Nutty Blue Cheese Gems

These are super easy and really yummy. They double up as a make ahead starter too, just don’t peel away so many of the outer leaves and serve one baby gem per person. Which ever size you choose, they will keep in the fridge for several hours.

They can be made gluten free and vegetarian, so a really useful recipe to have on hand. (Check your cheese is suitable for vegetarians and gluten free, not all are. Cashel Blue is a good one to use).

Ingredients – Makes 8

2 Baby Gem lettuces 25gms blue cheese 75mls double cream 25gms pine nuts, roughly chopped 5gms butter Seasoning

Method

Peel away the outer leaves of the lettuces. Cut each lettuce, lengthways into wedges to make 4 manageable mouthfuls. Leave some of the core in tact to serve as an edible handle.

Beat the cheese and cream together until they are well mixed. For a smooth mix, push the cream and cheese through a sieve.

Melt the butter and cook the chopped pine nuts until they are golden. Salt and allow to cool.

Spread a generous amount of the cheese mixture over the top half of the lettuce wedge, leaving the core clean.

Sprinkle nuts generously over the cheesy part.

Store in the fridge until required. These are best served cool.

The extra leaves can be used for a salad, as one of the ingredients for a summery soup or maybe shredded and added to a Chicken a la Francaise dish. Not a canapé, but great make ahead dish for family or friends.