Oh goats, how I do love your cheese. I did not though appreciate you trying to eat my clothes when I was 7 at the zoo. A memory that will stick with me forever, but yet has not tainted my love for your cheese.
If you have never tried goat cheese before let me tell you that you have not yet lived. I first tried it in college, at my professors dinner party where she had pan fried it and placed it over a bed of greens with balsamic. Ever since that day I was hooked. Goats cheese is a soft, moist, fresh cheese made from, ta-da Goat's milk. It's consistency is rich; it sticks to your mouth much like peanut butter does, but tastes so much better (I'm not a huge fan of peanut butter). It's taste is tangy, but sweet; it can really lift any dish up to food stardom. Today I gave goat cheese the "southern" treatment. I coated, fried and smothered it with hot sauce. They were delicious! Hot and spicy on the outside, sweet and creamy on the inside. So forget the hot wings and replace them with this appetizer for the Super Bowl.
Buffalo Fried Goat Cheese
Start with a log of goat cheese and cut off 1/2" slices. Roll into a 1" ball by hand. Then get egg wash ready in one bowl and fill a plate or shallow bowl with breadcrumbs. Dip the goat cheese ball in the egg wash first. Roll it around so it is completely covered.
Then drop it in the panko breadcrumbs. Toss the breadcrumbs on to the ball and gently roll to coat. Repeat with the egg wash and breadcrumbs for the same ball. This way it is well coated.
Once all the breadcrumbs have been "double dipped" and have a nice thick coating of breadcrumbs, drop them in a pan filled with hot vegetable oil. The trick to cooking these is to keep them moving. Don't let them sit on one side for too long or the cheese will start to escape. Use a metal slotted spoon to move them around the pan so all sides fry equally. Cook for no longer then 3 minutes each. Remove to a plate lined with paper towels to absorb some of the grease.
The last step is to toss them in buffalo sauce. This is the point at which my husband bowed down to me and told me he would do whatever I wanted for the rest of my life. Ok, not literally but I know he was thinking it, or should have been anyway, since these are two of his favorite foods wrapped into one delicious package.
And for those of you that are like me and are thinking that this may be too spicy of an app for you, think again. The sweet and creamy nature of the goat cheese counteracts the spice. Similar to how blue cheese or ranch is usually the cooling agent for buffalo wings. These are a must try.
Buffalo Fried Goat Cheese
Makes: 12 Servings | Prep Time: 5 minutes | Cook Time: 6 minutes
Ingredients
4 oz log of goat cheese
2 eggs, slightly beaten
2 cups panko breadcrumbs
3 cups vegetable oil, for frying
1/2 cup Franks™Red Hot
1. Heat vegetable oil in a frying pan. Cut 1/2" slices from the goat cheese log . Roll into 1" balls by hand.
2. Lightly beat eggs in a small bowl. Fill a plate or shallow bowl with the breadcrumbs. Dip the goat cheese ball in the egg wash first. Roll it around so it is completely covered. Then drop them in to the panko breadcrumbs. Toss the breadcrumbs on to the ball and gently roll to coat. Repeat with the egg wash and breadcrumbs for the same ball. This way they are well coated.
3. When oil is ready (bubbles when a crumb is dropped into the oil) drop the balls in. The trick to cooking them is to keep them moving. Don't let them sit on one side for too long or the cheese will start to escape. Use a metal slotted spoon to move them around the pan so all sides fry equally. Cook for no longer then 3 minutes each. Remove to a plate lined with paper towels to absorb some of the grease.
4. Toss in buffalo sauce. Serve on a bed of fresh greens.
