Rosemary Lemon Ricotta Cheese Spread

YUM! Creamy cheese, yes please!

My inspo for this recipe comes from a local Knoxville restaurant, Emilia. The chef, Matt Gallaher is ah-mazing at creating flavor profiles that quite frankly make you and your taste buds jump for joy. No detail is over looked and consistency is never in question. One-hundred percent of the time you get exactly what you’re expecting – meal perfection.

Which brings me to this ricotta cheese spread. I am in no way comparing my recipe to Chef’s Matt’s, (because that would just be silly) the two taste totally different but I will say my version scaled pretty high among my taste testers. The lemon really adds a brightness while the nutmeg adds a little surprise flavor that makes you go “yum, what is that?’

Super simple and quick, this would be a great party appetizer! Give it a try and let me know what you think by tagging #DesocioInTheKitchen .

Ingredients

4 Tbsp. olive oil, divided
1 garlic clove, grated on a microplane
8 oz container of ricotta cheese – short of making your own, don’t skimp here – buy a good brand
4 oz cream cheese – room temperature
pinch of fresh nutmeg
1/2 tablespoon fresh rosemary chopped – divided
1 lemon – zested
1/2 lemon juice
Salt and pepper to your taste
Toppings: Chopped rosemary, sea salt and olive oil

Directions

1. In a food processor, pulse together ricotta, cream cheese, 2 TBL olive oil, nutmeg, 1/4 tbl rosemary, lemon zest, lemon juice, grated garlic, salt and pepper.

2. Once combined, scoop out into a low bowl. For a pretty presentation spread and smooth out the top.

3. Sprinkle on the remaining chopped rosemary, a little sea salt and olive oil.

4. I like to serve this with warm crunchy bread but it would also be good with raw vegetables.