just give me goat cheese

if i have failed to yet mention my love of goat cheese, then i have lead you astray.

i love goat cheese and try to incorporate it into almost every edible thing that i can. i have added it to scones, muffins, brownies , salads, sauces, ragu's, bruschetta toppings... oh, the list goes on and on.
but what i want to share with you tonight is a very simple opening act (aka appetizer) that i came up with on a very special occasion.

you see, the badger and i bought a house. yes, that's right. we bought a house! our very first, our very own, and she's a beauty - a gem of a house in the heart of blue collar swank northeast minneapolis. we are moving in slowly but surely and the day after we closed, we decided to share a meal in our house, just the two of us.

you can imagine how exhausted we both were after a house closing, a day of moving my mother and father into their new place and then moving the badger into our house. i wanted to make something homemade and warm, but i also needed something desperately simple - something i could make blindfolded with my hands tied behind my back and my kitchen aid stand mixer nowhere in sight. i opted for my trusty, default red sauce (which i will share with you all soon enough) swirled with goat cheese and tossed with rigatoni. and it was wonderful. but you see, as the sauce was simmering, i looked around the kitchen and realized that i had this whole mess of leftover goat cheese that i just couldn't bare to wrap up and put into our new and empty fridge. so here's what i created. you will love it and you will drool. and most likely make this again tomorrow or the next day.

goat cheese opening act

you will need:
a log or lump of plain goat cheese (chevre)
good quality extra virgin olive oil
fresh basil leaves
freshly ground black pepper and flakey salt

throw that log of goat cheese onto a pretty plate. i used a red one, but you can use whatever you fancy.

drizzle olive oil all over the cheese, the plate, yourself, etc. snip up your fresh basil leaves and throw all over the cheese and the plate. drizzle more olive oil over the whole shebang, and then crack some fresh black pepper over the top, along with some good, crunchy flakey salt.

we scooped this up with warm baguette. crackers or vegetable crudete would also pair nicely. i have since wondered about incorporating any number of toppings... kalamata olives and fresh oregano? sundried tomatoes? lemon zest and capers? let me know what you try and how it turns out.

stay tuned for that red sauce recipe i promised...