Monday, December 21, 2009

Cranberry Goat Cheese Log


I recently purchased a cranberry goat cheese log from Trader Joe's. Although I enjoyed the flavor combination, overall it was ehhhhhhh. I discovered that making it with fresh cranberries makes a BIG difference.I took this one to a holiday party last night, and guess what? Someone else brought the Trader Joe's log. Do I need to even tell you which one got gobbled up???




  • 1/4 ounce package of gelatin
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 12 ounce package fresh cranberries
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup of cranberry juice ( I used water for this)
  • 1/4 cup raspberry liqueur
  • 12 ounce log goat cheese

Mix the gelatin and 1/4 cup of water in a small bowl. In sauce pan combine cranberries, sugar, cinnamon, cranberry juice and liqueur. Bring to a boil and cook for about 15 minutes.Pour in the gelatin mixture and cook until it becomes as thick as jelly.Place the cranberry mixture in the fridge for a few hours. I made mine the night before I planned on serving it. Once the cranberry mixture is cool, unroll a 20 inch piece of plastic wrap. Spoon about 1 cup of the cranberry sauce onto the middle of the plastic wrap. Spread the sauce in to the shape of a rectangle, slightly longer than the goat cheese. Place the goat cheese on top. Spoon another 1/2 cup of cranberry sauce over the top of the goat cheese. ( I had about 1/2 a cup of cranberry sauce leftover ). Now you need to wrap the log up in plastic wrap. Once wrapped, use your hands to spread the sauce evenly around the cheese. At this point I placed the log in the fridge. It travels well this way, so when I arrived at my cousins holiday party I just unwrapped it and served with crackers. I wanted to garnish with a couple holly leaves, but the snow was too deep to get to it, maybe next year....

12 comments:

  1. oh wow yours was the star of the party and rightly so lol

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  2. I am dangerous when it comes to goat cheese! I find that I will eat the whole log, well the small ones at least. However cranberries would send me whirling into a frenzy of eating...then you would find me guilty with a Christmas Red smile :)

    Happy Holidays...pssst I sent you a message...

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  3. Yum! Goat cheese & cranberry is such a great combination! Happy holidays!

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  4. Cheese is one of my favorite foods! This looks beautiful and delicious. I'll bet it was nice to see your plate was empty in comparison to the store bought plate. Have a wonderful holiday!

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  5. I have both in the fridge, perfect for christmas day!

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  6. Looks good, shame we can't get fresh cranberry here

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  7. Making these. I actually like this recipe better than the one I found in the paper last week. Happy happy holidays!

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  8. Goat cheese and cranberries are the perfect combo, aren't they? I love homemade cheese logs (they're infinitely better than store-bought!) and we usually have them for our New Year's party. Now I know what's going on the menu...thanks! ;)

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  9. Invite me over, and this will be gone in 5 seconds.

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  10. i too have come to appreciate how much better fresh cranberries can make something. this is absolutely gorgeous!

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  11. Kate/Foodbuzz GoodpastriesJanuary 7, 2010 at 7:33 PM

    I tried the Trader Joe's version and was also disappointed. Yours looks wonderful! Must try!

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  12. I know it's a bit late, but this looks very Christmas-y, beautiful and delicious.

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