If we’re going to do dairy, we want to go for the good stuff! And that doesn’t mean the sugariest ice cream in the grocery store: that means choosing responsibly-farmed dairy that’s done right from farm to table. Monique Otero from Brunchpants gives us the scoop on a NYC farm setting the bar high for the dairy industry – and shares a recipe for garlic butter tomato toast that will rock your world…
Dairy is an ingredient I love to indulge in, but when I do, I always source from dairy farms with responsible farming practices. Ronnybrook, in New York’s Hudson Valley, is one of those farms. This farm goes above and beyond traditional organic farming methods, never using any pesticides or RBST and making sure their cows get daily access to outdoor exercise. Ronnybrook treats their cows like family and they even have comfort cow stalls with individual mattresses. All of their milk is tested daily to insure that their products meet the highest quality standards.
One of my favorite summertime recipes is roasted garlic tomato toast using Ronnybrook’s European-style unsalted butter (Read about our buttered coffee obsession here.) This is my butter of choice because it is fresh churned in small batches and has a higher butterfat content than traditional butters. I usually double this roasted garlic butter recipe and freeze half so it is ready to go for unexpected summer picnics.
You can find Ronnybrook at farmers markets all over New York City. They are at the Union Square Farmers Market on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
ROASTED GARLIC BUTTER TOMATO TOAST
Serves 10
Ingredients:
8 oz (2 sticks) of unsalted butter, room temperature
2 heads of garlic
2 French baguette
4 large heirloom tomatoes
1/2 cup fresh basil
4 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
flakey sea salt
pepper
Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.
Take your butter out of the fridge to make sure it is at room temperature.
Cut the top off of the garlic heads (about 1/4 of the way down) to expose the cloves.
Drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil on top of each garlic.
Wrap the garlic in tin foil.
Roast the garlic for 20 -30 minutes or until a knife comes out smooth when inserted into the center.
Allow the garlic to cool.
Once the garlic is cooled, squeeze out the softened garlic cloves and mix into your softened butter.
Cut your baguettes in half lengthwise.
Generously coat both sides of the baguette with your garlic butter mixture.
Wrap the baguettes in 2 sheets of tin foil and toast in your oven or on your grill for 5 -10 minutes per side or until the outside is toasted. Turn your bread once to make sure it doesn’t burn.
While the bread is toasting, slice your tomatoes and roughly chop the basil.
Cut the toasted baguette into serving sizes and lay out on a cutting board or tray.
Sprinkle the salt on top of the bread and then layer the tomatoes on top.
Drizzle the olive oil and another light layer of salt and pepper on top of the tomatoes.
Top with the chopped basil.
Serve while still warm.
