I read a few posts from other people who made this to get some tips because I really didn't know if I'd like this or not. I love Boursin and when I was younger I would eat tubs of it. Some of the other posts said the longer it sat, the better so I let it sit all day and it tasted ok, but I wouldn't call it Boursin. First, there wasn't enough garlic. I put in a frozen cube of garlic (
Dorot). They're very convenient but also very potent. I also had fresh chives from the CSA (
Langwater Farms) so I skipped the shallot and added some extra chives. I also had fennel fronds which I substituted for the chervil and parsley. I sound like those reviews on recipe sites that trash the recipe though they altered it completely. It really wasn't so far from the recipe. The rest of it was very true - I used whole milk ricotta, red wine vinegar, and olive oil. I strained the cheese overnight, but no water came out. The texture was actually good but it could have used maybe cream cheese? Something to make it stickier, if that makes sense.
To serve the spread, since this wasn't going to be for a party with cheese and crackers I thought it may be interesting to put a dollop on the pizza we had for dinner. I made two pizzas - one with sauce and one without. Both had prosciutto, mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. We had a bag of arugula from the CSA that I mixed with some wonderful strawberry balsamic vinegar and dijon mustard. I don't think the pizza was enhanced by the cheese spread but I wouldn't call it bad. We'll see how it tastes tomorrow.
6 comments:
Mine had a bit too much garlic and shallot, but I
liked it anyway. We enjoyed it on chips, in some avocado and also with tomatoes. Happy Memorial
Day.
I thought the flavors were more developed the second day.
More garlic is always a good thing.
Have a great weekend.
The salad and pizza looks like a great compliment to the cheese spread!
Your thoughts are much like mine. I think the ricotta (store-bought) was not what it needed. I will make my own next time or mix ricotta with goat cheese. Also, this really needed more flavor - herbs, salt and garlic. I also love Boursin so the decision is whether to tinker with this or just keep buying Boursin -what we already know we like.
I like your mix-ins. I've made this twice, and I think the secret to countering the blah feelings is LOTS OF SALT. I added over a teaspoon this time, and it makes such a difference. I also didn't think the ricotta is quite smooth enough to compare with "real" Boursin. As you suggest, cream cheese might be the right thing to bridge that difference. Have a great weekend!
I agree that the cheese would have benefited from adding extra cream cheese or another stickier cheese for texture. Someone mentioned goat cheese and that sounds amazing
Post a Comment