Jammin’ Antipasti Cheese Log

Ingredients

• 4 oz
  
  Feta cheese [regular]
  
• 1/4
  
  cup of chopped, roasted red peppers
  
• 2
  
  scallions, the green parts chopped fine
  
• a
  
  pinch of red pepper flakes
  
• 1/4
  
  cup golden raisins
  
• 2
  
  tablespoons honey
  
• 1
  
  tablespoon chopped sundried tomatoes
  
• 2
  
  tablespoons chopped artichokes
  
• 3
  
  tablespoons chopped olives
  
• 1/2
  
  tablespoon good quality olive oil
  
• 1/2
  
  tablespoon of chopped flat leaf parsley
  
• salt
  
  to taste
  
• A
  
  few strips of roasted red pepper for garnish
  
• Some
  
  golden raisins for garnish
  

Directions

1. Roast red peppers over a flame or broil, charring the skin. Put in a brown bag and let it rest for 15 minutes and then peel the skin. I don’t use roasted pepper from a jar as they are very acidic. Chop the flesh and measure 1/4 cup. Take the 4 oz block of feta and rinse off any preserving liquid. Add the pinch of pepper flake, salt to taste and pulse in a small blender to incorporate everything together, without turning it into a paste. Remove and add the chopped scallions, reserving some of the scallions for later. Line a ramekin or a small dish with Saran Wrap and spoon this pepper, feta cheese mixture into it. Smooth and cover completely with the wrap and refrigerate for about 20 minutes. The cheese mixture will set into the shape of the dish, but will still be spreadable. Remove from the wrap and put it on a serving dish.
2. Soak the raisins in warm water to plump them up, about 15 minutes. Remove the raisins and squeeze the water out of them. Put the raisins in a small blender along with the honey and pulse to get a jam like consistancy. Spread this over the cheese mixture.
3. Soak a few sundried tomato chips in hot water. I prefer to use this over the oil packed version, because the flavor from the oil is too strong. Cook the frozen artichoke as per package directions or use water packed artichokes. Get some good quality italian style green olives from the salad bar. Measure and chop all the above into small pieces. Add the reserved scallions, olive oil and parsley, mix everything and arrange over the Raisin Jam layer of the cheese log. Press the chopped mixture gently over the log.
4. Surround the cheese log with the pepper strips and extra golden raisins.
5. The cheese log can be prepared ahead and refrigerated. The Raisin jam and the antipasti blend can also be prepared ahead and kept at room temperature. Everything can be assembled just before serving. Serve with veggies, crostini and pita chips. The dip is convenient for both scooping and spreading.