Category: food recipes
Charred Corn Salad with Queso Fresco
We love it when our favorite creameries introduce new cheeses! Evergreen Lane, a quaint farm and dairy in Fennville, MI, is most known for their seasonal goat’s milk cheeses and jersey cow’s milk cheeses.
Queso Fresco is Evergreen Lane’s newest addition to our case. It is a fresh cow’s milk cheese, perfect for crumbling over salads, tacos, enchiladas, and this charred corn salad. Compared to traditional queso fresco, Evergreen Lane’s version isn’t as dry. So let it sit out, unwrapped, for a few minutes to dry out.
This corn salad is a perfect dish to take on a picnic, to a BBQ, or just eat alone in your house. Thanks to food goddess Alison Roman for the idea to add corn nuts to a corn salad. The extra crunch and saltiness takes the salad to the next level. If making this ahead, wait to stir in the corn nuts just before serving, so they stay nice and crunchy.
Charred Corn Salad with Queso Fresco
Ingredients
- 6 ears of corn
- 1 shallot, minced
- 1 Divina Calabrian Chili pepper, finely chopped
- ½ cup cilantro, chopped
- 1 tbsp EVOO
- 1 lime, juiced
- ½ tbsp Tajin or other brand of chile lime seasoning
- ½ cup corn nuts
- ½ piece Evergreen Lane Queso Fresco, crumbled
- Salt and pepper, as needed
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- In a dry cast iron skillet over medium-high heat, add the ears of corn. Cook and rotate corn until kernels begin to char, about 8 minutes. Remove from the skillet and place on a baking sheet. Place the baking sheet in the oven and bake for an additional 10 minutes. Set aside until cool enough to handle.*
- In a mixing, place an upside down glass or bowl that fits in the bottom part of the bowl. Trim the bottom end of one corn cob to sit even on the bottom of the glass. Slice the kernels off the cob and let them fall into the bowl. Repeat with remaining ears. Remove the glass and stir the kernels.
- Add the minced shallots, chopped calabrian pepper, chopped cilantro, EVOO, lime juice, and chile lime seasoning to the corn. Stir to combine. Taste and add more chile lime seasoning or salt and pepper as needed.
Notes
*You can also char the corn on an outdoor grill.
Julianna Spring Pizza
More signs that spring is here! Julianna is back in the case and looking beautiful as ever.
The rind of this semi-soft goat cheese from Capriole is rubbed with thyme, lavender, rosemary, and wildflowers. It has a delicate sweet and savory balance and a buttery texture that makes it a great cheese to snack on with olives and charcuterie.
Fully melting a delicate cheese like this will dilute some of its subtleties, so adding the cheese after the pizza is cooked warms it up a bit, without taking away the flavors.
Feel free to use your favorite pizza dough recipe, precooked flatbread, or frozen pizza crust.
One bunch of grocery store scallions will be plenty for this recipe. But if you have larger, farmer’s market green onions, use a few less. You’ll want a little more than 2 cups of sliced scallions before you start cooking them.
If you are feeling spicy, feel free to sprinkle over some red pepper flakes or serve with some chili oil.
Julianna Spring Pizza
Ingredients
- 1 recipe your favorite pizza crust
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 bunch scallions
- 1 tbsp EVOO
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 2 radishes
- Splash of light vinegar, rice, white wine, white balsamic
- .25 pound wedge of Capriole Julianna
- 1 tbsp tarragon leaves or chives
- Honey, for drizzling
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Heat oven to 425°F. Place pizza stone, pan, or baking sheet in the oven to preheat.
- Prepare or roll out pizza crust. Let rest while preparing the scallions.
- Slice the scallions on an extreme bias. Cook over medium-high heat with butter for 6-8 minutes, until the scallions are bright green, soft, with a few crispy spot. Season with salt and pepper.
- Carefully remove the hot stone, pan, or sheet from the oven and place pizza crust on the hot pan. Drizzle with olive oil and spread on a thin layer of mustard. Scatter scallions evenly over the crust.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and crisp.
- While the pizza is in the oven, thinly slice the radishes. Place in a small bowl with a splash of vinegar. Set aside.
- Thinly slice the Julianna. Don't remove the rind!
- Chop the tarragon leaves or chives.
- Remove the pizza from the oven and top with the sliced Julianna and let the residual heat of the pizza slightly melt the cheese.
- Scatter the radishes and herbs over the top and drizzle with honey.
- Slice and serve.
Notes
*If you think your crust will take longer, feel free to add the scallions halfway through cooking. But they should be able to last about 20 minutes in a hot oven. Or if you are using a premade pizza crust and it doesn’t need that much time in the oven, cook the scallions a bit longer on the stove.
Onion Dip
Springtime means lots of things – rain, flowers, warmer temperatures. But most of all, fresh Michigan produce! And one of the first crops to pop up are onions.
Spring onions, leeks, and ramps are all beautiful vegetables that signal that spring has sprung. If you find yourself having a few too many on hand, make some onion dip! Any combination and variety of onions will work, even if it’s not springtime – all colors of onions, shallots, leeks, spring onions, ramps, etc.
The most important part of the recipe is the slow caramelization. Trim the tender green parts of the ramps and scallions and add those in towards the end of the cooking time, to not burn them to a crisp.
Some new yogurts from Bellwether Farms have been added to the case. Pick up a tub and try some in this dip.
Our favorite Salt & Vinegar Sal de Ibiza chips make a great dipper for this dip. But don’t limit yourself to just chips. This dip can be spread on pizza dough for an oniony flatbread, or used as a spread on sandwiches.
Onion Dip
Ingredients
- Olive oil
- 4 cups assorted onions, thinly sliced
- 2-3 cloves garlic, smashed
- 1 anchovey filet (optional, but oooh so good)
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ¼ cup sour cream, crème fraîche or plain yogurt
- 1 tsp onion powder
- Salt and pepper
- Fresh herbs – dill, parsely, chives, chopped
- Piparra peppers or pepperoncini peppers, chopped
Instructions
- Drizzle olive oil to cover the surface of a wide and shallow pan. Add the sliced onions, reserving tender green leaves. Saute over low heat, stirring frequently, until onions reduce in size and become brown and caramel-y, about two hours. During the last 30 minutes of cooking, add the anchovy filet (if using,) smash the garlic cloves, and add the reserved tender leaves and stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper and let cool slightly.
- In a medium bowl, stir together the mayo, sour cream/crème fraîche/yogurt, and onion powder. Add the caramelized onion mixture and stir to combine. Add more creamy ingredients as needed until the desired consistency is achieved. Season with salt and pepper.
- Transfer to a serving dish and top with fresh herbs and chopped peppers. Dip can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 5 days.
After 30 minutes 
After 1 hour 
After 1 ½ hours 
After 2 hours
Sardine Sandwich
If you’ve heard it once, you’ve heard it 100 times.
WE LOVE TINNED FISH.
They are a delicious snack, full of brightness, flavor, and nutrients. And even better, you don’t have to cook any seafood to enjoy them!
Tinned fish is even more important and useful during these quarantined times because they are shelf-stable and can be the protein backbone for all sorts of meals. —> see all our other tinned fish recipes.
A simple and well-thought-out sandwich is hard to beat. This sandwich combines the briny and salty sardines, the acidic crunch of pickled carrots, spicy and creamy Calabrian mayo, all topped off with crunchy potato chips.
Use this recipe as a blueprint for more tinned fish sandwiches:
- Any tinned fish can be substituted – tuna, mackerel, salmon, clams
- “Quickle” any crunchy veggies you have on hand – radishes, onions, cucumbers, asparagus
- Feel free to add more to the mayo – lemon zest, grated garlic, chopped herbs
- Choose any bread that you have! If you are stuck at home and want to try making some for yourself, try this simple focaccia recipe from Bon Appetit
- Obviously, any potato chips will work, but we are partial to the Salt & Vinegar Sal de Ibiza chips
And remember, we are still here to supply all the goodies to make life still feel as normal as it can!
Sardine Sandwich
Ingredients
- 1 carrot
- 1 Tbsp vinegar, apple cider, sherry, white wine, etc.
- A pinch sugar
- 2-3 Tbsp mayonnaise
- 1 Divina Calabrian Chili pepper, finely chopped
- 1 tin Sardines
- A handful mixed greens
- A handful potato chips
- 1 square fococcia, sliced in half and lightly toasted
Instructions
- Thinly shave the carrot using a vegetable peeler. Place in a small bowl with the vinegar. Add a pinch of sugar and enough water to cover the carrot. Let sit for at least 15 minutes.
- In another small bowl, stir together the mayo and the chopped Calabrian pepper.
- Open the tin of sardines and remove the backbones if desired. Gently tear into chunks and set aside.
- Build the sandwich. Spread a good helping of mayo on both slices of bread. Arrange the sardines across the bottom piece of bread. Top with the pickled carrots and mixed greens. Carefully place a handful of the potato chips on the lettuce and place the top piece of bread on top.
- Gently smash down and enjoy immediately.
Fried Feta with Basque Pepper Honey
If you’ve been to a Greek restaurant in America, you’ve probably had saganaki – a flaming cheese appetizer that is fried, then flambéed at the table. This is the Aperitivo spin on this fried cheese dish, with a little Spanish flair.
There are a few different types of feta that you may find in the Aperitivo case – French, Israeli, Bulgarian, or Greek. These cheeses will be made primarily with sheep’s milk, sometimes with goat’s milk as well. Unlike the dry and sour-tasting cow’s milk feta that is available in the grocery stores, each of these varieties will be rich, creamy, and have varying levels of saltiness.
Any type of honey can be used in this dish. But if you use plain honey, try adding a touch of heat with ground pepper – Aleppo, cayenne, red pepper flakes, harissa, etc.
You can serve this with soft pita bread, naan, pita chips, or just simply eat it with a fork.
Fried Feta with Basque Pepper Honey
Ingredients
- 1 lemon, zested
- ¼ cup Marcona almonds
- ½ cup AP flour
- 1 large egg
- Basque pepper honey, or plain honey with a pinch of hot pepper flakes
- Fresh thyme leaves
- EVOO
- Salt and pepper
- Pita bread or chips, for serving
Instructions
- In a shallow frying pan or cast iron skillet, add a few tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil and set over medium heat. Drop the Marcona almonds in and fry until they start to get golden brown, about 3 minutes. Add in the lemon zest (save a small pinch to garnish at the end) and cook just until fragrant, only a few seconds. Remove almonds from the pan with a slotted spoon, keeping as much oil in the pan as you can, and set the almonds and lemon zest aside to cool. Take the pan off the heat until you are ready to fry the feta.
- In a shallow bowl, add the flour and season with salt and pepper. In another shallow bowl, add the egg with a splash of the brine water from the feta container and beat with a fork until mostly homogeneous.
- Slice the feta block into 1-in thick slabs. Take a slab and dredge it in the flour to coat the entire piece. Dip it into the egg wash to hydrate the flour and allow the excess to drip off. Return the feta back to the flour bowl and dredge until the egg is coated with flour. Repeat with the remaining slabs of feta.
- Return the frying pan with the lemon and almond oil to a medium heat. Add extra oil to cover the surface if needed. Carefully place the coated feta in the hot oil and fry for 2-3 minutes, until golden brown. Flip over and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes. Remove from the pan and set on a paper towel-lined plate and fry the remaining feta slabs.
- To plate, lay the fried feta on a platter. Drizzle a few over-generous drizzles of the Basque pepper honey and sprinkle on the marcona almonds, leftover lemon zest and thyme leaves. Serve with pita bread or chips.
Notes
*Tip: Zest the lemon zest with the concave part of the zester facing upwards, and zest like you are playing a violin. This allows you to ensure you aren’t zesting too deep, but also collects the zests and allows you to set it down until ready to add to the recipe.
Grilled Pear Crostini with Bonrus
Even though most of us are amidst a stay-at-home quarantine, it doesn’t mean we can’t still have fancy snacks. And luckily, Aperitivo is still open and able to satisfy all your cheese, charcuterie, beer, and wine needs during this odd time.
A newer cheese in the case, Bonrus is a soft-ripened sheep and cow’s milk cheese from Piedmont. It comes from one of our favorite Italian creameries, Caseificio dell’Alta Langa, who make some favorites like La Tur, Langherino, and Blu di Langa.
Bonrus has a soft and doughy texture, with a sweet and straw-like aroma. Its unique oval shape helps its maturation process, and like most soft cheeses, is best enjoyed at room temperature.
In this time of sheltering-at-home, you gotta take what you can get. So any soft, spreadable cheese would work in Bonrus’s place for this recipe.
Feel free to slather this delicious cheese, grilled pears, honey and smoked salt on any carb-y vessel you have on hand – toasted baguette slices, grilled flatbread, naan, English muffins, whatever you can find in your house. Or in this particular case, sliced hot dog buns. 🌭
Grilled Pear Crostini with Bonrus
Ingredients
- 1 firm pear
- ½ piece Bonrus – room temperature
- 2 Tbsp honey
- Smoked flake salt, or regular flake salt
- Toasted baguette slices
- Neutral oil
Instructions
- Heat a grill over medium heat.
- Slice the pear into ¼-inch slices, similar to the size of bread you are using. Drizzle the oil over the slices and place on a hot grill. Grill for a few seconds on each side, until grill marks appear. Try not to cut the slices too thin, or they will fall apart on the grill.
- Remove the slices and set aside.
- Slice the Bonrus into thin pieces (similar in size to the baguette) and place them on the baguette pieces. Spread the cheese out onto the bread and top with a grilled pear slice. Drizzle with honey and sprinkle the smoked flake salt. Repeat until you've used up all the pear slices. Serve immeditatey.
Vinegared Smashed Potatoes with Schallenberg and Cornichons
There are some flavor combinations that are hard to improve on, because well, they are already so perfect on their own. But who are we to not try and push the envelope?
People have been melting Raclette on potatoes for hundreds of years, enjoyed alongside bright and acidic pickles and cornichons.
Salt and vinegar chips have been around since the 1950’s and are one of the most popular potato chip flavors in America.
Why not marry these two dishes and make one bigger, better, bolder snack?
We hereby bring you….
Vinegared Smashed Potatoes with Schallenberg and Cornichons
The potatoes get boiled in vinegar, then smashed and roasted until they are crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside. Then to top it all off, a robust and beefy Alpine cheese gets melted on top. Yum yum yum.
Any Alpine cheese will work – Raclette, Gruyere, Appenzeller, Challerhocker – but we are really excited about Schallenberg. So grab a wedge and try it out.
Vinegared Smashed Potatoes with Scallenberg and Cornichons
Ingredients
- 1 lb small Yukon Gold potatoes
- 6 Tbsp apple cider or white distilled, or a mix of both, plus 1 additional Tbsp
- ¼ cup EVOO
- 0.15-0.25 lbs Schallenberg, grated on the large holes of a box grater
- ¼ cup cornichons, chopped
- Chopped fresh herbs, dill, parsley, carrot tops, etc.
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450°F. Put potatoes and 6 tablespoons of vinegar in a large pot. Fill the pot with enough water to cover the potatoes by 1 inch. Set the pot over high heat and bring to a gentle boil. Boil for 10-15, until the potatoes are just fork-tender. Drain and transfer to a rimmed baking dish.
- Smash the potatoes by either placing an additional rimmed baking sheet on top of the potatoes and pressing down. You can also use a skillet, plate, or a mug to smash each potato. Break a few apart to get jagged edges and spread out on the baking sheet.
- Toss the potatoes gently with olive oil, the additional tablespoon of vinegar, salt, and pepper and place in the preheated oven. Bake for 20 minutes, tossing halfway through until the potatoes are golden brown. Remove the tray from the oven and sprinkle the grated cheese over the top of the potatoes. Place back in the oven and bake until the cheese is melted, about 5 minutes.
- Transfer potatoes to a serving dish and top with chopped cornichons and fresh herbs.
‘Nduja Tater Tots
If you’ve heard it once, you’ve heard it 1,000 times, WE LOVE ‘NDUJA. It has to be one of the greatest culinary ingredients of all time. Everything gets better when you add a little ‘nduja. Butter? Yup. Pasta? Yup. Grilled ham and cheese sandwich? Yup. And countless other times that haven’t been documented on the internet.
And it should come at no shock that ‘nduja makes the childhood favorite, tater tots, even better.
Homemade tater tots are easier than you may think, but do require a bit of touch and feel to get right. Using frozen, thawed potatoes makes for a more consistent tot, but they can be a little wet. Squeeze out the extra water with a kitchen towel or sturdy paper towel once they are thawed. When mixing, you might need to add a little bit more cornstarch to help them stick together better. And a quick nap in the freezer helps keep them together as well.
While ketchup might be the most traditional tater tot dipping sauce, this tangy yogurt dip with sizzled herbs brings some freshness and creaminess to the crunchy and salty tots. This dip also utilizes an underappreciated ingredient – herb stems! Yes, most of the time you pluck the leaves off and toss the stems. Instead, the flavorful stems get finely chopped and sizzled in oil that gets swirled into the dip.
Any of the ‘nduja brands in the Aperitivo case would work great for this recipe. You just need to let it sit out on the counter for a bit before making the tots.
‘Nduja Tater Tots
Ingredients
For the 'Nduja Tater Tots
- 3 cups thawed shredded potatoes
- 1-2 Tbsp 'Nduja, room temperature
- ¼ cup Parmigiano-Reggiano, grated
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 1-2 cups fry oil (canola, vegetable, peanut, corn, etc.)
For the Sizzled Herb Dip
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- 4 stalks parsley
- 4 stalks dill
- 2 scallions
- ½ cup Greek yogurt
- ½ cup crème fraîche
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
For the ‘Nduja Tater Tots
- In a large mixing bowl, add the thawed shredded potatoes. Using a kitchen towel or sturdy paper towel, squeeze out as much water as you can. Pour out excess water and break up the clumps with your hands.
- Add in the ‘nduja, Parm, salt, pepper and cornstarch and mix until well combined.
- Scoop out a tablespoon of the potato mixture and form a “tot” shape with your hands. Make a cylinder shape using the closed, rolled-up fingers of one hand (like you are making a pretend telescope with your fingers and hand,) and the pointer finger and thumb of your opposite hand to form the top and bottom of the tot.
- Set the tots on a plate or small sheet tray and repeat until all the potato mixture has been formed into tots. Place the plate or tray in the freezer for 10 minutes to firm up.
- While the tots are in the freezer, pour oil into a heavy bottom pot and bring the temperature up to 375°F.
- After 10 minutes, remove the tots from the freeze. Gently drop a few tots in the hot oil and fry until golden brown all over, about 4 minutes. Remove from oil using a slotted spoon and pour onto a wire rack set over a baking sheet or a paper towel-lined plate. Repeat until all the tots are fried.
- Transfer to a serving platter and serve with Sizzled Herb Dip.
For the Sizzled Herb Dip
- In a medium pan, add oil and heat over medium heat. Remove leaves and fronds from the herb stalks. Chop the leaves and set in a medium mixing bowl. Mince the herb stems and the scallions and add to the hot oil.
- Gently fry the herb stems until fragrant and sizzled, about 5 minutes. Pour oil and herbs into a glass jar or bowl to let cool.
- To the mixing bowl with the chopped herb leaves, add the yogurt, crème fraîche, lemon juice, and chopped herbs. Add a dash of salt and pepper, taste and adjust if needed.
- In a small serving bowl, add the yogurt mixture and swirl fried herb oil over the top.
Notes
Sizzled herb oil and yogurt mixture can be made 3 days ahead of time. Store separated in the fridge.
Amber Kunik Snack Mix
Don’t you wish there was a tastier, higher quality version of those plastic “protein packs” filled with cubed cheese, stale nuts, and chunked lunch meat? Of course, you do. And here it is! Right here!
This snack mix has everything you want in each bite – salty, sweet, savory, bitter, tangy, creamy, crunchy and chewy. So many adjectives! And only 4 ingredients.
Amber Kunik from Nettle Meadow is the perfect cheese to use in this snack mix. Because of its dense texture, it holds its shape when tossed together with the rest of the ingredients, but still brings a creaminess you want from a triple crème. And the flavors from its blend of goat milk and cow cream balance perfectly with the bitter and sweet dark chocolate. The recipe only calls for half of the small wheel that is washed with Adirondack Beer and Adirondack Whiskey. But feel free to use the entire wheel if you like your snack mix extra cheesy. Or keep half of the wheel to enjoy on your next cheese board.
Charring the dates gives them an extra little crunch, as well as brings a slight smokiness to the mix. You can skip this step if you are short on time, but it’s well worth the extra few minutes it takes.
You can store this mix in the fridge for a few days, but it won’t last long.
Amber Kunik Snack Mix
Makes 2 cups
Ingredients
- 10-12 dates, pits removed
- 1/2 wheel Amber Kunik
- 1 cup pistachios, shelled removed
- 3 oz. dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
Instructions
- In a dry skillet, add dates and cook over medium-high heat until dates start to blacken on one side, about 3 minutes. Shake pan to char the other sides of the dates. Once they start to have black spots and start to look moistened and soft, remove from heat. Set aside until cool enough to handle. Chop each date into bite-sized pieces and add to a medium mixing bowl.
- Shave a bit of the rind off the half-wheel of cheese. Using a paring knife, insert the tip of the knife into a corner of the cheese and gently twist your wrist to break off an irregular bite-sized crumble of cheese. Repeat until the entire piece is crumbled. Alternatively, you can dice the cheese into bite-sized pieces.
- Combine the cheese crumbles, chopped chocolate, and shelled pistachios into the bowl with the charred dates and stir to combine.
- Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Roasted Broccoli and Broiled Robiola
Do you miss that beloved childhood dish of mushy steamed broccoli and neon yellow cheese squeezed out from a plastic bottle? Hopefully not. But this updated take on “broccoli and cheese” can satisfy any cravings for the classic combo.
Similar to roasting cauliflower, roasting broccoli turns the cruciferous vegetable into a crispy, tender, and earthy bite.
Robiola is a creamy mild Italian cheese, made with cow and sheep’s milk (oftentimes labeled “due latte” or “two milks”.) It has subtle mushroom notes and a soft rind and is a great cheese to warm slightly and dunk crusty bread into.
Roasted Broccoli and Broiled Robiola
Ingredients
- 2 heads broccoli
- 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp cracked pepper
- pinch red pepper flakes
- 1 piece Robiola Bosina
- Crunchy salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Remove the florets from the broccoli head and slice into bite-sized pieces. Slice the top part of the stem into ¼-inch thick slices. Spread both sections of broccoli out on a rimmed baking sheet and drizzle over enough olive oil to lightly coat. Sprinkle on salt, pepper and a pinch of red pepper flakes.
- Bake for 20-22 minutes, flipping pieces halfway through. Once the edges get golden brown, remove from the oven and set aside.
- While the broccoli is roasting, gently slice the robiola into ¼-inch slices, using a serrated knife.
- In a smaller oven-safe serving dish (or on the same rimmed baking sheet,) lay the robiola slices over the broccoli. Place back in the oven and set to “broil.” Broil until the cheese starts to bubble and melt over the broccoli, about 3 minutes. It doesn’t take too long, so don’t walk away.
- Serve directly from the broiled dish (or transfer to a serving dish,) sprinkle with crunchy salt and serve.