Blackberry Lemon Goat Cheese Squares

I know, I know, where have I been the past few weeks?  Without boring you with details, I can confirm that there was a trip to Texas, a trip to DC, a re-signing of our lease for another two years (its official, we are crazy) and a lovely New York spring.  Now we are in our first heat wave of the summer (91 today!) and I have sold my soul to the local appliance store for two new Frigidaire air conditioners that will probably require at least $200 a month in electricity.  Each.  But at least I’ll be comfortable.

Our first summer weekend now lies before us and to keep me focused on something other than the heat, Robbie innocently suggested we start an official “Summer 2013 Bucket List.”  That comment then led to a twenty+ item list of things we MUST do before Labor Day or I will consider our summer a failure.  He must not have gotten the memo when he married me that I am a completist (I may have made that up – it probably isn’t in the DSM-IV, although it should be) because now I have every move of our next three months planned. 

First thing we will check off is “Go to a baseball game” when we see the Yankees play the Red Sox Sunday.  Our next activity could be “Go to an outdoor movie” or “Ride across the river in a ferry” or “Grill out” (the latter of which will be interesting because we don’t own a grill which means we need to mooch off of friends who do – cough – Tom & Kate – cough).  Apparently not on the list are things like “Live in the moment” or “Don’t get so caught up completing your Summer 2013 Bucket List.”  There’s always next summer!

In anticipation of your summer, I recommend you grab some blackberries and some frozen phyllo dough and make these cuties that could arguably be considered summer-in-a-bite.  The recipe comes from a favorite blog of mine, Shutterbean, and I adjusted it minorly because the original has arugula on each little bite but I felt that would be too healthy. Happy Summer 2013!

Blackberry Lemon Goat Cheese Squares

From Shutterbean

6 oz goat cheese, room temperature

1 tablespoon lemon zest

2 tablespoons honey

1-2 tablespoons milk

2 sheets puff pastry, thawed

1/2 to 1 pint blackberries

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Preheat oven 400F. Line a baking sheet (or two) with parchment & set aside.  Mix the goat cheese, lemon zest, honey and milk together – set aside. In another bowl stir the blackberries with the balsamic vinegar and let sit for 10 minutes.  On a lightly floured surface, cut the puff pastry into 2-inch squares and place the squares onto the parchment lined sheets about 2 inches apart -- you may need to work in batches.   Using a fork, score a square into the pastry without cutting all the way through.  Place a dollop of the lemon goat cheese mixture on top of each square and top with a blackberry. Bake squares for 15-20 minutes, or until golden.  Serve warm or at room temperature.