I have been slightly obsessed with blue cheese recently. Lots of people feel strongly about blue cheese, either hating or loving it. I have to admit that I was never overly fond of it until recent years.
My first exposure to blue cheese was the dressing. I worked at The Cheesecake Factory for several years and tried the blue cheese dressing there. I loved it so much I could have drank it from the gallon-sized plastic containers in the walk-in cooler where it was housed.
My Christmas Eve dinner this year had a comfort food theme: Mac and Cheese, creamed Brussels Sprouts and biscuits – all cheese flavored. For starters, I served even more cheese with this blue cheese and artichoke spread. The recipe, featured in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, can be found at eatwisconsincheese.com.
ingredients.
- 3 T. seasoned dry breadcrumbs (I used plane Panko)
- 2 8-ounce packages cream cheese, softened
- 2 c. blue cheese, crumbled
- 1 1/3 c. dairy sour cream, divided
- 3 eggs
- 3 T. butter
- 1 large shallot, minced
- 1 T. minced fresh oregano
- 1 T. minced fresh marjoram
- 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
- 1 c. chopped artichoke hearts, drained well (I used one can)
- quartered artichoke hearts for garnish, if desired
directions.
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Butter bottom and sides of a 9-inch springform pan. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs. Refrigerate.
- Sauté shallot in butter until tender, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile beat cream cheese in large mixer bowl until light and fluffy. Stir in blue cheese and 2/3 cup sour cream. Beat in eggs. Stir shallot into cheese mixture along with herbs and pepper. Fold in artichoke pieces.
- Pour into prepared pan. Bake 35 to 45 minutes, or until puffed and golden brown. Cool 10 minutes.
- Gently spread remaining sour cream over top being careful not to tear the top. Garnish with artichoke quarters. Bake 5 more minutes. Cool to room temperature on wire rack. Refrigerate several hours or overnight. To serve, place on serving plate. Carefully run knife around outer edges; remove sides of pan. Serve with mild-flavored crackers or crusty bread.
Looking back on the directions, it’s unclear to me if you’re supposed to serve this appetizer cold, room temperature or reheat. I served it room temperature but feel that it should be a hot dip. I loved everything about this dish except for the texture. It was too quiche-y to me. I felt that it should have been less eggy and more dense. I would try this again and maybe reduce the eggs by one or two and see what happens.
Recipe rating:
What a truly amazing spread,…another must make! Yummmm!
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