Choose flavored goat cheese to add another dimension to this easy, but impressive, appetizer.
Serves 8
Ingredients
• 1 package frozen puff pastry dough (17 ounces — 2 sheets), thawed
• 1⁄2 cup marinara sauce
• 1 package (4 ounces) fresh goat cheese
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme or parsley, chopped
1. Heat oven to 400° F. Using a 1-inch diameter cookie cutter, or the top of a small bottle, cut 24 disks of puff pastry; line onto an ungreased baking sheet. Stack another, matching pan atop the disks, and bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes. The second pan will keep the disks from rising too high.
2. Make a slight indentation on each disk with the tip of a small knife. Spoon in a bit of marinara sauce, crumble on a pinch of goat cheese, and sprinkle with chopped thyme. To serve, warm again in the oven for 1 minute, until the goat cheese attains a slight shimmer; serve hot.
Crumbling Goat Cheese
1. Fresh cheese made from goats’ milk, or chèvre, has a tangy flavor and smooth, creamy texture, even though it’s lower in fat than most other cheeses. Cold from the refrigerator, it’s easy to crumble between the fingers. Or you can flake it with the tines of a fork into attractive snowy-white nuggets.
