As far as appetizers go, it is hard to find a simpler recipe that would deliver as much flavor! You can find all sorts of variations in cookbooks and in the blogosphere, including my own blog a couple of years ago, using a recipe from my friend Celia. Have hearty crackers or nice baguette toasts ready to dive in… my preference is to enjoy it still hot from the oven, but be very careful, the center of this baby will be like a cheesy lava.
BAKED RICOTTA WITH GOAT CHEESE
(from the Bewitching Kitchen, inspired by many sources)
1 cup ricotta cheese, drained (full fat)
1 large sprig of fresh rosemary leaves, chopped
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 Tablespoon olive oil
grated zest of 1/2 lemon
1/4 cup room temperature goat cheese
pinch of crushed red pepper
pinch of kosher salt, more to taste
Preheat the oven to 375°F.
Heat the olive oil on a small pan, add the rosemary leaves. When the leaves start to sizzle, turn the heat off, and close the pan. Let the oil infuse for 15 minutes. Remove any large pieces of rosemary from the oil, very small bits can be added to the dip.
Combine the ricotta, rosemary oil, and all other ingredients in a large bowl. Mix well, and transfer to an oven-proof dish. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until bubbly. Serve right away with crackers or a nice baguette. It is also good at room temperature.
ENJOY!
to print the recipe, click here
While typing this recipe, I realized that I tend to add lemon zest and juice to almost everything I make… Maybe I should have named the blog Lemony Kitchen. Truth is, just the thought of running out of lemons makes me very uncomfortable. I will often taste a sauce, a salad dressing, a steamed veggie, and tell myself there’s something missing. I reach for a lemon, and just a little bit of its juice does the trick. In this particular recipe, the zest adds a lot, the baked cheese ends up with a lighter “feel”.
Of course, you should go ahead and change this recipe to suit your taste. Tarragon or dill could be wonderful replacing rosemary. If you are not fond of goat cheese, it can be left out, or substituted with feta or even another type of creamy cheese. Maybe a Brie, if you don’t mind multiplying the calories and fat by a factor of 2. Maybe 3. Who’s counting? 😉
ONE YEAR AGO: Pumpkin Uncanned
TWO YEARS AGO: Pork Ragu
THREE YEARS AGO: Friendly Kuri Squash
FOUR YEARS AGO: Celery and Apple Salad
Bewitching Kitchen 
oh wow, my mother made this all the time and it’s delicious. I always like using toasted French bread for dipping! 🙂
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a nice baguette, and we are all in heaven!
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So delicious and simple! We just had the most amazing ricotta in Chicago yesterday at Eataly! Now I want to have it all over again with your recipe!
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Eataly, heard a lot about the place… Chicago is such a cool city, too bad it’s cool but COLD! 😉
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So simple and delicious!! We just had the best ricotta yesterday at Eataly in Chicago! Now I want to have it all over again with this recipe….
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As someone who is known to buy a small round of Brie or Camembert or a wedge of either and just eating it by myself I don’t need the excuse of company to make something like this. But I’ll resist as my roomy flannel pjs are getting a bit snug. The dish sounds very tasty indeed.
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Cheese is hard to resist, we only make this type of concoction when we have guests over for dinner, or a cocktail party. For me and Phil alone, no way!
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I’ve made quite a few dishes with baked Brie, but never made baked feta before. It sounds and looks great, with all the ingredients I love. I will surely give it a try very soon!
By the way, I totally identify with your lemon addiction! I too just can’t do without and will always squeeze a bit, or add lemon zest on top of practically everything, including espresso! 🙂
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Espresso! Ah, you brought memories! In Italy, they would squeeze just the oils from the skin of a lemon right on top of the espresso… HEAVEN! I should make it here for us, thank you for bringing that back to my radar.. 😉
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You’re welcome! 🙂
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Sally, this is so much more sophisticated than what we started off doing (plonking old ricotta in a bowl and sticking it in the oven)! 🙂 It sounds divine, and I love that you’ve added goats cheese! xxx
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Goat cheese is something I adore, and slowly converted Phil, who was not a big fan. Now, beets has been a bigger challenge… (sigh)
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I wish we were having a party in the near future so I could share this! If I make it for just the.boy and I there is a real danger that we will eat all of it. In one night.
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You are right… better wait for a party! 😉
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This is mysteriously like my last night’s supper, except I had filo pastry top and bottom, with a mixture of ricotta and fetta and eggs and fresh herbs in the middle, and a layer of pre-sweated yellow beets, red peppers and onions. If you were a restaurateur you would call your dish deconstructed cheesy filo pie. In all seriousness I watched Australian Masterchef the other night, who knows why as I never usually watch cooking shows, and they were making pavlovas with no meringue, so why not filo pie with no filo…. but what I really want to talk to you about is this vampire blood business…. I have obviously missed a key post !
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I suspect anything goes, right? Ever since I saw “vegetarian feijoada” in a very famous cookbook, I decided that resistance was futile….
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It’s the ditalini pasta salad post (the vampire connection) xx
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Indeed, that could be it! Still pretty funny….. I used to pay more attention to the search words leading to my blog, I need to go back inspecting them, some funny stuff to see there, that’s for sure!
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This is dangerously tempting and could prompt a delicious slide into dip addiction (always a worry for breadaholics). You had me at rosemary, bacon and red pepper, and now I’m tempted to toss in a few pecans, maybe even some crumbled bacon, just for the crunch. Whoosh, there goes another diet resolution.
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He he he, the dangers of cheese overload!
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I would have eaten the whole thing by myself. If someone else would come for it, I’d have bitten him/her. A toast to accompany it with be great but actually all that I’d need is a fork.
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You are too funny! Well, it’s not THAT big a portion, so I say go for it! ;-0)))
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Cheesy lava? Sounds perfect!
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If it’s going to be lava hot, better be cheesy!
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Looks fantastic and I’m intrigued by that bowl. Is it handmade pottery or does it just look that way?
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Very good call… :0) It is handmade indeed. I bought it years ago at Etsy. After seeing your comment, I went back and realized the vendor and store are not there any longer. Too bad. She had beautiful stuff, every piece quite unique, with those characteristic raised “dots” – I am always worried I will break this bowl, it is a favorite….
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We go to a student art show each year and we always find great pottery. Now we’ll have to slip some in our photos.:)
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Spoon please! Cheesy lava! Now that’s a great description. I bet this tasted fabulous. I would love some on a toasted baguette. And the more goat cheese the merrier for me. 🙂
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