Easy French recipe for goat cheese apéro bites

Today I’m sharing with you my easy recipe for goat cheese apéro bites. Perfect for your next glass of wine with friends (or not!)

In our family, the “apéro” is sacred. If I forget, the kids will not! For many years I wondered what I should make and share when we we’d have guests. Finally I feel like I’ve come into my own and have a solid repertoire of delicious treats I can whip up.

To make the perfect French apéritif you really want to have a good mix of snacks. This one is a nice combo because it’s got a little bit of everything cheese, charcuterie and nuts. To be fair, I’ve used Italian prosciutto (which is widely available in France) but… it could easily be interchanged with a french one.

What I love about these is that they deliver on flavour, and yet they’re still nice and tiny. The plate often gets finished in record time because it’s hard to stop at just one.

Wine Pairing

I find goat cheese pairs best with white wines from the Loire Valley which is also known for its goat cheeses so definitely try others too. Wines here deliver great acidity to cut through rich flavours. You could try a Sauvignon Blanc from Pouilly Fumé (my favourite French Sauvignon Blanc), Sancerre or Touraine where you’ll find some high value/lower cost. You could also try it with Chenin Blanc, the grape I forever think I need more of in my life. Savennières, another absolute favourite, comes with a higher price point but don’t overlook Anjou Blanc or Montlouis and Vouvrey (which you could also get as a sparkling wine) which are also great Chenin wines.

So tell me what you think and also let me know which wines are your favourite coming out of the Loire Valley. I’d love to share more about the region with you. I feel so fortunate to live nearby and paired with these Goat Cheese Apéro Bites you can’t go wrong!

Goat Cheese Prosciutto Apéritif Bites

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Course Appetizer

Cuisine French

Ingredients

  

• 80 g prosciutto finely chopped
• 200 g fresh goats cheese
• 1/16 tsp pili pili spice (or cayenne as a substitute)
• 60 g pistachios (shells removed) ground

Instructions

 

• Finely chop up your prosciutto so there are no large bits and add to fresh goats cheese in a small bowl.
• Add pili pili spice and mix until everything is evenly distributed.
• Be sure and taste to get the spice how you like it. I have made the recipe to be mild to ensure my kids won't really notice, but the hint is there all the same.
• Roll little rounds of the mixture between your fingers. I've made these about 2cm in size which is just under an inch. If you're preparing them in advance put them in the fridge without the pistachios until just before serving.
• Grind up the pistachios and if you won't be eating them right away put them in an airtight container ready to be used later. This will avoid the pistachios loosing the crunch which is great contrast to the creamy goats cheese.
• When it's time to serve, quickly toss the little bites in the ground pistachios and serve.

Notes

Note that in the photos I’ve only made a half recipe so with a full recipe you’ll end up with approximately 24 goat cheese bites. 

Keyword appetizer, cocktail party foods, french aperitif, goats cheese, pistachio, prosciutto, snacks