This colorful dish says “It’s spring!” Photo by John Anderson | Woodhouse Chocolate.

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April 2011

Product Reviews / Main Nibbles / Hors D’Oeuvres & Cocktail Snacks

Canapés Recipe

Fun Food: Peas & Carrots Canapés With Chocolate Mint Goat Cheese

CAPSULE REPORT: The carrots and peas of childhood are turned into a sophisticated canapé by Think of how virtuous you can feel for eating your peas and carrots!

Here, carrots and peas join goat cheese to create a light, refreshing, one-bite morsel. Because the recipe was developed by a chocolatier, there’s a bit of unsweetened chocolate for complexity.

The two layers are set upon thick slices of carrot, rather than bread or crackers.

Serves 12-24 as hors d’oeuvres.

The Peas Layer

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons finely minced shallot
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 12 ounces fresh-shelled peas or frozen petite peas
  plus two dozen blanched peas for garnish
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

Preparation

1. Heat a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the butter, then the shallots and saute until soft, but not brown.
2. Add the cream and reduce by half. Watch it, as the cream tends to bubble up and over. You may have to reduce the heat to low.
3. Add the peas and heat through. Cover and cook until tender (a few minutes is all it takes). Add the salt.
4. In a food processor, purée the peas until smooth. Press the peas through a strainer and chill.

The Minted Goat Cheese Layer

Ingredients

• 4 ounces fresh goat cheese, at room temperature
• 4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh mint leaves; use extra mint leaves
  for plate garnish
• 1/2 ounce 64% or higher dark chocolate, grated on a cheese grater
  or finely chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 6 large, fat carrots for base

Preparation

1. In a small mixing bowl, combine all ingredients.

To Assemble

1. Peel the carrots and from the fat end and cut into 1/4 inch coins. You want them to be big enough to make a good bite, so don’t use the smaller end of carrot for coin slices.
2. For garnish, cut the smaller ends of the carrots into squares (see photo above).
3. Spread about 1/4 teaspoon of the minted goat cheese on each carrot coin.
4. If you are adept with a piping bag, pipe on the pea purée. Otherwise, just spoon a dollop of pea purée on top of the goat cheese layer.
5. Garnish with extra peas and carrot squares. Garnish plate with mint leaves.

Recipe copyright Woodhouse Chocolate. All other content