Food, Fun, Love: Spanish Goat Cheese Nachos and Blonde Gazpacho

Let's dive right in to the next two recipes from Food, Fun & Love: Spanish Goat Cheese Nachos and Blonde Gazpacho!

Spanish Goat Cheese Nachos

Image: Rachel Ray

Ingredients:
11 ounces goat cheese, log shaped
1/2cup cornmeal
1/2cup butter garlic olive oil mixture
2 12-inch flour tortillas, cut into 20
2-inch medallions
2 cups Spanish port wine
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups red grapes, cut into quarters
1/2cup brown sugar, packed
4 tablespoons butter
1 bunch cilantro

Directions
Let goat cheese sit until it reaches room temperature. With a cheese wire, slice the goat cheese into 1/8-inch medallions. Coat the slices in cornmeal and place on a tray to freeze for approximately 15 minutes until firm to the touch.

Meanwhile, dip tortilla circles in the butter garlic olive oil mixture, place on a baking sheet and bake in a 300 degrees oven for 10�15 minutes until golden brown. Remove and set aside to cool.

In a saucepan, heat port wine and granulated sugar to a boil.Continue to boil until the mixture reduces to a syrup consistency.

In a non-stick pan over medium heat, saut� the goat cheese medallions in two tablespoons of butter until lightly browned and slightly softened. Keep a watchful eye on the cheese as it will melt and will not be usable if left in the pan too long. Remove from pan and place on the tortilla circles.

 In the same non-stick pan, heat brown sugar and remaining two tablespoons of butter until the sugar starts to dissolve and becomes a golden color. Add the grapes and saut� until the color deepens and the grapes plump. Remove the pan from the heat and spoon a tablespoon of the mixture over each nacho. Drizzle with the port wine syrup, garnish with a small cilantro sprig and serve warm.



Blonde Gazpacho

Image: The Blonde Bird

Ingredients:
1 pound yellow tomatoes, chopped
2 pounds yellow tomatoes for juicing
4 ounces English cucumber, chopped
2 ounces yellow bell pepper, chopped
1 ounce red onions, peeled and chopped
1 ounce celery, trimmed and chopped
1 teaspoon garlic, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2tablespoons red wine vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste
1/3 cup butter garlic olive oil mixture
3 slices of white bread
1 bunch cilantro

Directions
To make the tomato juice, juice two pounds of yellow tomatoes.

Mix the chopped tomatoes, tomato juice, vegetables and garlic ina food processor and puree until smooth. You can do this in batches and mix in a bowl or container. This can be a little chunky if you like. Season with the olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt and pepper. Soup is best when prepared one day in advance and placed in the refrigerator to allow flavors to develop. Prior to serving, taste the soup and adjust the olive oil and vinegar if needed.

To prepare the croutons, cut the bread into spoon shapes with a cookie cutter. Meanwhile warm a half cup of the butter garlic olive oil mixture in a saut� pan. Dip one side of the bread shapes in the mixture to coat well and place on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake in a 300 degrees oven for 10�15minutes until golden brown.

To serve, pour soup into a glass or bowl (we used a tall shot glass) and garnish with the toasted bread spoon and fresh cilantro and serve.