Any time I make a recipe that requires a spice, cheese or other ingredient I don’t normally buy, two things run through my head: First, can I get away without using it (or subbing in something else)? Second, what else can I make with this ingredient?
For the gorgonzola-crusted steaks that kicked off our Date Night Recipes series, cutting the gorgonzola really wasn’t an option. (Plus, it just makes the dish taste So. Good.) That left me with question No. 2: How could I use up the rest of this $4 tub of cheese before it went bad?
Hello, crusty, garlic bread.
Ryan Bullard introduced us to this recipe, and we’ve been in debt to him ever since. You can also use bleu cheese for the steaks and bread, but we’ve found that the very mention of bleu cheese makes some people squeamish, so we stick with gorg. (Side note: Gorgonzola, do you mind if we call you “gorg?”)
You can pop this dish in the oven while you prepare the sides or set the table. They’re a quick addition in case your local carb-lover protests that your Date Night Menu is woefully short on starch.
And, date night aside, you could slice the bread all thin and serve ’em up as gorgonzola crostini for a fancy party appetizer, or eat them with a side salad as an ain’t-nobody-got-time-for-dinner meal on a busy weeknight. (It’s kind of like an open-faced grilled cheese’s sophisticated cousin, right?)
- 1 loaf French bread
- ½ stick butter
- 1 container gorgonzola (about 4 ounces; can use bleu cheese, feta or goat cheese instead)
- Optional: ½ cup mayo or reduced-fat mayo (for a creamier spread); Crumbled, cooked bacon to sprinkle on top
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. As it heats, slice the bread in half lengthwise, or cut it into small coins if you want to serve it crostini-style.
- Butter one side of the bread, then sprinkle cheese on top, OR — for even creamier flavor — butter the bread, then mix equal parts cheese and mayo and slather that on top. You can also sprinkle with crumbled, cooked bacon.
- Cook in the oven for 5-6 minutes, or until the cheese has melted. Let it cool for a few minutes before serving.