Baked Ricotta with Candied Cherry Tomatoes

We promised you days of killer tomato recipes and here’s another great one to use with all those amazing cherry tomatoes filling your gardens and markets.  Our friend Carole brought this appetizer to our Labor Day party last year and we couldn’t get enough of it.  She generously shared the recipe with us.

For the baked cheese:
15 ounces whole milk ricotta
4 ounces log goat cheese
1 egg
2 tablespoons fresh marjoram or leafy herb of your choice, chopped
generous grinding of black pepper
generous sprinkling of kosher salt

For the candied tomatoes:
1 tablespoon olive oil
12 ounces cherry tomatoes
1/4 cup vermouth
1/4 cup light brown sugar
3 sprigs marjoram, or leafy herb of your choice
sea salt

For the baked cheese:
Place the ricotta in a colander lined with cheese cloth and leave to drain for about 30 minutes, pressing down to help extract liquid.  Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Brush the inside of a 2 cup baking dish with olive oil.

In the small bowl of a stand mixer, beat the ricotta, goat cheese and egg until smooth. Beat in the herbs (chopped if the leaves are large), a generous amount of pepper and salt. Taste your goat cheese first, saltier cheeses require less additional salt.

Spoon the cheese mixture into the prepared baking dish and bake for 40 minutes, or until puffed in the center and browning.  Let the cheese cool slightly, then invert it out onto a plate.

For the tomatoes:
While the cheese is baking, heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat, then drop in the tomatoes. Cook, stirring frequently, until the skins on the tomatoes start to split. Pull the pan off the flame, add the vermouth and return to the heat. Add the brown sugar and herbs and stir until the sugar is melted. Add a generous pinch of salt. Lower the heat and cook gently until the liquid is reduced to a syrupy coating for the tomatoes. The tomatoes will collapse and some may disintegrate. That’s fine.

When ready to serve, spoon the candied tomatoes over the warm baked cheese and serve with sliced baguette or crostini.

The baked cheese can be prepared a few hours in advance and then baked before serving. It is best served warm, but not necessarily right out of the oven. The tomatoes can be prepared ahead too and gently reheated before serving.