What I'm Bringing to Book Club: Berry Wine Compote Served With Goat Cheese and Basil

While I love book club because it means I get to read books that I likely would not have picked out on my own, I also love it because it gives me the chance to try new appetizer recipes. We'll just ignore the fact that some of the book picks are clunkers (spoiler alert, Frog Music is terrible.)

I found this recipe for berry wine compote in the June 2015 issue of Sunset magazine. The original recipe calls for boysenberries–which I would use in a hot minute if I had access to them–but alas, no such luck in the wilds of Northern Wisconsin. So instead I went with their suggested alternate: a mix of fresh raspberries and blackberries.

Cooked down with a spicy and fruity wine, this compote has a deep and layered flavor. Add to that some goat cheese and fresh basil, and you've got a delicious savory and sweet appetizer to share with friends over a glass of wine. And maybe some actual discussion of the book. Maybe.

Berry Wine Compote Served with Goat Cheese and Basil
makes 8-10 servings

3/4 cup fresh raspberries
3/4 cup fresh blackberries
1/4 cup spicy, fruity red wine, such as Garnacha (also called Grenache)
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
4 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
about 1/3 cup thinly sliced fresh basil leaves
thin lightly-salted crackers

1. Add the raspberries, blackberries, wine, and sugar to a medium sauce pan. Coarsely mash with a pastry blender or potato masher. Heat over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Then reduce the heat and simmer until reduced to 2/3 cup, 10-20 minutes.
2. Season with pepper to taste. Let cool to room temperature before spooning into a small serving bowl.
3. Serve on a cheese board with goat cheese, thinly-sliced basil, and crackers.

(from this recipe in Sunset magazine)

Made From Scratch: Gluten-Free Almond Flour Multi-seeded Crackers

After eating all-things-sugar for about a month straight during the holidays, I'm slowly turning to more healthy snacks during the day. As a good Wisconsinite, one of my favorite go-to snacks is cheese and crackers (lately I've been alternating between a white cheddar with cranberries and a jalapeño muenster). Of course, crackers are also a great vehicle for healthy dips such as hummus.

During a gluten-free phase last year I became hooked on gluten-free crackers. I'm particularly a fan of the crackers that are full of different seeds, giving them both a great flavor and texture. However, the downside of these crackers is their price point. Often, a box of not-that-many crackers is over $5.

So what's a girl to do? Make her own, of course. To make my crackers, I used a base of almond flour and added a couple of eggs along with some olive oil as a binder. A little bit of salt and a handful of seeds gives the crackers flavor and crunch. If you'd like, add a bit of freshly-cracked black pepper to the crackers just before baking.

I used a pizza cutter to slice the dough into squares; but my crackers are far from uniform in shape. (I suppose I could have broken out a ruler, but who has time for that?) If you really want everything to be evenly-sized, I'd recommend using a square (or round) cookie cutter. These crackers are tasty, but simple. If you'd like to pack in more flavor, consider adding in a teaspoon or more of your favorite dried (or fresh) herbs. Ooh, how about rosemary-sea salt crackers? Maybe with a little grated Parmesan? Looks like I need to pick up some more almond flour at the store!

Gluten-Free Almond Flour Multi-seeded Crackers (printer-friendly version)
makes 25-35 crackers, depending on size

2 cups blanched almond flour
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
4 tablespoons seeds (I used 1 tablespoon each of poppy seeds, white sesame seeds, black sesame seeds, and chia seeds)
2 eggs
1 tablespoon olive oil
freshly cracked black pepper [optional]

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpat, and set aside.
2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and seeds. Add in the eggs and olive oil and stir to combine until a dough forms.
3. Divide the dough into two equal portions. Take one portion and pat it into a disc shape. Place the dough disc between two sheets of parchment paper and roll out the dough until it's about 1/8-inch thick. Use a sharp knife or pizza cutter to cut the dough into 2-inch squares. Place the squares on the prepped baking sheet and top with freshly-cracked black pepper if desired. Bake for 12-15 minutes, flipping halfway through the baking time, until lightly browned and crisp. Remove the crackers from the baking sheet and let cool completely on a wire rack. Repeat with the remaining disc of dough.
4. Store the crackers in an airtight container at room temperature.

What I'm Snacking On: Black Sesame Seed Crackers

Since I mastered the art of baking flatbread the other week, I figured I'd take it one step further and bake up a batch of crackers. Of course, I couldn't make plain crackers, as I opted to add in a healthy handful of black sesame seeds to the mix. These crackers took about 20-25 minutes to bake in my oven, but I think they should really only take about 15-20 minutes to crisp up. (The crackers will continue to firm up after you remove them from the oven.) My 1960s stove appears to be starting to show its age -- it is routinely warming to about 200 degrees hotter than the temperature to which I'm setting it, and it also is not staying consistently at the set temperature once it has warmed up. Nothing could be more frustrating to someone who likes to bake a lot! So, if my oven does not get into line soon, I may have to stop including recipes for awhile until I can ensure that the temperatures and cooking times I'm providing are accurate and can be replicated.

Black Sesame Seed Crackers (printer-friendly version)
makes about three dozen crackers

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons black sesame seeds
2/3 cup warm water
1/3 cup olive oil

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, salt, and sesame seeds.
3. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Pour in the water and olive oil.
4. Stir to combine.
5. Once the dough comes together, turn it out onto a lightly-floured work surface. Knead the dough a couple of times.
6. Split the dough into three balls. Wrap each in a piece of plastic wrap. Chill them in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
7. Place a sheet of parchment paper on your work surface. Working with one dough ball at a time, use a rolling pin to roll the dough as flat as possible into a rectangular shape. (Add more flour as needed to prevent the dough from sticking.)
8. Use a knife or pastry wheel to cut the crackers into squares. (Depending on how even your rectangle is, you may have some funky-shaped crackers along the edge of the dough.)
9. Sprinkle the crackers with Maldon salt.
10. Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes, or until the crackers are golden brown. Watch them carefully at the end of the cooking time, as they can go from "done" to "burned" very quickly.
11. Remove the crackers from the oven and cool on a wire rack.
12. Crackers can be stored in a tightly-closed container for up to one week.

Afternoon Snack

Mid-afternoon is when the munchies (no, not those kind of munchies) tend to strike for me. I'm always looking for something new to snack on, and I think I've found a winner with this recent find -- a handful of Kashi crackers and a wedge of Laughing Cow cheese. The cheese was another score at Costco -- a pack of three tubs for under $8. Thus far I've tried both the 7 grain and honey sesame cracker flavors and think both taste great. And you gotta love the whole grain ingredients!