My first harvest! Rocket and goat cheese

Today was an exciting first for me.  As you may have read in earlier posts, I have taken to gardening over recent months.  Well folks, today was the first time I harvested and ate something I had grown myself (aside from herbs…I’m talking things you can make a meal out of here).

Rocket was the lucky plant in this instance.  Rocket  made the final cut into my garden largely because I had it on good authority they are  easy to grow and low maintenance.  This has proven to be true.  Aside from losing a couple of seedlings to an enthusiastic blackbird chasing worms, my rocket plants are starting to resemble a pretty decent salad.  I am proud.

So, when one is harvesting one’s first crop, one really wants something special sharing the plate.  And that special something is goat cheese.  If you fancy hearing about my rocket and goat cheese salad with honey and balsamic dressing, read on.

To make this for two people I used:

A handful of rocket leaves

Goat cheese – I used about 50 grams

2 tablespoons of pine nuts

A heaping teaspoon of runny honey

1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar

2 tablespoons of olive oil

This salad requires doing pretty much all preparation simultaneously and then throwing to together at the end, which requires vigilance to any burning smells.

I started by toasting the pine nuts in a non-stick frypan.  Watch those little critters, they  burn all of a sudden.  I find they only need a couple of minutes of medium heat.

Slice rounds of the goat cheese and place in a heat proof dish.  Put it under a hot grill and grill for several minutes until golden brown.

While all this is going on, make the dressing by whisking the honey, vinegar and oil together.  I microwaved my honey first for 15 seconds first, which was helpful to proceedings.

Place the rocket leaves in two bowls. Top with the grilled cheese and pinenuts. Add the dressing and combine.

As my rocket plants are in the first flush of youth, my harvest was modest, and so we had this salad on top of some fresh pasta to fill the meal out a little. It was okay teamed with the pasta, but another time I would have the salad with bread or grilled chicken if a little padding was needed.

Not so bad if I say so myself.