Amy Cotler: Goat Cheese & Rhubarb Chutney Bruschette

The following was originally posted as "A Trio of Spring Bruschette" at Amy Cotler's blog The Locavore Way. Visit her post to find recipes for the  Spring Radish and Anchovy Butter and Arugula Pesto and Egg Bruschette so you can complete your trio!


Now that goodies are popping out of the ground in rapid succession, it’s time to lather toasted baguettes with everything local. So disobey your mom and play with your food. Fool with anything farm fresh, from goat cheese and sun-ripened berries in June to roasted butternut squash puree with fresh sage in October.

Serve these either solo or as a trio with drinks after work to stave off hunger pangs until a late supper. We savored them outside on a lazy spring evening, surrounded by greenery and buoyed by the late evening sun.

This recipe makes about 12 bruschette, serving 2-4 before dinner.
 
Goat Cheese & Rhubarb Chutney Bruschette

There were two old rhubarb patches in my backyard when I bought my house years ago, so I’m always looking for things to do with my tangy crop. This year, I made tons of this simple chutney and froze it in ice cube trays to enjoy as a condiment with cheese, as in this recipe, or with grilled chicken or fish. Delicious.

About 1 cup finely diced rhubarb (1-2 stalks)
1-1/2 tablespoon finely chopped shallot or onion
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon coarsely grated ginger, packed
1/2 teaspoon cider vinegar
pinch of kosher or sea salt
12 slices of baguette
1/3-1/2 cup fresh goat cheese, room temperature

1-Slice rhubarb lengthwise 2-4 times, depending on its thickness, then across its length into a small dice. Measure 1 cup. Toss into a 2 cup glass measuring cup or small pot with the shallot or onions, sugar and ginger. Microwave or cook in a small pot over medium heat, stirring once or twice, until the rhubarb is soft, 1-2 minutes. (It’s nice if it still holds it shape, but don’t worry if it doesn’t.) Stir in the cider vinegar and salt. Set aside at room temperature or chill. (This can be made several days ahead of time if you wish.) If the chutney is watery, spoon off extra liquid.

2-Assemble just before serving: Toast 12 baguette rounds in a toaster or the broiler, turning once, until slightly crisp. Spread with goat cheese and top with the chutney. Serve immediately.

A longtime advocate of local eating, Amy Cotler is the author of The Locavore Way and founding director of Berkshire Grown, a food initiative that received international recognition as a model for local food advocacy. She now consults, teaches, and lectures on food and farm-to-table issues. She worked as the Web food forum host for The New York Times, and her food articles have been published in numerous periodicals, including Fine Cooking, Kitchen Garden, Cook’s, Family Fun, Self, Gastronomique, and Orion. Her five cookbooks include The Secret Garden Cookbook, My Little House Cookbook, and Fresh From the Farm: The Massachusetts Farm to School Cookbook, which is available free online. Amy has developed close to 1,000 recipes, including many for the revision of The Joy of Cooking. She’s taught at the Institute for Culinary Education and the Culinary Institute of America, where she also researched and wrote teaching text for their professional cookbook. She lives in Western Massachusetts. Reach her at www.freshcotler.com.