Baked Goat Cheese and Tomato Fondue

This was my contribution to our 2013 cookbook cooking club. Instead of fresh or canned tomatoes, I started with tomatoes I roasted last summer. The tomatoes are cooked with shallots and garlic, a bit of wine, and at the end, chopped dates.

A special cheese - Cabecou - was called for; this is a raw milk goat or sheep cheese, illegal to import into the US, but a version preserved in jars is prepared by a single cheese maker in California. In Utah, though, it was impossible to source. I substituted regular goat cheese, which I formed into small discs.

Individual ramekins were supplied with the tomato mix, the goat cheese is added on top, and they were then baked for about 5 minutes. The result is melty goat cheese swimming in the well flavored tomato. Croutons are called for, but instead I used fingers of toasted bread (easier to dip).

The addition of dates to the tomato added an interesting note of sweetness. The recipe made a lot of the tomato mix - more than enough for twice the number of individuals.

I think my roasted tomatoes might have been too well cooked - they were very soft, not in chunks as suggested in the recipe. Clearly operator error.

This might have been better than my rating, but by the time we got to this dish I was so full I couldn't really appreciate it. Again operator error!