Lemon Crostata With Fresh Figs And Goat Cheese Recipes

Steps:

• For the pastry, place the flour and 1/2 teaspoon salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade and pulse to combine. Add the diced butter and toss carefully with your fingers to coat each piece of butter with flour. Pulse 12 to 15 times, until the butter is the size of peas. While pulsing, add the ice water all at once through the feed tube. Pulse to combine, stopping just before the dough forms a ball. Turn the dough out onto a well-floured board and form it into a disk. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for one hour.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 450˚ F. Heat the 4 tablespoons butter in a large (12-inch) sauté pan over medium to medium-high heat. Add the leeks, thyme, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper and sauté for 8 minutes, until the leeks are tender and starting to brown. Set aside. Place the tomatoes on a plate, sprinkle them with salt and pepper and drizzle lightly with olive oil. Set aside.
• On a floured board, roll the dough into an 11-inch circle, then place it on a sheet of parchment paper. Turn a sheet pan upside down and transfer the paper to the inverted pan. Spread the leeks on the pastry, leaving a 1 1/2-inch border. Crumble the goat cheese evenly on top. Arrange the tomatoes over the goat cheese, overlapping the slices because they will shrink. Turn the edges of the pastry up and over the tomatoes, crimping so they lie flat. Brush the pastry with the egg wash. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the pastry is nicely browned. Allow to cool on the pan for 5 minutes, sprinkle lightly with the fresh herbs and salt, cut in wedges and serve warm.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil; set a rack over the baking sheet.
• Lay the bacon out on the rack. Transfer to the oven and bake until cooked but not crispy, 12 to 15 minutes. Let the bacon cool for about 5 minutes before cutting into 1/2-inch pieces.
• Lower the oven to 350 degrees F. Remove the rack from the baking sheet; replace the aluminum with parchment paper.
• Cut a lengthwise slit in the dates, just long enough to remove the pits. Carefully remove the pits. Fill each date with a scant teaspoon of the goat cheese. Carefully insert a piece of bacon into the cheese in each date. Bake the stuffed dates for about 15 minutes. Serve warm.

Steps:

• In a medium pot heat canola oil to at least 375 degrees. Using hot water to keep the knife clean cut the goat cheese log into 1-inch circles. Have 3 separate dishes, one with the flour, one with 2 eggs beaten, and 1 with the breadcrumbs. Dip one round first into the flour and shake off the excess. Next, dip the round into the beaten egg, and then into the breadcrumbs. Repeat process until all rounds are coated with the breadcrumbs. Carefully fry the rounds in the oil until golden brown, approximately 30 seconds. Drain rounds on paper towels. Serve rounds topped with a little honey.

Steps:

• Use your fingers to roll the goat cheese into 24 1/2 teaspoon-sized balls.
• Cut figs in half. Press a cheese ball into the center of each fig. Plate them and drizzle with vinegar. Serve within an hour.

Steps:

• Make the dough: Blend the flour, sugar, and lemon zest at low speed in a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add the butter and continue blending at low speed until the mixture is coarse and sandy-looking. Add the beaten egg and blend just until the mixture comes together. Form into a ball, wrap with plastic wrap, and refrigerate at least 1 hour. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. On a floured surface, roll the dough out to a rough circle, about 8 inches in diameter. The dough may seem crumbly but you can just push it back together and make patches if necessary. Transfer to the prepared pan. All around the circle, fold in the outer 1/2-inch of the pastry to form a naturally raised, "rustic" edge to the tart. Don't press the edge down. Using your fingers, break the goat cheese into small pieces, sprinkling it over the bottom of the tart (not the edges). Arrange the fig halves in concentric circles over the goat cheese and drizzle the figs with honey. Bake about 25