ROASTED GRAPES WITH GOATS CHEESE & HONEY

One of my favourite things to do if I find mysef with any free time over a weekend is watch the utterly marvellous Ina Garten, otherwise known at Barefoot Contessa on the Food Network. I have spoken about my love of her before. Recently, I saw an episode where she roasted grapes with sausages. I had never thought to roast grapes before and it stuck in my head. So when I was looking for something interesting to make for breakfast one morning and I spied a bunch of red grapes in my fruit bowl, I thought I’d try it out for myself. I didn’t have any sausages so I decided to just serve them on toast. My God, I’m glad I tried this…the roasted grapes are ridiculously tasty…soft and tender and bursting with juicy sweetness. I paired them up with some gorgeous sharp goats cheese then drizzled with honey and sprinkled with a little fresh thyme. This was a tremendous breakfast dish, and would be lovely as a snack too. I hope you try it out and enjoy it as much as I did.

To begin with I placed a few red grapes on a small roasting tin, sprinkled with some fresh thyme, seasoned with flaked sea salt and pepper and drizzled with a little olive oil.

I popped them in the oven at 180°C/160°C (fan)/320°F/Gas 3 for about 8-10 minutes. Keep an eye on them. Meanwhile, take a couple of slices of sourdough, drizzle or brush with a little olive oil then place on a griddle pan until toasted and golden with visible griddle lines.

When they’re ready, spread with some whipped goats cheese. I whipped it up with a hand whisk, just to make it easier to spread, plus it keeps it nice and light.

Once the grapes are ready…you want them to be soft but still keep their plumpness…place them on top of the goats cheese. I drizzled a little acacia honey over the top, then sprinkled with some fresh thyme…

And that’s all there is to it! A very quick, easy and tasty dish.