For my last birthday, my parents planned a trip to San Diego for us.  Besides visiting the San Diego Zoo, and the fisherman’s wharf, we visited Coronado, an amazingly beautiful resort city just outside downtown SD.  We drove beach side and dined at Hotel del Coronado for lunch.  The hotel has three restaurants and two bars to choose from, but we chose Sheerwater, the outdoor dining area.  The beachfront location has a “Fish by the Sea” menu and focuses on fresh and sustainable seafood.

While enjoying the scenery, my family also enjoyed eating and sharing Sheerwater’s Signature Baked Goat Cheese, Hummus and Slow Roasted Tomatoes, Turkey Burger, and Spinach and Pear salad.  While everything we munched on was great, the most memorable part of our meal was the Signature Baked Goat Cheese.  We licked the hot dish clean!  It was served with sun dried tomatoes, basil pesto, roasted garlic, and toasted ciabatta bread.  Right now my mouth is watering just typing this!  When we got back from our vacation, we couldn’t wait to try to reproduce the dip!  It turned out almost as good as Sheerwater’s and both my parents and I have made it one of our staples.  Read below for the recipe!

3 TBSP Roasted Red Peppers, chopped

3 TBSP Tomato Sauce

4 TBSP Pesto

2 TBSP Shredded Parmesan Cheese

4 Ounces Goat Cheese

Preheat oven to 375

In a small bowl, combine peppers and tomato sauce

Spoon mixture into half of baking dish

In a small bowl, combine pesto and cheese

Spoon mixture onto other half of baking dish

Slice cheese (be careful as it will crumble) into 1/4 inch sections and lay on top of mixtures

Bake in oven 15 minutes, or until mixtures are bubbling and cheese is browned along edges

Serve as an appetizer with crispy bread or veggies!  Enjoy!

Do you have a favorite food you have reproduced close to its original?  Email me at newsforchews@gmail.com and let me know!

Stay hungry…