Redux of Goat Cheese with Olives, Lemon, and Thyme with Rosemary Flatbread

This is a re-post of one that I made back in October of 2008...this is a perfect recipe for New Years Eve or New Years Day....easy and so delicious...
Once again I want to wish you all a very Happy New Year...I am ringing out 2009 with a bang! Yesterday I sliced off a nice piece of my right thumb trying out my brand new Super Benriner mandoline...stupid? You bet? I was practicing with a little fingerling potato...no pun...and of course did not use the finger guard...stupid? YOU BET! So after a trip to the EMO and a bandage that looks like a baseball bat here I sit...not sure how much cooking I will do today, I can not get it wet and it was glued back together with some surgical glue... it is a beautiful snowy morning here in New Jersey. I am going to slap on the latex glove and get moving here...but I wanted to stop in and say hello!
Wishing all of you a very Happy and Healthy New Year! And lots of love!

This recipe was in the July issue of Gourmet. It is wonderful, especially with some homemade Crisp Rosemary Flatbread, recipe from the same issue. This was so good...each time I have made it we were ready to start licking the plate. So simple...yet the simple things are almost always the best!
The minute I saw this in the magazine it called to me! Love at first sight!
I just may never buy a cracker again!

Goat Cheese with Olives, Lemon and Thyme

Makes 4 (hors d'oeuvre) servings

by Maggie Ruggiero

ingredients

1/2 cup assorted olives
3 fresh thyme sprigs
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1 (4- to 5-ounces) fresh goat-cheese medallion or 2 (2-ounces) goat-cheese buttons

Accompaniment: crisp rosemary flatbread
preparation

Heat olives, thyme, oil, zest, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a small skillet or saucepan over low heat until fragrant (do not simmer). Cool to room temperature.

Serve olive mixture over goat cheese.

Cooks' note: This dish can be prepared 2 hours ahead and kept, covered, at room temperature.

This is wonderful eaten with this crisp rosemary flatbread...so easy and there is so much one can do with the recipe...

Crisp Rosemary Flatbread

Serves4

* Active time:15 min

* Start to finish:45 min

Gourmet/ July 2008

Think of it as a cracker version of rosemary-flecked flatbread. But these are the easiest crackers you’ll ever make: Rather than cutting the dough into small pieces, you bake three large pieces, then break them into smaller ones to serve. The jagged edges invite nibbling.

* 1 3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
* 1 tablespoon chopped rosemary plus 2 (6-inch) sprigs
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 3/4 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 cup water
* 1/3 cup olive oil plus more for brushing
* Flaky sea salt such as Maldon

*
Preheat oven to 450°F with a heavy baking sheet on rack in middle.
*
Stir together flour, chopped rosemary, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Make a well in center, then add water and oil and gradually stir into flour with a wooden spoon until a dough forms. Knead dough gently on a work surface 4 or 5 times.
*
Divide dough into 3 pieces and roll out 1 piece (keep remaining pieces covered with plastic wrap) on a sheet of parchment paper into a 10-inch round (shape can be rustic; dough should be thin).
*
Lightly brush top with additional oil and scatter small clusters of rosemary leaves on top, pressing in slightly. Sprinkle with sea salt. Slide round (still on parchment) onto preheated baking sheet and bake until pale golden and browned in spots, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer flatbread (discard parchment) to a rack to cool, then make 2 more rounds (1 at a time) on fresh parchment (do not oil or salt until just before baking). Break into pieces.

Cooks’ note: Flatbread can be made 2 days ahead and cooled completely, then kept in an airtight container at room temperature.

Recipe by Maggie Ruggiero