Make This: Water Crackers with Spring Pea and Goat Cheese Spread
Every Sunday, we head to my in-law's for family dinner. But this isn't an order-a-pizza kind of family, even a casual dinner at the Cardoza house is a five-course affair. We start with appetizers and bubbly wine clustered around the kitchen counter. Eventually, we gravitate to the dining room table for the main course, salad course, cheese course and dessert. Not to mention, lots more awesome wine.
While my father-in-law takes care of preparing dinner—everything from cheese souffle on a lazy day to brisket and roasted root veggies on a more ambitious Sunday—I'm tasked with making the appetizer. Sometimes I get elaborate with anchovy- and tarragon-studded gougeres or fresh spring rolls. Other times I keep it simple with whatever's rattling around in the fridge.
This was one of those keep-it-simple weeks. Peas, goat cheese, preserved lemon and salt whizzed in the food processor, piped onto water crackers using a Ziploc bag and topped with fresh chives from the garden and a few edible lilac flowers. Simple, pretty and oh-so-springy.
