Goat Cheese Stuffed Quail With Bacon Food

STUFFED QUAIL

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
• Place the bread on a rimmed baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil and salt. Toast for 5 to 8 minutes, until crisp. Transfer to a large bowl.
• In a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat, heat the butter until it's melted and foamy. Add the onion, carrot, celery and garlic and cook, stirring, until the vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in the parsley, sage and chicken stock. Season with salt and pepper. Add the toasted bread and toss to combine. If you need more liquid for the bread, add more chicken stock 1/4 cup at a time. Remove pan from heat and allow to cool to room temperature
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Once the stuffing is cool, wear kitchen rubber gloves to stuff the cavity of the quails with about 1 cup of stuffing per quail. Place the remaining stuffing on the bottom of a roasting pan or large cast-iron skillet. Season the quail with salt and pepper and rest on top of the stuffing. Roast the quail for 15 to 20 minutes or until juices run clear when you pierce the skin. Serve right away.

CREAMY GOAT CHEESE, BACON AND DATE DIP

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400 degrees. In a medium bowl, stir together the goat cheese, cream cheese, lemon juice and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Transfer to a 1-quart baking dish or ovenproof skillet, and spread into an even layer. Bake until warmed through and bubbling, about 20 to 25 minutes.
• Meanwhile, cook the bacon in a medium skillet over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until golden and crisp, about 10 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate, then add the dates to the bacon fat in the skillet, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the insides are warm and the outsides blister, about 1 minute.
• Top the baked cheese with the dates and bacon, and garnish as you wish. Serve at once.

BACON-WRAPPED QUAIL STUFFED WITH GOAT CHEESE

Steps:

• Season each quail inside and out with salt and pepper. Transfer to 1 to 2 large bowls, add oil, thyme, and garlic, and toss to combine. Refrigerate, covered, at least 1 hour and up to 48 hours.
• Preheat oven to 500°F. Remove 1 quail from marinade. Stuff cavity with 1 ounce goat cheese and 1 sprig rosemary and tie legs together loosely with kitchen string. Wrap 1 strip bacon around breast and transfer quail, breast side up, to rimmed baking sheet. Repeat with remaining quail, using 2 to 3 baking sheets. Roast until just cooked through (cut into inner thigh; meat will still be slightly pink), about 15 minutes.

BACON AND GOAT CHEESE STUFFED MUSHROOMS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• If your mushrooms caps are very rounded, trim a very thin slice from the top of the caps to help them sit upright for baking. Toss the mushroom caps with the olive oil and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a large bowl.
• Heat the butter over medium-high heat. Add the chopped mushroom stems, celery and shallots and cook, stirring occasionally, until just soft, 6 to 8 minutes. Scrape into a large bowl, season with 3/4 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper and set aside to cool.
• Add the bacon, goat cheese and chives to the cooled mushroom stem mixture. Stir in the breadcrumbs until well moistened.
• Pack each mushroom with an equal amount of filling and transfer the filled mushrooms to a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until the mushrooms are tender and the filling is brown and crispy on top, about 15 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes before removing from the baking sheet.

GOAT'S CHEESE & BACON ROSTI

Steps:

• Boil the potatoes in skins for 20-25 minutes, until just tender. Leave to cool, peel, then coarsely grate into a bowl.
• Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a medium non-stick frying pan, add the onion and lardons and fry for 7-8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onion is softened and lightly tinged with brown. Stir in the sage leaves and remove from the heat.
• Stir the onion, lardons and any juices left in the pan into the grated potato. Season with salt and pepper and mix well.
• Heat 1 tbsp of oil in the frying pan, add half the potato mixture and spread over the pan. Crumble the goat's cheese into small pieces, then sprinkle evenly over the potatoes. Spread the remaining potato over the top to seal in the cheese and press down lightly with the back of a wooden spoon.
• Cook the rösti over a moderate heat for 8 minutes until the underside is nicely browned, then put a large plate on top and invert the rösti onto it. Add another tablespoon of oil to the pan if you need to, then slide the rösti back into the pan and cook the other side for 8 minutes. Serve the rösti straight from the pan, cut into wedges, with green vegetables or a big green leaf salad.

GOAT CHEESE-STUFFED FIGS WRAPPED IN BACON

Steps:

• Preheat broiler.
• Cook bacon in a large heavy skillet over medium heat, turning occasionally, until most of the fat is rendered but bacon is still pliable, about 10 minute You do not want crispy bacon!
• Transfer the bacon to a paper towel to drain.
• Remove 1 scoop of flesh from each of the fig halves with the small end of a melon-baller, set aside for another use. (Makes great ice cream or just bite sized snacks).
• Scoop out a piece of the goat cheese with the same meon-baller and fill in the hole in each fig half with the cheese scoop.
• Stir together brown sugar, cumin, and salt in a small bowl.
• Rub the mixture onto 1 side of each bacon slice, and cut each bacon slice in half to have 16 slices of bacon.
• Wrap 1 of the half strips of bacon around 1 of the fig halves, leaving the sugar/spice side out, and secure with a toothpick.
• Broil the figs, cut side up, on the rack of a broiler pan about 3 inches from the heat, until bacon is browned - about 2 minute.
• Cool slightly and then discard toothpicks.
• Serve warm.