Grilled Fennel & Goat Cheese

Fennel & Goat Cheese Bake

This Grilled Fennel & Goat Cheese dish is tasty, light, and very versatile. It makes for a great appetizer...just serve on top of a slice of toasted  bread ( l like Pugliese best), or as a side dish. The flavors are rich and earthy...and the goat cheese gives it a little bit of a tang, so it really blends well together.  You can really play around with the spices you use...my new favorites right now are smoked paprika, black lava salt and seasoned black pepper...however, fresh sage & marjoram would taste pretty good as well. And they taste best when they come straight out of the oven, pipping hot! So, grill right before serving.

Grilled Fennel & Goat Cheese (4 ppl)

INGREDIENTS

• 2 Fennel Bulbs, sliced into 6 pieces each, for a total of 12 slices
• 4 oz goat cheese
• 1/2 cup basil. finely chopped
• 1 cup mushrooms or olives of choice, sliced
• 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon himalayan pink salt
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon seasoned black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon black lava salt, for garnish

DIRECTIONS

1. Pre-heat oven to 400°F. Line a 15x10x1 inch baking pan with parchment paper; set aside. Lay fennel slices on baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Then sprinkle each piece with a little himalayan pink salt.
2. Crumble goat cheese evenly on all 12 slices, followed by basil and mushrooms/olives. Then sprinkle smoked paprika, seasoned black pepper and black lava salt on top.
3. Grill, uncovered, about 20 minutes or until lightly browned and softened. Serve warm on top of toasted bread or as a side.

ENJOY!VEGAN NOTES

• You can substitute the goat cheese with store-bought tofu cream cheese.

GLUTEN FREE NOTES

• This is completely GF! Yeah!

YOGIC COOKING NOTES

• To keep this dish sattvic, use olives instead of mushrooms