Goat Cheese Toasts with Roasted Root Vegetables
About this Recipe
By: Rachel
Recipes come about in different ways. Sometimes, it’s because of a craving. You really just want—no, need—the perfect enchilada: the one from that place that closed, or that one restaurant in the town where you used to live. With each new restaurant you try, your hopes are raised higher, then dashed; as every subsequent enchilada lets you down harder, you try out of sheer desperation to recreate it yourself.
Sometimes, it’s out of necessity. You’re preparing for a dinner party, everything is going to plan, and now—surprise!—your cousin is bringing her boyfriend, a devoted vegan. Time to come up with some new dishes, and quickly! (One of my favorite salads came about in just this way.)
Often, recipes come about by making the best out of what you can find in your refrigerator and pantry on any given day. This time, it was errant beets and carrots, half a log of goat cheese, a lemon, and some (not terribly fresh) bread.
Roasting the vegetables brings out their natural sweetness. A quick marinade in bright Champagne vinegar and olive oil creates a perfect match for luscious, tangy goat cheese, and the lemon zest provides just a little lift.
Serving it atop warm, hearty toasts makes this an ideal first course for chilly fall and winter months. Beets and carrots are my favorite combination, but try this with fennel, parsnips, or celery root. If you want to add some sweetness, try drizzling a little honey over the top to finish.
Goat Cheese Toasts with Roasted Root Vegetables
Ingredients
- 2 slices crusty, Italian-style bread
- 1 large or 2 small beets
- 2 large or 3 medium carrots (I prefer using heirloom rainbow carrots for this recipe)
- 1 generous pinch fresh thyme leaves
- 1 tablespoon Champagne vinegar
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt, divided
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided, plus more for drizzling
- 4 ounces (115g) fresh goat cheese, at room temperature
- Zest of one lemon
Step by Step Instructions
Step 1
- Preheat your oven to 400ºF (200ºC). Trim the beets, wrap tightly in foil, and roast on a lined sheet pan until pierced easily with a knife (45-60 minutes). Let cool.
Step 2
- While the beets are roasting, peel and dice carrots. Sprinkle with ¼ teaspoon kosher salt and thyme leaves, and drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil, and roast on a lined sheet pan for about 20 minutes, or until tender.
Step 3
- Unwrap foil from beets, and allow to cool. Rub the skin with a paper towel to remove. Dice the beets to roughly match the size of the carrots.
Step 4
- Set your oven to broil. Add the diced vegetables to a bowl and add the vinegar, remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil, remaining ¼ teaspoon salt, and a grind or two of black pepper, and stir to combine. Set aside to marinate.
Step 5
- Mix goat cheese with lemon zest, and set aside.
Step 6
- Place the bread on a small lined sheet pan, and divide the goat cheese between the two slices, spreading evenly. Set under the broiler for up to a minute to warm. Spoon the marinated vegetables over the top of each slice, and serve immediately.
Beverage Pairing
By: Olivia
Could you grab a Sauvignon Blanc to pair with this toast? Absolutely, it’s a no-brainer. Goat cheese loves a Sauv Blanc, particularly from Sancerre, in the Loire Valley. But if you want to amp up the pairing to match this delicious toast, look no further than Weingut Schlossmühlenhof ‘BodenFunk’ Müller-Thurgau! A cross between Riesling and Madeleine Royale, Müller-Thurgau is an often ignored varietal that is acidic, aromatic, and has the right amount of texture to complement the roasted root vegetables. Why “Boden Funk” you might be asking? I picked it up from Violet Wine recently and it’s a steal for the quality.
