked quite dry so I was surprised by all the liquid that had dripped out by the time I was ready to use it.    This neutral flavored ricotta cheese, suggested by Dorie as an alternative to her usual French cheese,  was the foundation for my dip. 

Instead of a shallot, I minced ½ a red onion, which I thought would impart a pretty color as well as savor.  Then I minced a clove of garlic,  splashed in the EVO, and added salt and pepper to taste.

From my garden I added chives, lemon tarragon, and the end of my parsley...it’s now too hot for all but the most heat-hardy items.

Then I tasted the dip.  It was blah...nothing special, even with all the flavorful herbs and minced vegetables.  After resting for an hour, the herbs, garlic, and onion did not impart much exciting flavor.

THIS HERBED CHEESE EASILY COMES TOGETHER

That’s when I used Hubby’s additions of a Tablespoon or two of soy sauce, a dash of Worcestershire sauce, and a healthy pinch of cayenne pepper.  These additions did enhance the flavor without detracting from what I think this herb cheese is meant to be.  I later wished I had taken Hubby’s advice and also added minced red pepper which brings a sweetness and more flavor to this type of dish.  (Some of these additions added  more salt.  I might have easily added more “salt to taste” but I had previously added a good portion of salt and wanted something more.)

This herbed cheese can be thinned and used as a salad dressing, or it also goes well with breads or crackers.  I liked the idea of stuffing small tomatoes with this cheese and adding a drizzle of pesto sauce.  This idea sounds interesting to me and I plan to try it next time.  (I have 1/2 a container of Ricotta remaining to be used.)

DELICIOUS WITH FRESH VEGETABLES

This cheese is easy to put together and I can think of several uses, but it needs to be put with foods that are flavorful on their own and just need a condiment added.  For example: I think this cheese would be good spread onto large tortillas instead of commonly used cream cheese spread to begin a wrap.  With added thin sliced meats, cheeses, tomatoes, etc., this would come together in a good combination.  It would also be delicious used as an alternative to humus. Or instead of mayo on a BLT.  Or maybe with a stronger grated cheese added to the mix.  Or bacon.....

I look forward to seeing how you all used this cheese and to see if you made any good flavor additions.

Hope you all have a lovely Memorial weekend that includes good food and family along with honoring those who we appreciate and who we do not forget.