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Baked Goat Cheese with Garden Lettuces
Serves 4
1/2 pound fresh goat cheese (one 2 by 5-inch log)
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 to 4 sprigs fresh thyme, chopped
1 small sprig rosemary, chopped
1/2 sour baguette, preferably a day old
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon sherry vinegar
Salt and pepper
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, walnut oil, or a combination
1/2 pound garden lettuces, washed and dried
Carefully slice the goat cheese into 8 disks about 1/2 inch thick.Pour the olive oil over the disks and sprinkle with the chopped herbs.Cover and store in a cool place for several hours or up to a week.
Preheat the oven to 300°F. Cut the baguette in half lengthwise and dry out in the oven for 20 minutes or so, until dry and lightly colored.Grate into fine crumbs on a box grater or in a food processor.The crumbs can be made in advance and stored until needed.
Preheat the oven to 400°F (A toaster oven works well.) Remove the cheese disks from the marinade and roll them in the breadcrumbs, coating them thoroughly.Place the cheeses on a small baking sheet and bake for about 6 minutes, until the cheese is warm.
Measure the vinegars into a small bowl and add a big pinch of salt. Whisk in the oil and a little freshly ground pepper.Taste for seasoning and adjust.Toss the lettuces lightly with the vinaigrette and arrange on salad plates.With a metal spatula, carefully place 2 disks of the baked cheese on each plate and serve.
We have kept this dish on the menu every day since we opened.We vary the accompaniment sometimes, according to what's available, adding slices of ripe pear and watercress in the fall, forinstance, or rocket leaves and hazelnut oil.Delicious as a first course, it can also be served after a meal, as a combination salad-and-cheese course.Our goat cheese is made for us in Sonoma County.Investigate fresh local goat cheeses in your area, or use a French chèvre.
Roast Pork Loin with Rosemary and Fennel
Serves 4 to 6
Cooking over a bed of hardwood coals always adds flavor, especially to roasts.For those unable to roast over an open fire, here is a method that approximates the result.Overnight seasoning cures the meat lightly, and the fennel and herb branches perfume the meat as it roasts.Serve with roasted root vegetables.
2 1/2 pounds boneless pork loin
3 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
Salt and pepper
1 tablespoon fennel seed
4 branches rosemary
4 branches sage
Optional: extra-virgin olive oil
One day in advance, lard the pork loin with garlic, making incisions into the underside of the roast with a small sharp knife and inserting the garlic slices.Season the roast generously with salt and pepper.Crush the fennel seeds coarsely in a mortar and sprinkle over the meat.Press the rosemary and sage branches into the meat, and, using butcher's twine, tie up the roast, using a simple slipknot finished with a half hitch every 3 inches.Refrigerate.
The following day, bring the pork loin to room temperature.Pre-heat the oven to 425°F.Roast the pork loin on a rack, uncovered, until the internal temperature registers 130°F. on a meat thermometer, about 1 hour.Remove the roast from the oven, cover loosely with foil, and let rest in a warm place for at least 15 minutes.This allows the juices to Stabilize and the roast to continue cooking slowly without drying out.The meat will be moist, with the barest tinge of pink.Slice the pork and arrange on a warm platter with the herb branches.If you wish, drizzle with fruity Tuscan olive oil.
