Julia’s Amuse-Gueule au Roquefort

Date: 2010.03.06 | Category: Cooking | Tags: cheese,hors d'oeuvres,Julia Child

In honor of what I hope to be Ms. Meryl Streep’s winning weekend at the Oscar’s, I am going to share a few hors d’oeuvres from “The Art of French Cooking” by Julia Child. You can create these easy dishes for your Oscar Party tomorrow evening in honor of “Julie & Julia”.

Ingredients:

1/2 lb. Roquefort or blue cheese
4 to 6 Tbsp. softened butter
1 1/2 Tbsp. chives
1 Tbsp. finely minced celery
pinch of cayenne pepper
salt if needed
1/8 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. cognac or a few drops of Worcestershire sauce
1/2 c. fine, stale, white breadcrumbs
2 Tbsp. finely minced parsley

Crush the cheese in a bowl with 4 Tbsp. butter and work it into a smooth paste.  Beat in the chives, celery, seasonings and cognac or Worcestershire.  If mixture is very stiff, beat in more butter by fractions.  Check seasoning carefully.   Roll into balls about 1/2 inch in diameter.

Toss bread crumbs and parsley in a plate.  Roll the cheese balls in the mixture so they are well covered.  Chill.  Serve with your prettiest toothpicks (those are my words, not Julia’s).

The English translation of this is Roquefort Cheese Balls-cold.  These are a pungent burst of flavor in your mouth.  Enjoy!

xo–me