Brunch, continued

Yesterday I included my Sweet French Toast Strata, but I actually prefer a savory breakfast myself, so I'd serve Bloody Marys or Ruby Red Mimosas, Strawberry-Spinach Salad, and this Prosciutto and Goat Cheese Strata.

Prosciutto and goat cheese strata

18 white bread slices, firm, such as English muffin bread, crusts removed
6 ozs prosciutto, thinly sliced
8 ozs Goat cheese, crumbled
4 ozs Provolone cheese, grated, about 1½ c
¼ c green onion, chopped
1 T dried basil
5 large eggs
2 c milk
1 T Dijon mustard
½ t salt
3 T butter, melted

Line bottom of 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish completely with 1 layer of bread, cutting some slices to fit. Arrange half of prosciutto evenly over bread. Sprinkle half of goat cheese and half of provolone over. Sprinkle with half of green onions and half of basil. Top with second layer of bread. Layer remaining prosciutto, goat cheese, provolone, green onions, and basil atop bread. Cut remaining bread into ¼-inch cubes. Sprinkle over top.

Whisk eggs, milk, mustard, and salt in bowl. Season with pepper. Pour egg mixture over strata; press down on bread with spatula. Drizzle melted butter over strata. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

The next morning, preheat oven to 350°F. Uncover strata and let stand at room temperature 30 minutes. Bake until center is set, about 1 hour. Remove from oven. Cut into large squares and serve.

Entertaining 911, continued

31 Days of Blog: Day 3. There is a certain wisdom to getting the necessities out of the way first thing in the day to make sure they get done. I always apply this to the dreaded cleaning of the house, if it doesn’t get done by noon, it seldom gets done, I either run out of steam or I lose focus. The same is true for blogging once a day during this National Blog Posting Month (NaBloPoMo) of July/Food, yesterday is a great example, I only wrote an 80-word post, half of which was done before 7 am, when I got distracted (toilet-training a two-year-old is a wonderful thing), and I didn’t actually post until the rest of my family was breathing down my back looking for dinner. Today, I’m trying to get it done early again.

I’m still in the 4th of July mode, and I want appetizers galore this weekend (we actually had nachos for dinner last night, and we had so much fun making them as a family — that almost never happens in my house, cooking as a family). At a recent dinner party, I made an upscale version of Chile con Queso. It was a nice change. The goat cheese adds tang, and the green salsa adds heat, a really nice complement. You can serve the dip with your favorite bagged chips, or you can make your own adobo chips from the recipe below, it’s easy and tasty, uses up leftover corn tortillas (you know me and my using up leftovers), and doesn’t have a lot of extra sodium.

Warm goat cheese and cilantro salsa

1 jar Mrs. Renfro’s green salsa
½ c cilantro
½ c low-fat cream cheese, softened (½ block)
¼ c goat cheese

Preheat oven to 350°. To prepare salsa, combine salsa and cilantro, cover and set aside.

To prepare cheese, combine cream cheese and goat cheese in a small bowl; stir until blended. Spread cheese mixture into a shallow ramekin or baking dish; cover with foil. Bake at 350° for 10 minutes or just until warm. Remove from oven, top with salsa, and serve with chips.

Adobo Chips

½ t paprika
¼ t cumin
2½ t fresh lime juice
8 6-inch white corn tortillas
1 t canola oil
1 t adobo sauce

Preheat oven to 375°. Combine 2½ teaspoons lime juice, canola oil, adobo sauce, paprika, and cumin in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk. Brush 1 tortilla with about ¼ teaspoon juice mixture, spreading to edge. Top with another tortilla; repeat procedure with juice mixture. Repeat procedure 6 more times (you will have 1 stack of 8 tortillas). Using a sharp knife, cut tortilla stack into 6 wedges. Place wedges in a single layer on baking sheets. Bake at 375° for 15 minutes; turn wedges. Bake an additional 10 minutes.

We’ll be sharing this new Con Queso tonight with friends while we watch fireworks at Salisbury Beach. Enjoy!

The gift that keeps giving

I receive the iVillage Stuff We Love e-newsletter, and today they had a really amazing find! Plates With Purpose™ are beautiful, handcrafted, recycled glass plates and platters made by Riverside Design Group. These plates come in various designs of natural beauty: Forget-me-not, heart, ladybug, wheat, stars, and trees. 15% of the proceeds of these plates go to local (Pennsylvania) chapters of various non-profit organizations: Alzheimer’s Association, Habitat for Humanity, United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation, Community Food Bank, and the AIDS Task Force, for example. What a great gift idea! It's not even like giving twice, it's like giving over and over again!

I can just picture this great appetizer on the red ladybug plate. Bring it to a party, leave the plate as a gift, and feel good all over.Marinated goat cheese with peppercorns

8 oz. goat cheese, formed into 4 rounds
1/4 c extra-virgin olive oil
3 T multi-colored peppercorns
1 T pink peppercorns
1 bay leaf
3 cloves garlic, sliced thin
1 t thyme, crushed

Combine oil, peppercorns, bay leaf, garlic, and thyme in saucepan and heat over low heat, just until oil "pops", but do not let garlic brown. Let oil cool some, then pour over goat cheese rounds . Let sit at room temperature for several hours, or refrigerate over night.

Before serving, bring to room temperature. Plate on a decorative plate with upturned sides (to keep the oil in place). Serve with crostini.

If there are any leftovers, this goat cheese is perfect on fresh bagels the next morning!