Ile de France Goat Cheese

I'm positive by now that it's no secret that my favorite cheese is goat cheese. A quick search on my blog turns up quite a few mentions of it. So, when I was offered the chance to sample and blog about goat cheese, you can bet I was thrilled. Ile de France happens to be the goat cheese I buy most often and the lovely package I received reinforced that for me.

While I've used goat cheese in many recipes, from pizzas to tarts, my very favorite way to enjoy is is with a crusty and warm loaf of French bread, a bowl of tapenade and some good olive oil. I prefer my cheese rolled in herbs or pepper and this time I used freshly cracked garlic pepper to coat the bouchette of cheese in. It was, as always, perfection.

The Ile de France website has all you need to know about this wonderfully tangy and creamy cheese - from recipes to pairings to history. Go and have a look and I'll sit back and enjoy my cheese.

Arancini

Lest anyone think I've not been blogging due to lack of inspiration, I present Arancini to thwart those thoughts. I'm full of inspiration, creating like mad lately, but with very few opportunities to photograph and write. I also had a couple nights of 'no cooking' with meals provided by Omaha Steaks from Martin's Aunt Joan - we even had dessert with them - lovely little caramel apple tarts that were perfect with vanilla ice cream. This is the second package from Omaha Steaks from Martin's family; the other was from his cousin Chris. I feel positively spoiled.

This recipe for Arancini is my submission to this month's Royal Foodie Joust. Last month's winner, Núria of Spanish Recipes, offered up tomato, bacon and rice as the three ingredients for this month's Joust. My first thought was rice and beans, but let's face it, that's not exactly a winning entry in such a tough competition unless it's presented in a truly fabulous way - which I don't seem to be very adept at. My second thought was rice balls, but not onigiri, which are wonderful in their own right, but not what I was looking for. I had thought on something more Hispanic in flavor, but Arancini seemed to fill the bill for me.

Normally Arancini is made with leftover risotto, but as my arborio rice had gone missing since the move and I didn't have the energy to head to the store for that single ingredient, I made these with regular long-grain leftover rice. They were just as delicious as the risotto kind and the kids are asking me to make them again very soon.

Arancini
Makes 8
Printable Recipe

4 cups leftover cooked rice OR leftover risotto
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese (if you use rice or if the risotto didn't have any added already)
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
2 large eggs
1/2 cup cooked and crumbled bacon
8 - 1" cubes mozzarella cheese
2 Tablespoons water
1 cup Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
1 cup all-purposed flour
2 cups thick Marinara sauce

Combine rice, 1 egg, Parmesan, salt and crumbled bacon together until well blended.
Form into 8 evenly sized balls. Flatten each slightly and add a cube of cheese to the center of each ball, making sure to wrap the cheese completely within the rice.
Bread each rice ball by dipping in flour, egg wash (the other egg and water mixed well) and then breadcrumbs until well coated. Fry each in deep hot oil until golden brown. Drain well on paper toweling and serve with warm Marinara sauce.

**The consistency of these should be like dough - they should hold their shape easily. If they don't stay together well because they are too dry, try adding another egg to the mixture.

Veggie Wednesday: Grow Your Own 2009

My very favorite part about spring here in the Lehigh Valley is the fact that I can once again garden. Each year I also make a point of blogging about it - sharing our bounty through pictures and recipes, and getting the word out that one of the best things anyone can do for our earth is to grow their own food.

Without knowing for sure where we would be living, I bought seeds anyway and planned to grow, even if it had to be in containers. To me, it doesn't really matter whether I've grown something in the ground or in a pot, but I do prefer having the space to grow more than a container would allow.

I won't have as big a garden as the past few years, but it won't deter me at all. Here is a small sampling of what I'll be growing this year.

Dill well on its way.

Mint transplanted from my old garden. I was really happy that it transfered so well.

Parsley from the old garden. This is having a harder time than the mint, but I'm confident it will take hold and get growing really well soon.

Cantaloupe, cabbage and carrots.

Morning glories from the seeds we harvested last year. I was so disappointed that we lost our seeds from a few years ago and had to start over, but I'm thrilled to have these growing so well now.

I have seeds sprouting for zucchini, eggplant, green beans, tomatoes, chives, cucumbers, sunflowers, cosmos, lavender, Canterbury bells and a set of tiger lily bulbs that I got for Mother's Day to plant. All is well when you're surrounded by so much green.

Lemon Dishes

I love lemons. I think they're beautiful to look at and the uses for both the juice and rind are endless. They're easily used in both savory and sweet dishes, and I don't know of many people who don't appreciate them.

We recently had a meal that was lemon-based and absolutely delicious. We started with a salad made of simple endive drizzled with a dressing of POM Wonderful 100% Pomegranate Juice and lemon before moving on to a lemon and garlic-roasted chicken and lemon orzo. We ended with my favorite cupcakes, making a fully fabulous sunshiny-lemon meal.

Lemon Curd-Filled Lemon Cupcakes

Recipe for Cupcakes here: http://family.go.com/food/recipe-576799-fairy-cakes-t/

Recipe for Lemon Curd here: http://cookingwithanne.blogspot.com/2005/09/tea-anyone.html

Pomegranate and Lemon Dressing
Makes 1 cup
Printable Recipe

8 ounces POM Wonderful 100% Pomegranate Juice
1 Tablespoon lemon zest
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 Tablespoon minced shallots
1 teaspoon honey
salt to taste

Reduce pomegranate juice to 3/4 cup by simmering gently for 15 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and chill well before serving.

Lemon and Garlic-Roasted Chicken
Serves 4-6
Printable Recipe

One 5-6 pound roasting chicken
1 whole lemon
6 whole cloves garlic
olive oil
salt & pepper to taste

Loosen breast skin on chicken by slowly working the handle of a wooden spoon under skin on both sides. Slice lemon thinly and slide slices under breast skin. Toss any extra lemon and the garlic cloves into the cavity of the bird. Brush bird with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and roast, uncovered, until desired doneness is reached. Usually 350 degrees F for 1 1/2 to 2 hours is sufficient.

Lemon Orzo
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

1 cup dry orzo, cooked until al dente (about 2 cups cooked)
2 Tablespoons minced shallots
1 Tablespoon lemon zest
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
2 Tablespoons olive oil
salt & pepper to taste

Combine all and heat through.

Getting Back

We are officially moved. Not officially unpacked, but moved. Our new home has many small differences that we're adapting to, but I think we'll be settled in no time.

I always find it difficult to get back into the swing of things after having been gone for some time. It's really only been a week and a half since I last posted, but it feels like much longer to me.

I think I'll start back with two great gifts I won from other bloggers. The first was a lovely basket full of soy candles from Janine at Things That Make Scents in 'Jersey Shore scents' that I won at Life, Lightly Salted, Michele's blog. These candles smell so wonderful and the fact that they are made from soy (semi-locally, no less) makes them all the more wonderful to me. The basket and colors will go perfectly in the new upstairs bathroom - one thing I was looking forward to here at the new digs.

The second was a $50 gift certificate for any one item at From the Farm which I won from Jenn's place at The Leftover Queen for the March/April Foodie Blogroll Giveaway. There was so much to choose from; cheeses, meats, oils, produce etc., but once I caught sight of the Clementine Mandarin (Algerian) Dwarf Tree from Four Winds Growers, I knew that was the gift for me. It came on Earth Day - very apropos - and already had tiny little clementines growing on it and many more blooms ready to go.

So, we are moved, we are acclimating and I am hopefully back to blogging!