Baked goat cheese with hazelnut crust and caramelized balsamic onions

• goat cheese

  (used “Capricorn”)

• hazelnuts↗50 g

  chopped

• bread crumbs↗25 g
• eggs↗2

  beaten

• red chicory leaves, arugula and cress salad

  for serving

• olive oil↗3 tbsp
• red onion↗3

  cut in half and thinly sliced

• balsamic vinegar↗4 tbsp
• soft clear honey↗4 tbsp

Step-by-step instructions

1. 1

   Slice each block of goat cheese horizontally in half. Roughly chop the hazelnuts and mix them with the bread crumbs. Dredge each half first in the beaten eggs, then in the nut‑breadcrumb mixture, leaving a large amount of the mixture on the cut side so you can see which side should face up.

2. 2

   In a non‑stick skillet, heat the olive oil, add the onion sliced into half‑rings and sauté, stirring, for 10 minutes until it becomes soft and slightly golden. Pour in the balsamic vinegar and honey, season to taste and continue cooking until the sauce thickens to a syrupy consistency. If you plan to freeze, let the sauce cool, and individually wrap the already coated cheese in cling film and foil. Spread the cooled onions into a freezer bag; when fully cooled, thaw them and gently reheat in a skillet.

3. 3

   Preheat the oven to 200 °C (180 °C convection, gas setting 6). Arrange the prepared cheese pieces on a parchment‑lined sheet and bake for 20 minutes. If baking frozen cheese, continue for an additional 5 minutes.

4. 4

   On plates, lay out the salad leaves, top with the caramelized onions, then the baked cheese. Drizzle with the remaining sauce and serve immediately.