Cheese and wine baguette appetizer recipe

This broiled cheese bread recipe uses baguettes cut in the diagonal with a melted fontina cheese mixture (mélange) with garlic butter and Madeira wine. These are attractive bit sized appetizers with most ingredients prepared the day before. The day before prep allows the cheese and garlic butter mixture to mellow and the flavors to meld. The aromatic ingredients, garlic and pepper, are given time to migrate into the mixture. I use Madeira wine to complement the other ingredients. Madeira is a fortified wine that is excellent for cooking as it is resilient to higher temperatures, making it well-suited for the brief high-temperature broiling of the baguette. The acidity of the Madeira also helps with the melting of the cheese mixture.  The oven cooking is done in two steps: first, a brief oven heating of the baguette. This heating makes spreading the cheese mixtures easier and allows the bread browning and melting of the cheese mixture to take place quickly when broiling first, the second cooking step.

The Cheese mélange

A mélange can best be described as a mix, a stew, or melded ingredients in recipe use. The purpose of the mélange is to enhance and expand the flavor profile. A pleasing mélange can add complexity or a particular flavor characteristic to a primary ingredient like cheese. You can also alter cheese's texture and melt characteristics with a mélange. A cheese Mélange can be of various types: cheeses of different types, cheese or cheese with herbs, cheeses with wine, or other unique ingredients.

Three kinds of cheese are used to craft the mélange, each with its own contributing characteristics. The first Fontina melts excellently and is often used in fondue recipes. It also contributes a mild, nutty, tangy flavor. The second sharp cheddar, a white cheese, maintains the final light-colored appearance. The sharp cheddar boosts the pungent flavor and is used in a lower ratio to the Fontina. The third cheese is Parmesan, which is very high in natural glutamate and adds an umami savory flavor. Parmesan is in equal quantity to cheddar. For the mélange, three cheeses are blended with the other ingredients. 

Food Processors

A food processor is indispensable to properly create a mixture of cheese, wine, and other ingredients. You will need to use the metal chopping blade of the food processor. The physical action of the food processor blades in the cheese and other ingredients will generate some heat. This added heat is beneficial when creating the mélange. The added heat softens the cheese and warms other ingredients, allowing the ingredients to combine better. Especially in pure mode, this heating can take place very quickly. As the heating occurs, you will purée; you will need attention that the cheese has a slightly crumbly but slightly creamy appearance.

Ingredients for cheese and wine mélange baguettes appetizers:

• Cheese 1/2-pound (8 oz) total

• Fontina semi-soft, cheese 4 oz

• English Cheddar, white cheese, aged 15-18 months, 2 oz (white)

• Parmesan 2 oz

• 1 clove, Garlic

• 3 tbsp Butter, unsalted

• Madeira wine 1/4 cup

• 1/4 tsp White Pepper

• 1/4 tsp Sea Salt

This recipe makes enough for 20-25 baguette appetizers.

Instructions for baguette appetizers

1.      Begin by melting the butter in a saucepan over low to medium heat. It's crucial to exercise patience here. Once the butter has melted, lower the heat to low, add the garlic, and gently sauté. Be mindful not to overcook or use too high a temperature, as this can cause bitterness in the garlic. Allow the melted butter mixture to cool some.

 2.      Prepare your cheeses by dividing the Fontina and cheddar into cubes about a half inch in size. Grate the Parmesan to the appropriate amount by weight.

 3.      Add the diced cheese to the food processor. Use the metal blade and pulse 8-10 times until it is about pea-sized. Add salt, white pepper, and Parmesan. Pulse a few more times to distribute the ingredients. Add the cooled butter mixture and Madeira wine. Purée for 60-90 seconds, stopping to scrape the food processor container walls as needed.

 4.      Turn the mixture onto your work surface and form it into a ball, compressing it with your hands as needed. The best method is to place it in a bowl and cover it with plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight to let the flavors meld.

 5.      Preheat your oven to 400°F. Using the middle rack, cook the baguette slices for only 6 minutes.

 6.      After 6 minutes, Remove the baguette slices. Turn the oven to broil, allowing it to come up to temperature while you spread the cheese mixture.

 7.      Spoon about two teaspoons onto each slice. Using a knife, spread the cheese mixture onto the hot Baguette slices.

 8.      Broil the baguette slices with cheese spread for one to two minutes. It's important to be patient and pay close attention to the broiling process, as the bread can burn quickly. The cheese spread should bubble some and you should get some browning of the exposed bread edges. The best is to serve warm.