My Most Popular Appetizer

We entertain all of the time. It's a hobby. Often it's an impromptu affair. Someone is dropping by for a drink (or dinner), it's the weekend, and I've spent most of the day knee-deep in a house project. Somehow I need to shower, run to the store, and whip up something in under an hour. This recipe is my most popular go-to appetizer recipe.

What about you? Having someone special over? Want to dazzle them? You can fix this in minutes. It looks beautiful. It smells fabulous. Unlike a port wine cheese ball, your guest have probably never had this before. And frankly, you may never get to eat dinner. Paired with a nice red wine and you can scarf this stuff down and be entirely content.

People ask me for the recipe all the time. And it's so versatile, you can use it in 50 different ways.

So what's this wonder dish? Sheep's Milk Ricotta, Sea Salt & Herbs

The recipe hails from Andrew Carmellini's "Urban Italian" cookbook. I admit I'm a bit of a cookbook junkie - and this one is a favorite. I highly recommend it. Andrew is a great storyteller and he does a great job bringing great flavors without pretense. This recipe is no exception. Andrew's gnocchi recipe rocks too, but that's for another day.

Here's the ingredients from Andrew's recipe from his website.

SHEEP’S MILK RICOTTA, SEA SALT & HERBS

Serves 6
Time: About 10 minutes plus a little more if you’re a serving with Grilled Country Bread

2 cups Sardinian sheep’s milk ricotta
½ cup whole milk
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon Calabrian oregano
1 teaspoon fleur de sel or coarse sea salt
1 teaspoon course-ground black pepper
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
2-3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Now hold on a minute. I know what you're thinking. You're reading the ingredients and thinking to yourself, "I'm not sure I have a high quality purveyor of Sardinian sheep's milk ricotta." Consequently, you are now entirely ready to bail on this recipe. Whoa. Relax. We make things easy around here.

Head to your local food store (any one with a decent selection of cheeses) and look for Ricotta Salata. I get mine at the local Whole Foods. It isn't as obscure as you think.

Ricotta salata looks a lot like feta. Basically it's a salted and pressed ricotta cheese that is aged for a couple of months. Ricotta is a whey product - the liquid stuff left over from making most cheese (the curds). When very fresh, it is utterly fabulous. By salting and pressing it, you preserve the cheese's great quality for several more weeks. A queso fresco is a reasonable substitute as is feta, but if you can find ricotta salata - get it. Why should you care about this bit of cheese lore? After you make this, someone will ask "I love this. What's in it?" I want your answer to be as brilliant as your food.

The instructions are simple - whip up the ricotta with the whole milk so that it is smooth and silky. Andrew likes to use a mixer. I prefer the food processor. Ricotta salata is a little grainy. You have to wail on it a little to make it soft and silky. I find the food processor's blades do this nicely. Add milk a little at a time, watching the consistency as you go. You're looking for something that will spread and then stick to bread. Think peanut butter. Not too soupy. Not too thick. Go slow and you'll get it. Mix in the salt but be careful. Salata means salt. You don't want to overdue it. Add a little, taste, and adjust accordingly.

Add the mix to a serving bowl and top with herbs, sea salt, and seasonings. I use fresh oregano from the garden. I also add a touch of fresh thyme.

Top with olive oil (use a good quality olive oil) so that some dip is revealed and surrounded by a lovely pool of olive oil.

Grilled bread? No worries. Pick a good rustic country bread. A ciabatta, a boule, a peasant bread - all will work. Cut into thick slices and grill and be sure to rotate so you get nice grill marks. Too cold to grill? No worries. I've even put this on the gas flame on my stove. Broil it. Use a panini maker. Use a grill pan on the stove. Heck - use a toaster if you have too. Rub the resulting slices with a piece of raw garlic. You're good to go.

Get a nice white serving tray. Place the bowl with the dip in the center and surround with the nicely charred rustic bread.

You can use this a lot of different ways too. Top your pasta with it. Stuff shells with it. Mix it in an omelet. On pizza? Divine.

Now go have someone over. Serve this, but be prepared. You're in for some adoration.

I'd encourage you to follow Andrew Carmellini on twitter at @andrecarmellini
His cookbook "Urban Italian: Simple Recipes and True Stories from a Life in Food" is available on Amazon