Zestify! - Zesty Goat Cheese Stuffed Campari Tomatoes

Love these zesty little tomato bombs. I've made this for years and they have been an easy go-to starter for many holiday gatherings, special occasion get togethers and evening dinner parties with friends.

This was one of the appetizers we served on Easter Sunday although, tucked away in a bottom corner of the fridge, they were forgotten until we went to clean up! Oh well, not as if they will go to waste as it was hard enough to keep them from being devoured before our guests arrived.

The kids love tomatoes and of course, they also love the pink Argentinian shrimp that goes on sale around holiday time here in Florida.

Even though we cooked up about 2 of the 4 lbs of these beautiful pink shrimp for a shrimp platter before dinner, it was definitely not enough.

We should have cooked all 4 lbs because we had just set out the shrimp and cheese platter when in the blink of an eye, literally, the dining room got very quiet and the next minute, where once there was an entire tray of perfectly poached pink shrimp, one lonely little shrimp remained...

I mean... hello, shrimp ghost nation?? I got quite a giggle out of it, so thoroughly impressed with the stealthy quiet threat that comes with 3 starving teenage boys who normally, are about as quiet as a heard of buffalo. And I laugh because, well, they are always starving and I have no idea where they put it or how they could quietly coordinate such a thorough shrimp attack.

Tsunami, on the other hand, was thoroughly unimpressed, more annoyed than I've ever seen him and imposed an instantaneous lock down on everything until the rest of our company arrived. I could see them trying very hard to contain their mischievous grins, knowing full well that they just destroyed that plate in about 3 minutes flat. Sulking, the youngest starts to make some excuses like, "Well, Dad, we're STARVING..." And so I scoot in with some bread and butter just out of the oven. Better to sacrifice something willingly than to wait for another stealth Easter table attack.

And that is likely how these little lovelies got left behind and forgotten in the shuffle. Almost as soon as the shrimp were gone, the doorbell rings and Easter Dinner is officially on.

Super duper easy to make ahead. I prep the goat cheese filling and wait until the day of to finish the stuffed tomatoes, which ironically, was exactly what I was doing when the shrimp left the building...

This is really an herbed cheese filling and the ingredients I use are for guidance only. As always, use whatever herbs and seasonings you prefer. But the lemon zest is so bright and refreshing, you should try it that way at least once.

Here's what you need:

• 8 oz of goat cheese
• 1 lb of Campari or large cherry tomatoes
• Fresh chives
• Zest of one lemon
• 1/2 tsp of garlic powder
• 1 tbsp of Rustic Tuscan Italian seasoning from Costco
• Thinly sliced red onion or parsley, for garnish, optional (we love red onion so it's a must)

1. Make the cheese filling by letting the goat cheese come to room temperature in a mixing bowl. You will refrigerate it later but it makes mixing the other ingredients a tad easier.
2. Add about 1/4 c of chopped chives, the zest of one lemon, garlic powder, Italian seasoning and mix thoroughly.
3. Cover the cheese mixture with saran wrap or a silicone bowl cover and refrigerate until you are ready to stuff the tomatoes.
4. Prep the tomatoes by gently slicing off the tops or slicing them in half. Scoop out the seeds using a small teaspoon and reserve for another use. (I make a marinara/pizza sauce or a tomato vinaigrette with the innards.) 
5. Using two small spoons, I gently stuff the hollowed out tomatoes with a spoonful of cheese filling, using one spoon to help push the cheese off the other spoon into the tomatoes.
6. Garnish with chives and red onions or parsley or whatever you like.

As I mentioned, we forgot them in all of the goofy shrimp chaos so I know they will keep for a day or so if you cover them with plastic wrap and keep refrigerated. You can also make a day ahead if you like, but I like to prep the cheese and stuff them on serving day. Either way, they will keep a couple of days before the tomatoes begin to get a bit soft.

How to Make Quark

This year was an amazing year in regards to my culinary education.  I usually make New Year's Resolutions and for 2012, most of my resolutions centered around exploring new things and improving upon my limited knowledge of other things. This year, for me, was all about documenting my experiences with the things I personally enjoy the most, which are gardening and cooking.

On the list were things like:

1. Learn how to make cheese.
2. Learn about raw diets and improving health
3. Grow better beets.
4. Improve my techniques for propagating roses.
5. Practice acceptance and tolerance.

So, it's clear some of those items are lifelong ambitions. I'm ok with that. I recognize the importance of learning new things, improving old skills and practicing a wide range of objectives I am neither new to or good at, but one of my passions is food and as such, this gives me quite a wide canvas with which to practice, practice, practice.

I made quark for the first time this year and after seeing how easy it was, it is really hard to imagine why this lovely, creamy, soft cheese isn't available here in the U.S.  At least, I've never seen it in a store and the closest thing I have seen is what the ethnic groceries call "farmer's cheese". No idea yet whether this is the same, but something tells me it is not.

Quark (pronounced just like it looks) is the European's version of  "philly" cream cheese. In fact, when you are in Germany or Austria, they may not know what cream cheese is but if you say "Philly", they know exactly what you mean.  They look similar but they are not at all the same ball of cheese. 

Americans have not been properly introduced to this delicacy, so I am happy to do the honors if this is new to you, too.  Trust me, you will love this cheese if you have any cheese loving qualities in your heart at all. It is not only easy to make at home but it can be eaten sweet or savory, as well.

Ingredients:

1. 1/2 gallon of organic cultured Buttermilk (as fresh as possible; check the dates!)
2. 1 gallon of organic whole cow's milk (as fresh as possible; check the dates!)

How to Make Quark:

1. Let milk come to room temperature and then combine the milks into a large stockpot that can hold your milk. You can use more or less of the two milks above. Those ratios don't have to be exact. This ratio is a bit overkill and lazy, however, it works well. Regardless, I try to use at least a 1-4 ratio of buttermilk to milk.  Use a pot with a lid so you can keep it covered while it does its magic.
2. Let milk sit at room temperature overnight or up to 48 hours. It shouldn't take that long but since this is a mesophilic culture, it means that this culture requires "meso" or medium temperatures to culture properly. In cheese language, that means not too hot or cold, so warmish room temperatures are ideal. In the winter in Minnesota, it can take almost two days if my kitchen is on the cool side.
3. Once the whole pot has cultured, it will look almost solid, like a good set jello mold and it is ready.  You are supposed to cut the quark with a long knife or spatula in a grid pattern. This creates the "curd" and allows it to separate from the whey. Curds and whey? Little Miss Muffet was probably making quark... Not entirely necessary but kinda fun in a messy kid sort of way.
4. Strain the quark to drain off excess whey.  Here, you can make it as dry or as soft as you like. The longer you strain it, the dryer in texture. Too dry, it gets a tad crumbly but some Germans like it this way. Too wet and the cheese will weep a bit, pooling whey in the cheese, which some Germans also like. It's up to you so test it along the way to see what you prefer.  And in case you didn't know better, save the whey! It is very nutritious and you can use it to make bread, soup, stock, broth, or feed your plants. Seriously, it is just as valuable as the cheese itself.  You can even drink it.

What to do with it?

1. Make German Cheesecake, duh?!
2. Make Breakfast quark - German equivalent to yogurt with fruit preserves or fresh fruit. They love pineapple. Interesting and true.  This is pineapple, quark and condensed milk for sweetness. Super yummy.
3. Add chives, onions, salt and pepper and serve it with baked potatoes. You won't go back to sour cream... ok, maybe you will want this AND sour cream. :)
4. Spread it on toast with some jelly. By now, you know what to do with this... if not, figure it out because it is some righteous cheese. 
5. Make Stollen!!  oh yea!  one of my all time favorite Christmas classics, unplugged! I will post my recipe for that in my next post hopefully because my first try rocked my world and the secret ingredient was in fact, my homemade quark!  This is even better for Christmas than my Dad's favorite Christmas raisin bread.

If you don't know what any of this is... then open your mouths, your bellies and your minds, American friends because you are about to be blown away by this little cheese with a million purposes. All good eats, no matter who you are. Unless of course you are allergic to dairy then we have to find something goat-y for you... I made a chevre cheesecake last week and that was pretty darn easy and awesome, too, so stay tuned and by all means, let me know how this works for you.