Amazing Baked Goat Cheese Appetizer

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When looking for a simple, easy to make appetizer, I found Prego Farmers' Market® sauces, beautiful tomatoes, fresh basil and delicious goat cheese at my local Walmart and the creative wheels started turning. I knew it would be perfect to share with family as I prepared dinner. 

With the hectic schedules of my 9-5 husband, me running a business from home, and our college/working kids coming & going, dinner time seems to be a luxury these days. But when the stars align, it allows us to stop for a moment, catch up on our day and enjoy time together sharing a meal.

When I see this special time shaping up on the calendar, I try to plan a cozy meal that will allow us to linger. With fall here, there are many comfort food recipes I can put together to achieve that goal with a main dish, but not so much for an appetizer. I like to challenge myself a bit and try something new. Often times, this means you will find me meandering down store aisles looking for that creative inspiration.

The other night I decided to make steak tips with roasted red potatoes and asparagus, a fancy dinner result with not a lot of effort. The fresh produce selections at Walmart are great and if I’m choosing veggies for that night, it’s like they’re “picked at peak”! Next to the produce section, I found a wonderful, earthy goat cheese that I originally was planning to pair with crackers. That was until I found Prego Farmers' Market® sauces a few aisles away.

I knew our dinner was going gourmet when I found Prego Farmers' Market® Sauces. The label listed ingredients you'd find at your local farmers' market – like vine-ripened tomatoes, garlic and basil – all picked at the peak. As I am all about farmer’s markets, this was going to be paired with the goat cheese and fresh basil and a new rustic appetizer was born.

Baked Goat Cheese Appetizer

1. Spread room-temperature goat cheese in a small dish, leaving an inch well around edge.
2. Spoon in Marinara sauce around edge of goat cheese, making sure to cover the edge of cheese.
3. Bake in preheated 375 degree oven for 20-25 minutes, until sauce is bubbly.
4. Garnish with a sprinkle of kosher salt and fresh chopped basil.
5. Serve with crackers or crostini

This baked goat cheese appetizer was bursting with flavor and was devoured in 10 minutes! I will definitely be making this again and hope this recipe will inspire you to try something it too!

Check out this fun video…makes me want to have dinner in a jar! 🙂

 

Prego Farm Jar Commercial from Jessica Ransom on Vimeo.