Feta Cheese Puffs and Raspberry Basil Caprese

Last weekend was awesome. As you know, Oma turned the big 8-5, a milestone for sure. And how does one celebrate an event of such proportions? Blow guns and food, duh. I mean, if you are going to celebrate your grandmother's 85th year on Earth, it better include a weapon, am I right?
So what did we do? You guessed it! We broke out the trusty blow dart gun. (My uncle actually gave this gun to my brother as a confirmation present. Yes, that's right, a CONFIRMATION present. I kid you not, amidst all of the gold cross paraphernalia, embossed Bibles, and prayer books, sat a fully loaded blow dart gun on the present table at the reception. After confirming his faith in The Lord Jesus Christ, my eighth grade brother righteously pegged the back of our house with multiple sharpened metal darts. Hallelujah!) Anyway, things started out innocently enough, as we all took turns shooting these little shiny spears into a handmade cartoon target, but quickly escalated when my cousin, Fritz, climbed the length of our tether ball pole, perched himself on top, (gun in hand, mind you), and began shooting from there. Intense. Not to be outdone by an 11 year-old, my boyfriend, who is 12 years his senior, thought it would be a good idea to test his aim, shooting abilities, and ultimately his masculinity, by moving to the edge of the property, (a good 100 yards down hill), and shoot from there. He made it, (THANK GOD), while putting the rest of the 40,000 residents of Small Town America at ease. Do I know how to pick 'em, or what? Eventually, a massive spider was quite literally blown away when Fritz shot it point blank with a dart. Clear liquid spurting in all directions, we decided to call it a day, and give the blow gun a rest, (until we got paintballs to "color the squirrels." Have I mentioned I'm from Missouri?)
After a long day of shooting and surviving multiple shots from the blow gun we were all famished and in need of some sustenance. Since it was a party after all, I decided I would make a recipe I found on The Greasy Skillet for Feta Cheese Puffs. Tasty, to say the least!
Feta Cheese Puffs
Ingredients:

• 4 tablespoons butter
• 3/4 cup water
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 3 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1/4 pound feta cheese or blue cheese, crumbled

Preparation:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and grease two baking sheets.
2. In a saucepan, bring water and 4 tablespoons of butter to a boil.
3. Remove the pan from the heat, and add the flour. Beat with a wooden spoon until the mixture leaves the sides of the pan and forms a ball.
4. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating until smooth after each addition.
5. Stir in the cheese.
6. Let the batter sit for 15 minutes, and then drop batter by rounded tablespoons onto the prepared baking sheets. You should have about 2 dozen puffs. Bake until golden, 20 to 30 minutes.
7. Serve.

For dinner the following night, my cousin Johanna and I made a Raspberry Basil Caprese, from Simmer Till Done.
Raspberry Basil Caprese

1 shallot
1 teaspoon olive oil
6 oz fresh raspberries
1 tablespoon honey
3 oz red wine vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoons roughly cracked or ground black pepper
dash sea salt

1 lb fresh mozzarella cheese
5 large basil leaves (4 for assembly, 1 to chop for garnish)

Make Raspberry-Shallot Dressing

Peel the shallot and slice thin, forming rings. Heat olive oil in small frying pan to hot, but not sizzling; add shallot rings and saute 1 – 2 minutes, until barely softened and edges are lightly charred. Remove from heat and set aside.

Place 4 oz of raspberries in medium mixing bowl, and save remaining 2 oz for garnish. Use a spatula to lightly press berries and release juices, leaving several whole and half berries in mix. Add honey, red wine vinegar, cracked pepper and cooked shallots. Gently stir with spatula to blend. Test flavor, and adjust to your taste with sea salt, or more pepper. Dressing can be made up to 24 hours before serving; flavors will intensify as it rests.

Assemble Raspberry Basil Caprese

Slice thick pieces of fresh mozzarella, 2 per person (8 slices to serve 4).

Lay one slice of mozzarella on plate. Top cheese with 1 teaspoon Raspberry-Shallot Dressing, then one large basil leaf. Lay second slice of mozzarella over the basil, and finish with another heaping teaspoon of dressing. Garnish plates with a few fresh raspberries, chopped basil, and a small extra splash of dressing, if desired.

Serves 4 as a first course.