Cherry, Cranberry and Grape topped Camembert served with Pistachio and Rosemary Focaccia.
 
I created this recipe following a trip to the USA. I was inspired by all the amazing ingredients produced over on the west coast of California. A warm creamy baked Camembert style cheese topped with a sweet and tangy fruit compote is the perfect combo! Then add a rich olive oil and pistachio topped focaccia bread, what more could you want on your dinner table?!
 
Serves 4
Ingredients
 
Ingredients for the compote
80g Sugar
100ml Red wine vinegar
200g Grapes
75g Dried cherries
100g Dried cranberries
250g Whole brie or Camembert style cheese
 
Ingredients for the focaccia
500g Strong bread flour 10g Salt
7g Dried yeast
335ml water
3 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil 1 tbsp sea salt
1 handful of rosemary
70g Pistachios
 
Here’s how:
 
For the compote:
Pour the sugar and vinegar into a shallow pan on a medium heat.
Remove the grapes from their stalks and add to the pan.
Continue to heat up the pan until it boils, then add the USA cherries and cranberries.
Cook on a medium heat until the liquid has reduced by half, the grapes have softened and the dried fruit has swollen up.
Remove from the heat and leave to cool (You can double this recipe up and keep extra in the fridge for another day.)
For the focaccia:
Place 100g of the flour into a bowl with one teaspoon of yeast and of 150ml of water and mix together. Leave out of the side for 1 hour to begin fermenting. This will help develop the flavour and result in a much better bread.
Weigh out the remaining flour, yeast, salt and water and mix them all together with the already fermented flour mixture.
Mix the dough together with your hands until it forms a soft ball, then transfer to a lightly floured work surface and knead for 10 minutes until smooth and stretchy. Roll the dough into a ball and place in a mixing bowl, cover and leave to relax and prove for 1-2 hours or until it doubles in size.
Once the dough has proved, pour 2 tablespoons of the olive oil onto a clean work surface and carefully stretch and fold the bread over and into the shape of the tin you are using.
Transfer the bread and push into the corners of the pan.
Sprinkle the bread with American pistachios, sea salt and fresh rosemary. Leave the dough to prove for 30- 45 minutes.
Before you bake the bread press your fingers into the top of the bread again to make small indents, this will help the oil soak into the bread to make it extra delicious.
Bake in a preheated oven 200c for 25 minutes or until golden.
Once your bread has baked it time to prepare the cheese.
Pre heat your oven to 180oC/350oF/gas 4
Remove the cheese from its packaging and score the top with a sharpe knife to open up the skin of the cheese a little.
Place the cheese onto a non stick baking tray or if it comes in a wooden box you can use that, but make sure all wrappers are removed and you dip the wooden box into some water for 30 seconds, that way it won’t burn.
Spoon some of the fruit on top of the cheese along with a little of the syrup. Bake the cheese for 12-15 minutes or until it is nice and soft in the middle.
Serve the cheese with the warm focaccia bread and the remaining fruit for that extra fruity flavour.
Try serving with a Californian Pinot Noir wine
Recipe by Peter Sidwell