Aged goat’s cheese and toasted walnut bread
Serve the toasts warm so the cheese melts over them as you scoop. We’ve used Mothais sur Feuille, a soft goat’s cheese from France wrapped in leaves, but any soft cheese works well with the toasted walnut bread.
Prep time 20 mins, cook 50 mins (plus proving)
Serves 6-8
250 gm ripe aged goat’s cheese, such as Mothais sur Feuille, bûche de chèvre or Holy Goat La Luna (see note), removed from the refrigerator 30 minutes before serving
Muscatels and pears, to serve
Walnut bread
7 gm (1 sachet) dry yeast
350 gm white spelt flour (see note)
100 gm baker’s flour, plus extra for dusting 130 gm walnuts, coarsely chopped
Olive oil, for greasing and brushing
1 For walnut bread, combine yeast and 50ml lukewarm water in a bowl and set aside until foamy (3-4 minutes). Combine flours and ½ tsp salt in an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook, add yeast and 235ml water, and mix until a smooth dough forms (3-5 minutes). Add walnuts and stir to just incorporate, then transfer to a lightly oiled bowl and stand until doubled in size (1-1½ hours).
2 Preheat oven to 200C and oil a heavy oven tray. Knock back dough and shape into two logs, about 25cm long, dusting lightly with extra flour to prevent sticking, then roll onto tray, leaving space between each, and set aside to prove for 15 minutes. Transfer to oven, spray a mist of water into the oven before closing the door and bake until bread is golden brown, and feels firm when pressed (25-28 minutes). Cool on a wire rack. Bread can be kept refrigerated, wrapped tightly in plastic wrap, for up to 2 days.
3 Preheat oven to 180C and thinly slice bread with a serrated knife. Brush cut sides with a little olive oil and bake in a single layer on oven trays, turning once, until golden brown and crisp
(15-20 minutes). Serve warm walnut toasts with goat’s cheese and fruit.
Note Mothais sur Feuille and bûche de chèvre are available from Formaggi Ocello (ocello.com. au) and Fourth Village Providore (fourthvillage. com.au); Holy Goat La Luna is available from Simon Johnson (simonjohnson.com). White spelt flour is available from select supermarkets and health-food shops.
Drink suggestion Nut liqueur, such as nocino.