Recipe: Whipped Garlic Goat Cheese and Sherried Tomatoes on Cheese Crisps (make ahead)

WHIPPED GARLIC GOAT CHEESE AND SHERRIED TOMATOES ON CHEESE CRISPS

"These crisps answer the question "How many flavors can fit in the same small space?" Herbs, garlic, goat cheese, sherry vinegar, tomatoes, and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese are piled one on top of another. When you pop the crisp in your mouth, the flavors just keep coming--pow, pow, pow--each one complementing all the others. You might want to make double the amount here; people tend to wolf these down.

Cheese crisps usually turn up as perfectly shaped tuilles, but I like to bake all of the Parmigiano-Reggiano together in a sheet and break it up into little abstract pieces. If you don't have a pastry bag, break the crisps into slightly larger pieces and use two teaspoons to apply the cheese and tomatoes, scooping the ingredients up with one teaspoon and pushing them onto the crisps with the other."

FOR THE CHEESE CRISPS:
2 cups finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (from about 8 ounces cheese)
FOR THE WHIPPED GARLIC GOAT CHEESE:
8 ounces goat cheese, softened at room temperature
1 garlic clove, minced, plus 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons thinly sliced fresh chives
1/2 teaspoon minced fresh thyme leaves
1/4 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary leaves
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper

FOR THE SHERRIED TOMATOES:
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup sherry vinegar
4 plum tomatoes, peeled,* seeded, and cut into very small dice
2 fresh basil leaves, very thinly sliced
8 fresh chervil sprigs

TO MAKE THE CHEESE CRISPS:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Spread the Parmigiano-Reggiano on a nonstick baking sheet and shape into a rectangle about 9-inches wide, 13-inches long, and 1/8-inch thick.

Bake until golden brown, approximately 15 minutes. Remove the sheet from the oven and let the cheese cool to room temperature. The cheese will be brittle; break it into small pieces about 1/2-inch across.

BREAK POINT:
The cheese crisps can be made up to 24 hours ahead of time and kept in an airtight container at room temperature.

TO PREPARE THE WHIPPED GARLIC GOAT CHEESE:
Put the goat cheese, minced garlic, chives, thyme, rosemary, lemon zest, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in the bowl of a standing mixer and whip until the ingredients are well integrated into a whipped herb cheese. (Or do this in a regular mixing bowl and use a handheld mixer.) Transfer the mixture to a pastry bag fitted with the star tip, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Set aside at room temperature.

BREAK POINT:
The whipped cheese can be covered and refrigerated for up to 24 hours. Let soften at room temperature for about 30 minutes before proceeding.

TO PREPARE THE SHERRIED TOMATOES:
Heat the oil in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over high heat. Add the sliced garlic and cook until lightly browned, approximately 1 minute. Add the vinegar and tomatoes, stir, then add the basil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper and stir again. Cook for another 10 seconds, then remove the pan from the heat and let the mixture cool. Cover and refrigerate until cold.

BREAK POINT:
The tomato mixture can be refrigerated for up to 2 hours, but no longer. Drain the tomatoes before proceeding.

TO SERVE:
Pipe some whipped cheese onto each crisp. Top each one with a dollop of sherried tomatoes. Garnish with the chervil and serve.

*TIP: HOW TO PEEL TOMATOES:
Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Fill a large bowl halfway with ice water. Core the tomatoes and slice a shallow X in the skin at the bottom. Add the tomatoes to the boiling water and cook just until the skin begins to pull away at the edges of the X, 15 to 20 seconds, then immediately (you don't want the tomatoes to soften at all), use tongs or a slotted spoon to transfer the tomatoes to the ice water. When cool enough to handle, peel and discard the tomatoes' skin. If it doesn't come right off, use a paring knife to loosen it.

TO DRINK:
oaky/full-bodied white rosa

Serves 4 to 6 (makes 40 pieces)
Source: The New American Steakhouse Cookbook by David Walzog