PECAN AND GOAT CHEESE BALLS

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Pecan and Goat Cheese Balls image

Two holiday traditions-the nut bowl and the cheese plate-unite in these refined cheese balls. Lily-pad-like parsley leaves add a herbaceous note echoed in the surprising (and surprisingly good) combination of rosemary and coriander in the center of the cheese. These diminutive marbles coated with sweet buttered pecans are just the right size, making them neat to eat.

Provided by Shelley Wiseman

Yield Makes 50 to 60 hors d’oeuvres

Number Of Ingredients 7

1 cup pecans (1/4 pound)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 (11-ounces) log soft goat cheese
1 teaspoon minced rosemary
1 teaspoon coriander seeds, crushed with side of a large knife, then chopped
About 50 to 60 large flat-leaf parsley leaves

Steps:

  • Preheat oven to 400°F with rack in upper third.
  • Toss pecans with butter, sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon salt, then toast in a 4-sided sheet pan until fragrant and a shade darker, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer to a plate and cool completely.
  • Pulse pecans in a food processor just until finely chopped, then transfer to a wide shallow bowl.
  • Stir together goat cheese, rosemary, coriander, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper until combined well. Form teaspoons of cheese mixture into marbles between your palms, then roll in pecans to coat and roll between your palms again briefly. Transfer to a plate.
  • Put a parsley leaf under each cheese marble and spear together with a wooden pick.

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