hot honey caprese whipped ricotta
Summertime easy eats are quite appealing when it’s this balls hot out.
Today, it’s not so bad out. The air dried out and my run in the morning was quite pleasant, but I’m certainly not banking on this to last. Certainly, it’s May, and the conditions will only deteriorate as the summer properly approaches and passes into the mid-late year.
Mid-late year?! What the fuck. The year’s nearly half passed. Send help.
Considering the heightened temperatures and some of ya’ll not having AC (poor souls), here I offer a divinely simple, versatile, and addicting entertainment-friendly app which doubles as a light lunch or dinner. Especially useful if turning our oven on sounds like the worst idea ever. Does for me right now, unless I’m baking cake.
Dish out this Hot Honey Caprese Whipped Ricotta with grilled (my favorite) or toasted bread, or your favorite crispy cracker. The abundance of flavors work together swimmingly to create a spread that’s all at once unique and complimentary. In fact, I’m munching on some crostini right now for lunch. Good shit.
Whole Lotta Ricotta
This recipe more or less occurred because I bought a tub of ricotta for last week’s White Street Corn Dip Pizza and completely forgot to use it – thankfully, the pizza suffered not and I actually think I liked it better sans ricotta. Turns out I didn’t have much time on my hands for a prolonged recipe development process either, so voila. A perfect 15 minute wonder for you guys today!
First step: hot honey. Every recipe is different but the key takeaway is a good sweet-heat balance, and I enjoy my take on the condiment because of such. If you’ve got a favorite rendition, have at it. Just combine honey, hot sauce, cayenne pepper, garlic and onion powders, and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Microwave for 30 seconds, stir, then an additional 15-20 seconds until runny and smooth.
Next: marinated tomatoes. The only difference between this and what you’ll see in, say, my Greek Olive Shrimp recipe, is a bit of our resident hot honey tossed with the pearly reds. Toss the tomatoes with some hot honey as well as olive oil, white balsamic vinegar, fresh basil, mint, and oregano, a couple minced garlic cloves, and some salt and pepper.
Finally: whipped ricotta. Easy as can be. Throw a tub of whole milk ricotta (didn’t test this with part skim, so I’m not sure how whippidy doo dah it’ll become) into the bowl of a food processor with a few tablespoons of heavy cream. The cream will help lift the ricotta as it blends and create a lighter, fluffier spread.
Whip until nice and smooth. Here, you can choose to store all your components separately if you want to prep ahead. The ricotta and tomatoes will last up to 3 days, and the hot honey up to two weeks.
Or, if you’re ready to serve now, assemble it up! Spread the ricotta onto a pretty, shallow dish (I like a couple bowl). Spoon the tomatoes and the marinade overtop. Finish with a drizzle extra of hot honey (serve the rest on the side) and lots of fresh basil.
As for accompaniments, nothing beats some grilled bread for me. I brush some slices of sourdough or ciabatta with olive oil and heat on my grill pan for 1-2 minutes until very toasty. You can also broil or toast your carbs. Crackers are a good second option if that’s your preference.
Yup, expect some more minimal or no cook summer recipes moving forward. And ice cream. I’m ice cream obsessed right now and have a nice new flavor in mind to test out this week. So look forward to that! Or don’t and be a killjoy.
Tried this recipe out? Leave a rating and comment below with your thoughts, and don’t forget to come say hi on Instagram and show me what you made!
Dippety Doo Da:
Herb and Cheese Pepperoni Pizza Dip
Whipped Goat Cheese with Herb Marinated Olives
Hot Baked Cheddar Bay Shrimp Dip
Whipped Goat Cheese Dip with Chili Marinated Tomatoes
hot honey caprese whipped ricotta
Ingredients
- 2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2-3 tbsp hot honey (recipe below)
- 1 tbsp white balsamic vinegar
- 1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped
- 1 tbsp fresh mint, chopped
- 1 tbsp fresh oregano, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 cups whole milk ricotta cheese
- 3 tbsp heavy whipping cream
- grilled or toasted bread or crackers, for serving
- additional hot honey and fresh basil, for serving
hot honey
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1/4 cup hot sauce (I like Frank's)
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
Instructions
- In a microwave safe bowl, combine the honey, hot sauce, cayenne pepper, garlic and onion powders, and red pepper flakes. Heat for 30 seconds, stir, then heat an additional 15-20 seconds until well incorporated.
- In a medium bowl, toss the tomatoes with olive oil, hot honey, white balsamic vinegar, basil, mint, oregano, garlic, and a pinch of salt and pepper.
- To the bowl of a food processor, add the ricotta, heavy cream, and a pinch of salt. Whip for 1-2 minutes until very smooth and creamy.
- Spread the ricotta into a shallow bowl. Spoon the tomatoes overtop and drizzle with hot honey. Garnish with additional fresh basil and serve with toasty bread and crackers, as desired.
