7x7 asks the city's chefs for the recipes to their most loved cocktails, bar snacks, starters, mains, and desserts. If there's a dish you can't stop thinking about and want to make at home, email schuyler@7x7.com. Your wish may end up on the blog, along with the actual recipe from the chef.
A favorite bar item at RN74, the decadent warm Époisses bread recently debuted as a starter on the dinner menu. Fair warning: This appetizer is not for the faint of heart. Della Fattoria bread is drizzled with Berthaut AOC Époisses (one of the world’s most pungent cheeses) mixed with crème fraîche and then seasoned with fried rosemary leaves. The result is a cheese-drenched bomb of crusty deliciousness on the outside and a warm, spongey inside that is perfect for mopping up bits from the bottom of the cast-iron pan. It is a task best suited for friends on a foggy night.
Warm Époisses Bread
Serves 4
6 ounces Pain de Campagne,
or other rustic bread
4 ounces Époisses cheese
1 ounce crème fraîche
1 sprig rosemary
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Mix the Époisses with the crème fraîche and reserve.
3. Fry the rosemary in 375-degree oil for 1 minute; remove the crispy leaves.
4. Score the bread by slicing through it partially.
5. Place bread in an ovenproof container (preferably a cast-iron pan), and spread the Époisses over the bread. Allow the remainder of the cheese to pool in the bottom of the dish.
6. Sprinkle the rosemary leaves on all surfaces of the bread.
7. Bake for 12–15 minutes, until lightly browned and crispy.
