Sunday, August 27, 2006

Goat cheese and cep toast with rocket


My freezer has been hosting a bag of ceps for some time and since I have decided to do a round-up in the freezer and kitchen cupboards, I made

Goat cheese and cep toasts with rocket (served the Boyfriend and myself for a light dinner).

You need:

- 2 thick slices of brown bread
- 2 tablespoons fresh goat cheese (the cream cheese-like kind)
- 150g frozen ceps (obviously, fresh ones would work as well)
- 1 spring onion, cut into smallish rings
- 2 tablespoons olive oil (for the ceps and the rocket)
- 1 tablspoon chopped flat-leaf parsley
- 1 large handfull rocket
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- salt, pepper

Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large frying pan. Add the spring onions and fry over low heat until soft. Add the frozen ceps and turn up the heat. Fry the ceps for a few minutes, stirring frequently, careful not to mush them up. When they have thawed, add the parsley and fry a little longer, until the mushrooms are done and any excess liquid has evaporated. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. While the ceps are cooking, toast the bread and spread each slice with two tablespoons of goat cheese. Sprinkle with a little black pepper. Tear the rocket in bite-sized pieces, put it in a bowl and mix with the balsamic vinegar, olive oil and salt and pepper.

Put the toast on plates and arrange the ceps on top. Top with the rocket, making little piles. This is best done by hand (if you have guests which are squeamish about this kind of thing, just make sure they don't see you). I served the toasts with slices of tomato seasoned with sea salt and olive oil. You could also serve this as a starter, maybe in slightly smaller portions, if you're serving a light main course. There are endless variations of these toasts; use plain cream cheese if you don't like goat cheese, or lay a few shavings of parmesan on the bread before adding the mushrooms.

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