Yes, I deviate from the recipe, but only for very good reasons. Plain store-bought bread crumbs taste like ... um, crappy cardboard. Never use them. Ever.
12 Roma tomatoes, sliced in 1/2 lengthwise
1/4 cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 pieces of bread, whirred into crumbs in food processor
3/4 cup finely crumbled Gorgonzola or grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Using a teaspoon or grapefruit spoon, remove the seeds from the tomatoes. Place the tomato halves, cut side down, on paper towels to drain, about 5 minutes.
In a large bowl, mix together 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, garlic, salt, and pepper. Using clean hands, gently toss the drained tomato halves in the oil mixture until coated. Marinate the tomatoes for 10 minutes.
In a small bowl mix together the bread crumbs and Gorgonzola cheese (and additional garlic if you like). Place the marinated tomato halves, cut side up, on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Fill each tomato half with the bread crumb filling. Drizzle with the remaining olive oil. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until slightly softened and the underside of the tomatoes are brown.
Arrange the cooked tomatoes on a serving platter. Sprinkle with the chopped parsley and serve immediately.
Source: Food Network
Blue Cheese Shortbread
3 1/2 oz crumbled blue cheese (about 1/2 cup)
3T unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 tsp coarse salt
1/8 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
1/3 cup walnuts, finely chopped
Blend blue cheese and butter in food processor until creamy. Add flour, cornstarch, salt and pepper. Pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add walnuts and process just until moist clumps form. Gather dough into ball. Flatten into disk. Wrap dough in plastic and refrigerate until firm, at least an hour.
Preheat over to 325 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment. Roll out dough between two sheets of plastic wrap to 1/8 to 1/4 inch thickness. Remove top sheet, cut using cookie cutter shapes or just cut into squares. Transfer to baking sheet, bake until golden brown about 20 minutes. Cool. Store in airtight container.
Bench Notes: These are easy easy crackers to make. I do let the dough chill more than an hour - usually over night. Made this the first time in August of 2003. How old am I?
Chicken
1/2 c toasted walnuts, chopped
1/2 c Craisins
1/2 c Gorgonzola cheese
4 boneless chicken breasts
Blend together walnuts, Craisins, and Gorgonzola. Lay chicken out top side down on cutting board. Smooth mixture over breasts. Roll chicken breasts (these can be tied with kitchen string to hold the shape). Cook at 375 degrees for 15-20 minutes. Let rest for five minutes and slice into circular pieces.
Dressing
1/2 c cider vinegar
2 T honey
1T Dijon mustard
1/4 c Mandarin oranges
1/4 c Craisins
1 c canola oil
Process all except canola oil in food processor. Slowly drizzle in oil until mixture thickens. [Don't think food process monster should look like that.]
Salad
4 c field greens
4 c romaine hearts, chopped
1 c roasted shallots *
1 c Mandarin orange segments
Mix all salad ingredients in bowl. Drizzle with dressing and top with sliced chicken breast. For added garnish, slice an apple, drizzle with oil and lightly grill. Place 2 slices of apple on each plate. Serves 4.
* Roasted shallots - peel shallots and drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper; bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes
Erika Thomas
Owner/chef - Portabello Market (A WONDERFUL restaurant in downtown Pensacola)
Published in the Pensacola News Journal, December 3, 2008
Too bad the PNJ doesn't keep recipes available - weak
[My photography isn't the best yet - this tastes much better than my photo makes it looks - I'm a work in progress.]
Comments from the Counter:
Toast walnuts (approx 8-10 minutes until fragrant) while shallots roast.
Honey - used local honey from K's on Mobile Highway
4 oz of bleu cheese
Little bit of extra stuffing left (did not cross contaminate - not to worry) used as crumbles on the salad - very nice
160 degrees for chicken - just to be safe
Thoughts:
A little bit of work for a weeknight, but chicken could be made a day ahead (I didn't want warm chicken on the greens, so room temperature worked well). Will be great for warmer weather. Dressing was truly! wonderful. Great leftovers the next day too.
