How to cut your shallots? Most shallots have two halves. You will use one half of a small shallot and slice it thin. You’ll want to smash and then mince your garlic very fine. Add the shallots, garlic, half the herbes de provence olive oil and tomatoes to the cast iron skillets and cook in the oven for 10 minutes allowing the veggies to get super soft in the olive oil. You are basically creating a cherry tomato confit that you can then add the cheese and herbs to.
When you remove the skillets after 10 minutes, the oil will be bubbling hot, the veggies will be fragrant and it is time to add the diced cheese, parsley, basil and herbs de provence. Drizzle the balsamic over the mix and add the remaining olive oil and salt and pepper. Bake another 20 minutes to allow the cheese to melt and all the flavors to meld together.
In this dish, I’ve use fontina cheese which melts beautifully. A good substitute for fontina cheese might be Gruyere, feta or goat cheese. If you like a strong flavored cheese, a soft blue cheese like Cambozola would be great. Fontina substitutes should be cheeses that melt well and can be spread on toast, so use your favorite.
If you are looking to purchase the specialty olive oil and balsamic vinegar, you can buy them in my shop.
If you like this cheese appetizer, I have a couple of other recipes to recommend:
Pistachio-Cherry Goat Cheese Balls
Fried Brie Bites with Tart Cherry Jam
Herbs and Lavender Fontina Dip
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 8 Oz. Fontina cheese
- 6 Cherry Tomatoes, halved
- 3 Garlic cloves, peeled and finely minced
- 1 Small shallot, sliced
- 2 Tbsp. Fresh basil, chopped
- 2 Tbsp. Fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped
- 1/2 Tsp. Dried Herbs de Provence
- 1 Tbsp. Patricia and Paul Lavender Balsamic Vinegar
- 2 Tbsp. Patricia and Paul Herbs de Provence Olive Oil
- Kosher salt and Freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1 Baguette, sliced and toasted.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- In each of two small cast iron skillets or mini casserole dishes, add 1 1/2 teaspoons of olive oil, half the chopped garlic and half the sliced shallots. Add half the cherry tomatoes into each skillet and place in the oven for 10 minutes to let the veggies cook and soften in the oil.
- Meanwhile, cut your bread and toast under the broiler.
- Remove the skillets from the oven and add half the cheese into each one. Top each with half the fresh herbs, half the herbs de provence, half of the balsamic vinegar and another 1 1/2 teaspoons of olive oil. Sprinkle both with salt and pepper and place back in the oven for 20 minutes.
- When the cheese mixture is bubbling and the cheese is melted and flavored with all the herbs and spices, it is ready to serve with the toasted baguette slices. Enjoy!
