This post is kinda late due to two things:
1. Power outages in our area
2. A slight new obsession with Friday Night Lights (read: a somewhat all-consuming obsession)
I had full intentions of making this last night for Tristan and I to munch in the late evening but we had leftovers for dinner and immediately starting watching Friday Night Lights, which I feel compelled to mention is now available on Netflix Watch Instantly, and boom! it was like 11:30 PM and I hadn’t done anything yet. I feel pretty confused by how much I like this show since I have made it clear I’m not a sports nut but it is good stuff. And there’s five seasons of this good stuff. I am going to be pretty unavailable in the evenings for the next few weeks I think…
Back to the cheese spread though, I changed up a few of the herbs just because of availability. I got my herb garden all sorted last week and I now have lavender, mint, Italian parsley, chives, cilantro, sage, thyme, oregano, rosemary, and basil planted. Assuming the little f*@#king tree rats (squirrels) that have been digging in my potted plants don’t kill any of them, I think I have a pretty comprehensive spread happening. One thing missing though: tarragon. I bought some last year and never ended up using it so I left it off my list this year. I don’t really regret it since this might have been the only recipe it got used for so I subbed in some sage and rosemary to fill in for it. When we tore ourselves away from the tube to go to bed last night I realized I still had some work to do so I chopped all my herbs and shallot and garlic and mixed everything together to chill overnight. But this morning when I was in the shower the power went out and stayed out and I didn’t want to open up the fridge and let all the cold air out to grab the spread so it just kept chilling all day. I had planned to bring it to work and share with co-workers and stuff but this is almost better because I can bring what’s left to a potluck grill-out tomorrow night. We had it with bagel chips tonight but I bought a baguette to slice up for tomorrow to bring with. I really really really like this. Like pretty much eating that whole little mini pie dish in the pic by myself like it. Yum!
I never realized that so many people had an issue with ricotta until we did the Pizza Rustica in Baking with Julia and I still don’t get it. What’s not to like?? I did find that the ricotta I bought was pretty darn thick to begin with and didn’t really need to drain for the few hours that Dorie mentioned. It was draining from 6-11:30 last night and there was maybe half a teaspoon of liquid in the bowl. Weird. I would definitely make this again and plan to for any other summer potlucks I get invited to. Hope everyone else liked it as much as me!
I agree about the ricotta. I think the containers purchased at the store are too thick for
draining. I drained mine overnight and nothing happened. Your dish looks great.
I laughed when I read about your squirrels, I am having a problem with the rabbits,
just purchased plants for patio that the little buggers should not eat. We will see about
that. Happy weekend.
We loved it, but I didn’t use ricotta. Glad I wasn’t the late one thus week:)
Maggie your serving plate with the Bagel Chips looks quite delicious – I love the warm colors of your photos and it is nice to read that both of you enjoyed the Herb Cheese.
Have fun at the pot-luck grillout tonight – I am sure that the guests will love your spread!
This wasn’t all that exciting at our house and as a result, I didn’t bother to blog and post it. Looking forward to the speedy recipes for the month of June.
I didn’t need to drain my ricotta either and I think ricotta is so versatile! I can relate to tree rat issues–I have two young ones that ate my summer blooming bulbs that I just planted! Hopefully, they will leave your herbs alone, they don’t seem to care for them. Have a great M day weekend!
I think it looks great!
I don’t get what isn’t to love about ricotta either…
We liked this in our house & it will show up again 🙂
Have a great holiday.
Hah, I love it when people get obsessed with a certain show. Since five year olds dominate our lives, I only get a vicarious glimpse at the hot TV shows. Someday, I too will become obsessed with a show, but until then, I will read blogs!
I really don’t know how ricotta is supposed to taste so I have no comment on whether I like it or not. I DO know that my ricotta was thick also and I got very little moisture from draining it overnight. I will make my own next time. My spread was good but I would like it to be great so will add more herbs and garlic when I make it again. Lots of different uses for it. OMG – I love Netflix but I’m already into seasons of Downton Abbey, I don’t know if there are enough hours in the day for Friday Night Lights (and, I am a sports fan). Good luck with all that…..
I absolutely Love ricotta….but it does not love me back, boohoo:( Well, I thought about trying this with goat cheese, but couldn’t get up the gumption to do it. Yours looks wonderful. Bagel chips sound like a good accompaniment.
Netflix is dangerous. You never know what you’re going to get sucked into. We are currently working our way through 10 seasons of Top Gear UK and I don’t really care much for cars. Haha!
The draining step must really depend on the brand of ricotta. At least 1/2 a cup of liquid drained off of mine, and it is still wet as it “ages”. Glad you finally got this one made. I haven’t actually watched Friday Night Lights because my husband wasn’t into it and objected to it not being broadcast on Friday nights when it first came out. However, I ADORE Kyle Chandler and felt I missed out. I have just loved him since way back when he was on Homefront and I was a huge fan of Early Edition. I’ll have to try to check it out this summer on Netflix. Have a great weekend, Maggie.
Maggie, I am nominating you for The Food Stories Award for Excellence in Storytelling Award. Please go to my siteto “pick it up.” Congratulations, Mary