Baked Goat Cheese and Homemade Pepper Jelly is one of those dishes that was absolutely inspired by the hosting skills of others. Some friends of mine have a lovely Christmukkah party annually that often includes the crowd-pleasing cream cheese with pepper jelly appetizer. In fact, they always have lots of fun old school apps and cocktails. Mike is one of those people who is good at guessing which spirit comes next in the trend book. He was mixing 60’s cocktails before Mad Men was all the rage. In fact, I’m still waiting on the rum explosion he swears is coming, because I believe him. Next to their Mad Men style revival cocktails you’ll find lots of appropriately 60’s snacks, including, the aforementioned cream cheese with pepper jelly, which is one of those appetizers that I forget all about in between Christmukkahs. It’s a funny little dish, and not particularly my style; perhaps I am even a little surprised to realize I absolutely love it. Then again, how could you not? Cream cheese and spicy sweet jelly as an excuse to have fresh baguette… Fair point, well made. So last Thanksgiving, when I was perusing magazines for recipes that might fit in with my Caribbean menu, I stumbled upon a recipe that updated the cream cheese with a baked goat cheese and included a homemade pepper jelly, well, of course I had to try my hand. So voila! Baked Goat Cheese and Homemade Pepper Jelly for the masses, or in a small portion for just a couple of friends.
- 1 pound creamy fresh goat cheese, softened
- Pita chips and toasted baguette slices, for serving
- 1 cup homemade pepper jelly
- Preheat the oven to 400° F.
- Spread the goat cheese in a 5 x 8-inch baking dish in an even layer.
- Spread the pepper jelly over the goat cheese.
- Bake on the top rack of the oven for about 5-10 minutes, until warm. Serve hot, with pita chips and toasted baguette slices.
- Cauntion: Danger. You will eat this until it's all gone, even if that involves a spoon.
- While this is a great make ahead recipe for a group, and worked well doubled for my giant Thanksgiving crew, it’s also easy to make in small portions for just a few people. I often put just 4-5 ounces of goat cheese in the bottom of a small ramekin (as pictured) and cover with a few tablespoons of the jelly. The jelly keeps well and this is one of those easy to keep on hand and whip out to impress last minute guests.
- ½ cup peach (or apricot jam)*
- 5 dried apricots (for a little texture)
- 4 Peppadew peppers**
- 1 jalapeño; seeded (or a habanero if you want a little extra heat)
- 1 shallot
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon sherry vinegar (I like a very aged variety)
- pinch of sea salt
- In a food processor or blender*** add the jam, Peppadews, jalapeño, shallots, mustard and sherry vinegar.
- Pulse until you reach a fairly uniform consistency with some chunks of pepper and apricot.
- Taste. Add sugar and salt to taste if necessary.
- *of course I used my homemade from Peach Jam with Jack Crane. We made low sugar jam, so I added a little sugar to this recipe, to taste.
- ** hot and sweet peppers of any variety will do as long as they’re preserved. If you need to use fresh cherry peppers instead, you’ll need to up the vinegar amount to get the right acid balance
- *** this is a great recipe to make following Cranberry Relish. No need to clean out the bowl, the little bit of cranberry and orange will do nothing but add to the flavor of your pepper jelly. And this is one less dish to wash at a busy dish washing time of year.
Well this post is just delightful.
Just like you.