Creamy Goats Cheese With Chive Pomegranate Food

PISTACHIO AND POMEGRANATE CHEESE LOG

Steps:

• In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese, shredded cheese, chives, lemon zest and salt with a wooden spoon or spatula until well blended. Spoon onto a large piece of plastic wrap and form into an even 1-inch-diameter log. Refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours or up to overnight.
• In a small pot, combine the pomegranate juice, hot honey, sugar and cardamom. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then let the sauce cook and reduce until thickened, about 20 minutes. (It should coat the back of a spoon and have a glazelike consistency.) Keep warm or serve at room temp.
• Unwrap the cheese log and place on a platter. Garnish the log with the pistachios, pomegranate seeds and a generous drizzle of the pomegranate syrup. Serve with your favorite crackers.

CREAMY GOAT'S CHEESE WITH CHIVE & POMEGRANATE

Steps:

• Mash the goat's cheese and ricotta together in a bowl, then use a spatula to roughly spread over a large plate. Scatter with the pomegranate seeds and chives and set aside until ready to serve.
• Stir together the honey and vinegar, then as you're about to serve, drizzle over the plate. Enjoy with crusty bread.

CUCUMBER, POMEGRANATE AND GOAT CHEESE APPETIZERS

Steps:

• Combine optional olive oil and softened goat or cream cheese. Spread evenly onto toast slices. You may mix the dill weed in at this point, but I think it looks prettier when sprinkled on top.
• Sprinkle toasts with pomegranate seeds and gently press them into the cheese (I prefer to add them after the cucumber, but then you have to be careful those carpet-staining seeds don't escape). Arrange approximately 4-6 slices of cucumber (depending on the size of your bread) on each slice of toast. Sprinkle with dill weed.
• Carefully cut each slice in half on the diagonal to make triangles. Serve open-faced on a platter.
• To seed a pomegranate (rinsed & dried): Using a small, sharp knife, slice the "crown" off the top of the pomegranate. Make 4-8 shallow cuts from north to south through the rind. Immerse the whole fruit in a large bowl of water, and gently twist to break the sections apart. Using your fingers, pull the red seeds away from the white pith. Discard everything that floats (most of the pith & peel float, while the seeds sink) and drain into a colander. You may need to remove a few pieces of pith, but there shouldn't be too much.

CHIVE-GOAT CHEESE SPREAD

Steps:

• Combine goat cheese, cream cheese, minced chives and garlic in medium bowl. Stir with fork until well blended. Place large piece of plastic wrap on work surface. Arrange whole chives in crisscross pattern atop center of plastic. Spoon cheese into center of chives, forming 4- to 5-inch round. Lift edges of plastic, wrapping chives around cheese and covering cheese completely. Refrigerate overnight. (Can be prepared 2 days ahead. Keep refrigerated.) Remove plastic wrap from cheese. Place cheese on platter; surround with baguette slices and serve.

ROASTED CARROTS WITH GOAT'S CHEESE & POMEGRANATE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Toss the carrots with 1 tbsp of the oil, sprinkle with the cumin seeds and orange zest, and season with salt. Spread onto a large baking sheet and roast for 50 mins until tender and catching some colour on the edges.
• Stir the chickpeas into the roasted carrots, then tip onto a large serving platter. Drizzle with the remaining oil and a little of the orange juice. Crumble over the goat's cheese and scatter with the herbs and pomegranate seeds. Serve warm with toasted flatbreads.