Warm Goat Cheese with Roasted Garlic and Sundried Tomatoes

Warm Goat Cheese with Roasted Garlic and Sundried Tomatoes is an appetizer I used to make right after I graduated from college, which was a long time ago! This appetizer is absolutely delicious — warm, rustic, and perfect for entertaining! Everyone always loves it, and I hope you will too. 

There’s something magical about warm goat cheese paired with roasted garlic- it’s the kind of appetizer that invites everyone to gather around the table and linger a little longer over the dish.  This Baked Goat Cheese with Roasted Garlic and Sun-Dried Tomatoes is a cozy, yet elegant starter that’s deceptively simple to make.  The creamy cheese softens into a spreadable dream, the roasted garlic turns buttery and sweet, and the toasted pine nuts add just the right amount of crunch.  Serve it with crusty baguette slices and let everyone build their own perfect bite.  

Ingredients for Warm Goat Cheese Appetizer

Goat Cheese

1 piece of fresh goat cheese, which usually comes in the shape of a log.  If you don’t care for goat cheese, you could try a block of cream cheese or brie. Trader Joe’s has a good selection of affordable cheese options.  

Garlic

1 whole head of garlic, cloves removed, separated, and peeled.  If you want to save time, you can buy pre-peeled whole garlic cloves.  They are usually found in the produce section.  

Sundried Tomatoes

1/2 cup sundried tomatoes (in oil), roughly chopped into small pieces.  If you don’t care for sundried tomatoes, you can leave them out or maybe substitute roasted red peppers instead.  I find the sweet sun-dried tomatoes offer a tartness that complements the roasted garlic and goat cheese well, plus the pop of color looks great for presentation.  

Pine Nuts

1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted.  Toasting the pine nuts really helps develop the flavor and adds the perfect nutty crunch to this appetizer.  

Fresh Basil

1/4 cup fresh basil, chiffonade, which means sliced into thin strips.  See the instructions below for how to do this.  Fresh herbs are best here, but if you only have access to dried, sprinkle only about half of a teaspoon over the top of the dish before serving.  

Olive oil

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil.  The measurement of oil is not exact because it will depend on the size of your baking dish as well as the size of the garlic cloves.  You need enough to cover the cloves.  You may find there is just too much oil after roasting the garlic, so before serving, spoon out some oil to expose the garlic cloves. Then add fresh toppings.

Baguette

1 French baguette, cut into 1/4 inch slices.  A sourdough baguette would also be great in this recipe.  I like the soft French bread, but if you prefer more crunch, you could turn the baguette into crostini.  Do this by placing the sliced baguette pieces onto a baking sheet and drizzling each side of the bread with a bit of olive oil and a sprinkle of salt and black pepper.  Bake for about 10 minutes until golden and crispy.

STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS

STEP 1-  Preheat the oven.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees so it’s ready to roast the garlic and warm the goat cheese. 

STEP 2-  Prep the garlic.

Separate the cloves from the head of garlic and peel off the papery skins, or use pre-peeled cloves to save time.  

STEP 3- Add garlic cloves to the dish.

The dish should be large enough to hold the garlic cloves in a single layer.   Too big a dish and you will need a lot more oil.  Use an ovenproof 8×8, 9×9, or small oval or round dish.

STEP 4- Cover the garlic with Olive Oil.

Pour olive oil over the garlic cloves using enough oil so the garlic cloves will sit mostly submerged in a single layer. 

STEP 5- Roast the garlic.

Roast for 20-25 minutes until the garlic is soft, golden, and can be easily pierced with a fork.  

STEP 6-  Toast the pine nuts

While the garlic roasts, toast the pine nuts in a dry skillet over low-medium heat for about 5 minutes, stirring often, until lightly browned, then transfer to a plate to cool.  

STEP 6- Chiffonade the basil.

Stack the basil leaves, roll them up like a little cigar, and slice them into thin strips to make basil chiffonade.  

STEP 7-  Chop the tomatoes

Roughly chop the tomatoes into smaller pieces.  I prefer to have small pieces of sundried tomato rather than whole. You can skip this step if you like to have long strips of tomato.   

STEP 8-  Add the goat cheese and tomatoes

At the 20-minute mark, remove the dish from the oven, make space in the center, and place the log of goat cheese log in the middle. Top it with chopped sun-dried tomatoes.  

STEP 9-  Warm the goat cheese.

Return the dish to the oven for about 10 more minutes, until the goat cheese is soft and warm and the garlic is fully tender.  

STEP 10-  Prep the bread.

While the dish is cooling for about 5 minutes, slice the baguette into 1/4-inch slices and arrange the slices on a plate or around the baking dish on a larger serving platter.

STEP 10- Garnish and serve.

Sprinkle the warm goat cheese with toasted pine nuts and fresh basil, then serve warm so everyone can spread the soft garlic and creamy goat cheese onto the bread with tomatoes, basil, and pine nuts in each bite!

This baked goat cheese dip is exactly the kind of cheesy dip that fits any time of year, whether you’re cozied up at home or hosting a crowd.  With creamy goat cheese, sweet roasted garlic, and all those delicious toppings, it’s the kind of appetizer that keeps people hoovering over the dish.  Save this one for your next get-together and watch how quickly it disappears.

More Recipes To Try!

Cheesy Baked Mushroom Dip

Warm Brie with Maple Crostini

Tomato Bruschetta