Vegetarian

Summer Salad with Fried Goat Cheese Medallions

July 17, 2019 by Tamara Giebel Leave a Comment

Lightly fried goat cheese medallions sit ever so delicately on this inviting summer salad with fresh, seasonal greens layered with cucumber, radish and garden peas. Perfect as a main dish or served with grilled protein.

Whether you have your own vegetable garden or frequent the local Farmer’s Market, you can create a beautiful salad from your bounty of produce. During these hot and unusually muggy days of summer, we look towards quick, fresh dinner ideas. This salad takes all those seasonal veggies and layers them into a beautiful summer salad. It is so pretty that it almost doubles as a table centerpiece with beautiful scalloped edged butter lettuce and lacy arugula. Halved pea pods, thinly sliced radish and cucumber add a whimsical and artsy touch. And who doesn’t like fried cheese?

It’s All About The Goat Cheese

For this recipe, you want to look for an 8 oz. goat cheese log. It makes life easier to simply cut the log into 1 oz. medallions instead of trying to form them. I used herbed goat cheese, but feel free to use any flavor that tickles your fancy. You can get goat cheese in a variety of flavors from plain to garlic herb and even truffle flavored. You’ll want to keep the goat cheese refrigerated until ready to fry, that way it holds its shape and you end up with perfectly round medallions. Nestle them in the layers of salad just before serving.

Looking for Similar Recipes?

Summer Salad with Fried Goat Cheese Medallions

Lightly fried goat cheese medallions sit ever so delicately on this inviting summer salad with fresh, seasonal greens layered with cucumber, radish and garden peas.

Course Salad

Cuisine Vegetarian

Keyword 15 minute dinners, Fried Goat Cheese, Summer Salad

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 5 minutes

Servings 4

Ingredients

Salad

1 head butter lettuce torn
1 cup arugula
4 radish sliced thin
1/2 cucumber sliced thin
1 cup snap peas sliced with a few cut lengthwise to expose peas

Fried Goat Cheese

8 oz goat cheese log sliced into 8 rounds
1 cup flour seasoned with salt and pepper
1 cup Panko breadcrumbs seasoned with salt, pepper and garlic powder
vegetable oil for frying

Vinaigrette

1 tbsp shallot minced
1 tsp dijon mustard
4 tbsp apple cider vinegar can sub rice wine, balsamic or red wine vinegar
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp sugar can sub honey or agave
salt and pepper

Instructions

Salad

Layer butter lettuce, arugula, radish, cucumber and snap peas in a large salad bowl.

Fried Goat Cheese

Heat enough vegetable oil in a large saute panver medium high heat to cover thickness of goat cheese medallions.
Coat each goat cheese medallion in flour, then egg, then Panko.
Gently fry each goat cheese medallion until golden brown on both sides. Remove to a wire rack or paper towel.
Arrange fried goat cheese medallions over salad and serve with your favorite dressing or use my favorite vinaigrette.

Classic Vinaigrette

Whisk all ingredients together. Drizzle over salad.

Classic Potato Gratin

April 10, 2019 by Tamara Giebel Leave a Comment

Simple, Classic Potato Gratin is the perfect accompaniment to my Citrus Chipotle Ham. Layers of potato, creamy cheese and a caramelized top.

This Classic Potato Gratin can be tailored to fit your taste. I love adding fresh picked thyme leaves for an ultra-classic French taste. With my Citrus Chipotle Ham, I like to keep it simple because of the intense glaze on the ham. The recipe calls for two cups cheese and this time I used Monterrey Jack cheese because it’s mild and creamy.

You can easily swap the onion for fennel, or use pepper jack cheese for a Mexican take. The possibilities are endless. But, for me, my friends, it’s classic style for Easter dinner.

Classic Potato Gratin

Layers of tender potato and creamy cheese with a caramelized top.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Vegetarian

Keyword Easter side dish, Potato gratin

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 55 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes

Servings 6

Ingredients

4 medium Russet potatoes (about 4 cups potatoes) peeled and thinly sliced
2 cup cheese (such as Monterrey Jack, Swiss or Gruyere) grated
2 cup heavy cream
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 small yellow onion thinly sliced
1 tsp olive oil

Instructions

Preheat oven to 275 degrees. Butter a medium baking dish (10″ x 6″). NOTE: This is a little smaller than your standard casserole dish.
In a small pan over medium heat saute onion in olive oil until just tender.
In a large mixing bowl, combine sauteed onion, potato slices, cheese, cream, salt and pepper together. Pour into prepared baking dish. Cover with foil. Bake for about 45 minutes. Remove foil and bake another 10 minutes or until potatoes are fork tender and top is nice and browned.

Mushroom & Greens Lasagna

March 15, 2019 by Tamara Giebel Leave a Comment

The secret ingredient in this rich and creamy mushroom lasagna? It’s bok choy! Thinly sliced ribbons of bok choy pair perfectly with earth mushrooms an sharp white cheddar sauce. Perfect for Lent Fridays or Meatless Mondays. It’s packed with vitamins AND you get your cheese fix at the same glorious time! If you’re like me, you could live off cheese, wine and french bread. That’s my go-to. Yep, I come home from my daily job, pour a glass of wine, tear off a piece of french bread and start cooking. I guess it’s my way of de-stressing, which I find totally acceptable.

The recipe below is weeknight easy, so don’t get thrown off with the fancy Mornay sauce. It’s just a a real technical way of saying cheesy goodness sauce, for real! Looking for more meatless recipes? We’ve got ’em!

Recipes

Mushroom & Greens Lasagna

Layers of creamy, cheesy mushroom lasagna with sauteed greens

Course Main Course

Cuisine italian, Vegetarian

Keyword lent dinners, vegetarian

Servings 8

Ingredients

Mushroom & Greens Filling

3 tbsp olive oil
1 cup yellow onion diced
16 oz mushrooms, sliced
2 1/2 tbsp garlic minced
2 cup baby bok choy sliced in ribbons

Mornay Sauce

1/2 cup shallot minced
4 tbsp butter
4 tbsp flour
5 cup whole milk
1/2 tsp salt
2 cup sharp white cheddar grated

Other

9 sheets no boil lasagna
8 tbsp ricotta cheese
1 tbsp parsley, dried
1 tsp garlic powder
2 cup mozzarella cheese grated
2 cup monterey jack cheese grated

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a 9″ x 13″ casserole dish, spoon 1 cup Mornay sauce to coat bottom.
Start layering: Place 3 lasagna sheets over Mornay sauce, then 1 cup Mornay sauce, then 1/2 cup mushroom-bok choy mixture, then 1/2 tbsp ricotta per square (lasagna serves 8, so imagine 8 squares), 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, 1/2 cup monterey jack cheese.
Repeat 1 time
Third layer: 3 lasagna noodles, remaining mornay sauce, 1 cup mozzarella cheese, 1 cup monterey jack cheese, 1 tbsp parsley and 1 tsp garlic powder.
Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Mushroom-Thyme Hand Pies

March 13, 2019 by Tamara Giebel Leave a Comment

These savory Mushroom-Thyme Hand Pies deliver big flavor. Flaky butter crust, earthy mushroom and sharp white cheddar. Eat them all now or freeze for later.

The best thing about these Mushroom-Thyme Hand Pies is that you get a bite of the flaky all butter crust in every bite. They are so easy to make and can hold a variety of flavor combinations. This savory version features button mushrooms, caramelized onions, fresh thyme leaves and sharp white cheddar cheese. You get the bite of the mushroom, the tang of the white cheddar cheese and that fresh thyme to cut right through the richness. As soon as they hit the cooling board, they were gone! Into the mouths of my taste testers. But if you do happen to have leftovers, just freeze them in individual bags. They are super easy to reheat in the oven.

Mushroom-Thyme Hand Pies

Savory Mushroom-Thyme Hand Pies with sharp white cheddar all in a light and crispy all butter crust.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Vegetarian

Keyword cook with herbs, hand pies, meatless, mushrooms, savory

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Servings 10

Ingredients

4 tbsp butter
1 cup yellow onion sliced in thin rounds
1 tbsp olive oil
4 cup mushrooms, your favorite sliced
1 tsp fresh garlic minced
1 cup white cheddar cheese grated
2 tbsp flour
1 1/2 cup beef broth
3 tsp fresh thyme leaves, removed from stem

Crust

2 1/2 cup flour
1 cup butter grated (with a cheese grater)
1/2 tsp salt
2-3 tbsp cold water start with 1 and gradually add if needed

Instructions

Make the Crust

In a large bowl, mix together flour, salt and butter until crumbly. Add cold water, starting with 1 tbsp and continuing to add 1 tbsp at a time until dough starts to form together. (You shouldn’t need more than 3 tbsp)
Press together into a smooth ball. The less kneading the better. Cover with saran wrap and place in the fridge for at least 15 minutes.

Make Mushroom Filling

Heat 1 tbsp butter in a large saute pan over medium heat. Saute onions for about 3 minutes , until golden.
Add another 1 tbsp butter and the olive oil to the pan. Add the mushrooms and saute for about 3-5 minutes, stirring frequently until browned. Remove from pan and set aside in a bowl.
Keeping the pan over medium heat, add 2 tbsp butter and stir until melted. Add flour and continue stirring until bubbly and foaming. Add beef broth and whisk until smooth and starting to thicken. Add mushroom mixture back to pan and thyme leaves. Salt and pepper to taste. Set aside to cool.
Roll Dough and Fill
Remove your dough from the fridge and cut into 2 equal parts. Then, cut each into another 5 equal pieces.
Roll each piece into a 4 inch round, use small plate or bowl and cut around the edges.
Fill each round with 1/4 cup mixture and 1 tbsp white cheddar cheese. Fold in half and press edges down to seal. Using a fork press against the edge to crimp and seal. Slice 2-3 thin air holes in the top. Place in freezer for 15 minutes before baking.
Bake at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes or until golden brown. Freeze any extras for later use.

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The BEST Mac N Cheese

February 12, 2019 by Tamara Giebel 1 Comment

Who doesn’t love a good mac-n-cheese? My favorite is Stouffer’s Macaroni and Cheese, yes, found in the frozen section at the grocery. Maybe it’s because I grew up eating it, OR maybe because it’s rich, tangy, creamy and addictively good. The top gets all golden brown and crusted over and when you scoop your spoon in, it’s pure creaminess.

Many recipes have come close, but this is the best yet. It all came together when I got a promotional box of cheese from our PNW local Tillamook Cheese. It’s my favorite cheese and that says a lot because I LOVE CHEESE! I wanted a simple recipe with the fewest ingredients possible (because my friend Brittany says she needs recipes with less spices and less ingredients all together). O.k. Brittany, I know you can make this and LOVE IT!

The BEST Mac-N-Cheese

Rich, indulgent and packed with three types of cheese is The Best Mac N Cheese

Course Main Course

Cuisine Pasta

Keyword mac n cheese, macaroni and cheese, pasta, stouffer’s mac n cheese, the best macaroni and cheese

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Servings 8

Ingredients

1 lb large elbow macaroni
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup flour
2 cup milk
2 cup cream
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp dry mustard powder
1 tsp salt
1 cup Tillamook sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1 cup Tillamook sharp white cheddar cheese, shredded
2 cup Tillamook medium cheddar cheese, shredded

Topping

1 cup Tillamook medium cheddar cheese, shredded
1 cup Tillamook sharp white cheddar cheese, shredded
1 cup Tillamook sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

Instructions

Boil large elbow macaroni according to directions.
In a large sauce pan melt butter over medium low heat
Stir in flour and continue to stir, cooking for about 3 to 5 minutes. Basically you make a roux and want to not only combine the mixture, but cook the flour taste out as well.
Gradually pour in milk and cream, stirring continuously to combine well.
Stir in paprika, dry mustard powder and salt.
Gradually stir in the first set of cheeses, reserving the cheese designated for topping. Stir until creamy.
Gently fold together the cheese sauce and the cooked large elbow macaroni.
Pour mixture into a baking dish. (Try not to eat massive spoonfuls during this process).
Top with remaining topping cheese.
Bake at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes, then switch to broil and broil for 5 minutes or until golden browned on top.