Herbed goat cheese with garlic {Queso de cabra con hierbas aromaticas}
This is my mom’s recipe for herbed goat cheese with garlic, it’s a very easy way to give fresh plain goat cheese a lot of flavor. You can use your favorite herbs, fresh is preferred but dry herbs also work. I love adding oregano and thyme, other herbs that work well are parsley, basil, mint, cilantro, and even rosemary (in moderation).
My mom always had at least one goat on our farm when we were growing up. I still remember waking up in the morning when she went out to call the goats to come eat “chiva, chiva, chiva”…She still has goats now, and my dad likes to joke that my mom won’t travel anywhere for more than 2 weeks because she can’t bear to be away from her goats for too long.
The main reason she has the goat(s) is for the milk; we drank a lot of it when I was growing up. Though I wasn’t a fan of the plain goat milk taste, so I had to be bribed and have chocolate with it. The other use for the goat milk was to make goat cheese, which, again as a kid, I didn’t really like the goaty taste, so my mom would add garlic and herbs to get us to eat it. (Yes, we did love garlic)
How to use this herbed goat cheese with garlic?
I use this herbed goat cheese mainly on toasted bread slices (great with red wine), but it is also a great addition to pasta and soups. I also love it in this salad with poached pears, which is a great combination.
Here are some other ideas for making use of this garlicky goat cheese mix:
- As a topping for figs, slice the figs in half and scoop some of this goat cheese mix on top.
- As a filling for stuffed squash blossoms.
- As a filling for jalapeño poppers.
- As an addition to salads.
- Add it to a quesadilla or on top of pizza for a garlicky flavor twist.
- Mixed with vegetables as an empanada filling
- As a topping for a potato gratin (or any other veggie gratin).
- As a topping for crostini or toasted bread, add slices of poached pears on top for a sweet and savory combo.
- Other crostini combination ideas: goat cheese mix + fresh chopped tomatoes, or try goat cheese mix + sauteed bell peppers.
- On top of cucumber slices or raw zucchini slices as a light low-carb appetizer.
Herbed goat cheese with garlic
Ingredients
- 11 oz plain fresh goat cheese at room temperature
- 2 garlic cloves crushed
- 2 tbs of chopped fresh herbs can use basil, mint, oregano, thyme, parsley, rosemary, among others
- 1 tbs Sour cream or creme fraiche – optional, add if the mix is a bit dry and needs an extra touch of creaminess
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Mix all of the ingredients together, you can use either a fork to mix them, or if the goat cheese isn't fully at room temperature you can also use a food processor.
- The sour cream or crem fraiche is an optional addition, depending on the goat cheese consistency you can add it if you want the cheese mix to be extra creamy.
Additional recipes with goat cheese:
I am obsessed with goat cheese! That’s so cool your mom makes her own. My husband and I want to live in Africa one day, and so I hope to learn how to make goat cheese so we too can make our own!