Whip it Goat!

I have an obsession with cheese, although a favorite cheese would be impossible to choose I would definitely say goat cheese is on the top tier, its creamy rich goodness makes anything you pair it with amazing with a side of fancy. So I thought I'd share some ways I like to jazz it up (not that it really needs it). 

Whipped Goat Cheese:

• 16 oz. goat cheese log
• 2 Tbs. cream cheese

Method:

1. Dust off your food processor, combine all your ingredients  and WHIP IT GOOD! You're going to want to keep the processor on until it becomes a creamy almost liquid consistency. It could take anywhere from 5- 10 min. depending on how awesome your food processor is. 

That's it! you're done, it honestly doesn't need anything else at this point. You can leave it at that and people will be eating it up with a spoon! Obviously I don't stop there though....

Here's where the fun starts! 

The add-in's are basically endless, but here are a few: 

Veggie Goat Spread: 

• 1 celery stalk - finely diced
• 1 carrot - finely diced
• 1/2 yellow squash - finely diced
• 1/2 red pepper - finely diced 

Method:

1. In a medium pan over med. heat, melt 1 tbs. butter and saute all the ingredients until softened and fragrant about 3- 5 min. 
2. Let cool and combine with whipped goat. 

Herbed Goat Cheese:

• 2 scallions - minced 
• 2 Tbs. dill - finely minced

Method:

1. Combine together with whipped goat. 

It really makes a tasty appetizer that impresses on short notice, serve it alongside some crackers, sliced tomatoes, salami, smoked salmon, jam really almost whatever you have on hand will work.

I thought about sticking in my Whipped Goat Ranch dressing here, but I think I'll save that for a later day. 

Sourdough Grissini aka "Alien Fingers"

Hi there and a belated Happy New Year! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday break, I know I did. To sum up our holiday in short, it was a blissful balance of  family time, music/movies, puzzles, and lots of treats. One of the favorites being these awesome grissini (alien finger) bread-sticks. I seriously love this recipe for a boat load of reasons and here's why:

• They are perfectly crunchy, and taste good even to a tumultuous tummy (like mine)
• Everyone loves them - seriously the pickiest of eaters will eat these up while you're not looking
• For all the sourdough lovers out there - this recipe is a perfect use for unfed/discard sourdough starter (NEVER throw out your sourdough starter, use it in this recipe!)
• The are super fun to make with kids and adults alike (you get to play mini jump rope! - er kinda)
• The flavor possibilities are endless
• They make a pretty cute bouquet when assembled in a vase or pitcher
• You can dip them in just about anything but they taste really great on their own.

I could honestly go on forever I love these so much but I won't because all you really need to know is how to make these this tasty snack.

Before you take a look at the recipe I think it's important to note that whenever possible I opt for using a scale when measuring out ingredients I can spend a whole post on why you should too, but for now I'll just say that it ensures mostly consistent results as well as leaves you with far less dirty dishes when all is said and done. So without further ado here it is. 

Sourdough Grissini (aka Alien Fingers) adapted from Wild Yeast  

• 230 g sourdough starter
• 200 g lukewarm water -  beer might be a fabulous substitute
• 9 g salt
• 23 g olive oil 
• 340 g flour - all purpose

Method

1. In a stand mixer bowl set on a scale, measure out each ingredient in the order listed. Make sure to reserve at least 100 g of flour.
2. Attach your bowl with a dough hook to your stand mixer and knead on low until your ingredients become a cohesive mass. 
3. Slowly spoon in your reserved flour, until the dough stops sticking to the sides of the bowl and becomes a smooth ball. You want to have at least a low level of gluten development,so knead for at least 5 - 7 min.*** Window pane gluten development test below. 
4. Remove your dough and set aside on a slightly floured surface, clean and oil your mixing bowl, Form your mound of dough into a ball, Your goal is to create a uniform amount of surface tension in order to have a maximum rise. Place in your oiled bowl, lightly dust with flour cover with a kitchen towel and place in a warm place ( I always use my microwave as a proof box)
5.  Let rise for 2 hours, folding (punching down the dough{deflating} and forming a ball) at 40 and 80 min. 
6. Divide the dough into 3 pieces, while working with one piece be sure to keep the other pieces covered to ensure they don't develop a dried skin.
7. On a well floured surface, pat the dough into a rectangle of roughly 12" X 4"  (you can use a rolling pin) 
8. Brush the rectangle with olive oil and liberally sprinkle with your choice of toppings **recommendations below
9. Using a pizza cutter, cut the dough into 16 strips
10. Preheat the oven to 350 F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper
11. Pick up one strip of dough at either side and slowly swing it like a jump rope in order to stretch it out to the length of your baking sheet
12. Bake for 25- 30 min. and cool on wire racks

*** The Window pane test for gluten development - first rip off a small piece of dough to test. If you can stretch the piece without it ripping that means you have developed gluten, The extent of the doughs stretching abilities tells you the level of gluten development your dough is at. 

1. Low level  - just barely stretches out without tearing and the "window" is pretty opaque
2. Medium level - obviously the middle man, the windowpane is translucent yet has opaque spots
3. High Level Gluten - If you can stretch your piece to where the pane is super thin and translucent you've reached full gluten development. 

** Flavoring Ideas : 

Buckwheat grissini - sub 40 g of all purpose flour for buckwheat flour ( add 1/2 tsp fine orange zest) 

Suggested Toppings :

Black sesame and Sea salt 

Parmesan cheese

Za'atar

My bf's parents gifted us with some super yummy herb blends for Christmas last year and they were absolutely perfect as a topping for these grissini. We used up almost half the container over the holidays. 

http://www.amazon.com/DeLallo-Dipping-Seasoning-Spices-4-Ounce/dp/B001E5DR5K

Hope you enjoy these like we do! 

Wild Yeast - http://www.wildyeastblog.com/2009/04/22/grissini-revisited/