Vegetables & Goat Cheese
The idea of this dish came forward out of my love for those really tasty Italian seasoned vegetables, which are served as a side dish in (of course) Italy or the better Italian restaurants. I tried several ways of preparing them and this is one of my favorites. The melted goat cheese on top makes it extra delicious and satisfactory as a main course.
Ingredients (serves 2):
- 1 zucchini
- 1 fennel
- 1 eggplant
- 1 onion
- 2 garlic cloves
- Dried Italian herbs (I prefer a mix of basil, thyme, rosemary and fennel seeds, but mix it up however you like)
- Good pinch of olive oil
- 2 slices of goat cheese (about 80 - 100 grams each, if preferred low fat)
- Baking dish
Preheat your oven to 180 degrees (Celsius). Cut the fennel, zucchini, eggplant and onion into pieces. Put them into the baking dish and add the two whole garlic cloves. Season the vegetables the way you like, as mentioned I prefer some basil, thyme, rosemary and fennel seeds. Give the vegetables a good pinch of olive oil and mix them up.
Put the baking dish with your Italian seasoned vegetables in the oven for approximately 30 minutes. Give them a toss after 15 minutes so that all vegetables get evenly roasted. If the vegetables are cooked after 30 minutes (sometimes it takes a little longer, about 30 - 40 minutes, try them with a fork, if soft they are ready), you may take the baking dish out of the oven.
Switch your oven to grill and put both slices of goat cheese on top of the vegetables. Put them back in the oven under the grill for 5 - 10 minutes until the goat cheese melts and is a bit grilled. Once the cheese is melted, take the baking dish out of the oven and serve the vegetables with one slice of cheese each on two plates, serve with some biological raw honey to sweeten up the goat cheese - if preferred.
Bon appétit!
