The popularity of restaurant cheese platters, offered after the main course and before dessert, leads many of us to consider a similar home presentation. But how to go about it? Part guide, part recipe book, Janet Fletcher's The Cheese Course offers a deft introduction to choosing and presenting cheese for mealtime enjoyment. The book doesn't pretend to be comprehensive
At a summer picnic or lunch al fresco, serve fresh ricotta for dessert with the best farmers' market fruit and some small, crunchy biscotti. Sheep's-milk ricotta has a more compelling flavor, but cow's-milk ricotta will do. If you can't find dead-ripe peaches, substitute berries, apricots, cherries, or, later in the season, figs, apples, or pears. Serve the dessert with a knife and fork so that diners can spread the ricotta on the fruit. A sweet white wine or a sparkling wine would make a nice accompaniment. Store leftover biscotti in an airtight container.
Servings: 8 (makes 7 dozen biscotti)
PISTACHIO-CURRANT BISCOTTI
1/2 cup dried currants
1/2 cup warm water
1 1/2 cups shelled salted pistachios
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 tablespoon brandy
1 1/2 pounds sheep's-milk or cow'smilk ricotta
Sugar to taste
4 ripe peaches
To make the biscotti: Put the currants in a small bowl. Cover with the water and soak until softened, about 1 hour. Drain.
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Toast the pistachios on a baking sheet until fragrant and lightly colored, about 20 minutes. Let cool. Keep the oven on.
In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
In a mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each. Beat in the extracts and brandy. With the mixer on low, add the dry ingredients gradually, beating just until blended. Add nuts and drained currants and beat just until they are incorporated.
Line a heavy baking sheet with parchment paper. With 2 large spoons, transfer the dough to the baking sheet, making 3 logs about 14 inches long and 1 1/2 inches wide. The dough will be sticky. Shape the logs with the back of the spoons or with floured fingertips. Bake until the logs are firm to the touch and lightly colored, about 40 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes, then transfer to a cutting board and cut with a serrated knife into 3/8 inch-wide slices. Place the slices on an unlined baking sheet, cut side down, and bake until lightly colored and dry 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool. They will crisp as they cool.
At serving time, divide the ricotta among 8 individual plates. Top each portion with a sprinkling of sugar. Peel the peaches if desired. Slice and divide evenly among the plates. Put 2 or 3 biscotti on each plate.
