Herb Cheese Dip - Blue Monday

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...It's drip and dip season here in Oregon. Rain and football seem to go hand in hand and those games are a great excuse to make a dip whose roots can be found in Lyons, France. There the dip is made with fromage blanc. Rest easy in the knowledge that cottage cheese will work nearly as well and that the herbs needed to make it can all be found in your neighborhood grocery store. It was originally intended to be used as a dip for raw vegetables, but I've found it to be a wonderful sandwich spread as well. As you scan the recipe ingredients you'll find it to be a healthy and figure friendly addition to your snack repertoire. The recipe, developed by Patricia Wells, is easy to make, but the cheese needs to drain for a day or two before it is served, so wait time will have to be factored into your game plan. This also gives the flavors of the herbs an opportunity to permeate the cheese. If you have a particularly macho crew for game day, you might want to omit the vegetables and serve the dip as a spread on rounds of rye bread that are topped with salami or other deli meats. It would also be wonderful as a spread on thick slices of crusty peasant bread. The dip can be made several days in advance of serving and you probably won't have leftovers to worry about. Here's the recipe.

Herb Cheese Dip...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Patricia Wells

Ingredients:
2 cups full-fat or low-fat cottage cheese
2 shallots, peeled and minced
1 plump, fresh garlic clove, peeled and minced
3 tablespoons fresh chives, snipped with a scissors
3 tablespoons fresh tarragon leaves, snipped with a scissors
3 tablespoons fresh parsley leaves, snipped with a scissors
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves, carefully stemmed
Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 tablespoon dry white wine
1 teaspoon best-quality sherry wine vinegar
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
Mixed fresh herbs, for garnish (optional)

Directions:
1) Place cottage cheese in bowl of a food processor and pulse once, just long enough to break up cheese curds. Add shallots, garlic, chives, tarragon, parsley, and thyme, and process very briefly, pulsing only to blend. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Pulse once again to distribute the seasonings.
2) Transfer mixture to a cheesecloth-lined large sieve set over a bowl. Cover and refrigerate for at least 24 hours and up to 48 hours.
3) Remove cheese from refrigerator. Discard any liquid that has drained from the sieve. Transfer cheese to bowl of a food processor. Add wine, vinegar, and oil, and pulse to blend. Taste for seasoning. Transfer to a small bowl. Serve at room temperature. Yield: 2 cups.

You might also enjoy these recipes:
Blue Cheese and Bacon Dip - Easy Appetizers
Smoked Salmon Cheese Spread - Drick's Rambling Cafe
Hummus - Anja's Food 4 Thought
Taramosalata - Kalofagas
Warm Black Bean Dip - One Perfect Bite
Blue Cheese Dip - One Perfect Bite

This post is being linked to:
Smiling Sally - Blue Monday

Tomato, Herb and Blue Cheese Pizza - Blue Monday

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I have one other pizza that counts blue cheese in its ingredients list. This pie is all over the internet, but I have been unable to trace its original source. Folks who love to cook and eat, sometimes bypass a recipe because it's parentage is suspect or it comes from a source that is not properly credentialed. It's the old "whose your daddy" school of cooking. In the case of this pizza, that would be a mistake. This will not set the culinary world on fire, but it makes a fast, easy and delicious meal. It has the colors of a calico quilt and is as pretty to look at as a pizza can be. I bake my pizzas in a rectangular pan because I find this shape easier to serve and store. If you prefer a round pie, the only thing that changes in this recipe is the type of pan you use. Don't be put off by the blue cheese. It blends nicely with the other ingredients and doesn't overpower the pie. While the recipe uses frozen bread dough, you can use your favorite crust or bake it on lavash or another type of flatbread. Here's the recipe.

Tomato, Herb and Blue Cheese Pizza...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite

Ingredients:
1 (1-lb.) loaf frozen bread dough, thawed
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons dried basil
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 small red onion, thinly sliced, pulled into rings
2 plum tomatoes, chopped
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
3 ounces of crumbled blue cheese
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:
1) Cut bread dough in half. Press each portion onto bottom of an 9 x 13-inch baking pan coated with nonstick cooking spray; build up edges slightly. Prick dough several times with a fork. Cover and let rise in a warm place for 30 minutes.
2) Brush dough with oil. Combine basil, oregano and garlic powder and sprinkle dough. Bake at 425 degrees for 10 minutes. Remove from oven. Arrange onion and tomatoes over crust. Sprinkle with mozzarella and blue cheese. Bake until golden brown, about 8 to 10 minutes longer. Yield: 2 pies.

You might also enjoy these recipes:
Greek-Style Flatbread Pizza - One Perfect Bite
Caramelized Onion, Blue Cheese and Walnut Pizza - One Perfect Bite
Mexicali Pizza - One Perfect Bite

This post is being linked to:
Smiling Sally - Blue Monday
Meatless Monday at My Sweet and Savory