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Enjoy fresh apricots in an easy appetizer

Recipe: No cooking involved in this seasonal creation

This apricot-goat cheese appetizer can be put together quickly for a late-spring meal or event.

This apricot-goat cheese appetizer can be put together quickly for a late-spring meal or event. Kathy Morrison

Apricot season is here and gone in a blink. This recipe uses fresh, ripe apricots in the easiest appetizer short of opening a bag of chips. No cooking involved!

apricots with lemon juice
Brush the halves with lemon juice

There are variation on this type of appetizer, but they all look so messy: Honey is drizzled over the goat cheese and nuts that top the apricot halves.

Why not mix the honey into the plain goat cheese? Yes, it works beautifully. Be sure to use a floral or even an herb-specific honey (such as lavender) for subtle but effective sweetening.

Use your favorite nuts. I found red walnuts being sold at the farmers market at Arden Fair. They are beautiful as well as less bitter than a standard walnuts. But chopped pistachios or sliced almonds would work equally well.

Apricot-goat cheese appetizer

Makes 12

Ingredients:

6 ripe but not mushy apricots

Lemon juice (fresh preferred)

5 ounces plain goat cheese, room temperature

2 tablespoons honey, preferably a floral variety

Pinch of salt

1/4 cup or more favorite nutmeats, such as walnut halves, shelled pistachios or sliced almonds, roughly chopped

Instructions:

Slice the apricots in half and remove the pit. Brush each half with a bit of lemon juice, to keep the apricot flesh from turning brown. then set aside the halves on a plate.

red-walnuts.jpg
Gorgeous red walnuts for the topping.

Place the goat cheese in a medium bowl, and add the honey and the pinch of salt. Whip or beat it until fully combined and somewhat fluffy. (If it is soft enough, you'll be able to whip the honey into it with a spatula or spoon. If it's still a bit firm, use a hand mixer or immersion blender.)

Place the goat cheese mixture in a pastry bag with any tip or in a large zipper-lock plastic bag, then cut the corner off. (Make sure the bag is sealed, by the way.) Pipe about a teaspoon of the goat cheese into the center of the apricot halves (more for large apricots -- there will be plenty of filling).

Top each with a sprinkle of chopped nuts. The appetizers can be served immediately, or refrigerated for about an hour if working ahead.

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Dig In: Garden Checklist

For week of March 24:

In between cloud bursts, try to catch up with early spring chores. 

* Attack weeds now! Get them before they flower and go to seed. Take a hoe and whack them as soon as they sprout. Aim for 1 inch below the soil line.

* Start preparing vegetable beds. Spade in compost and other amendments.

* Prune and fertilize spring-flowering shrubs after bloom.

* Feed camellias at the end of their bloom cycle. Pick up browned and fallen flowers to help corral blossom blight.

* Feed citrus trees, which are now in bloom and setting fruit. To prevent sunburn and borer problems on young trees, paint the exposed portion of the trunk with diluted white latex (water-based) interior paint. Dilute the paint with an equal amount of cold water before application.

* Feed roses with a balanced fertilizer (such as 10-10-10, the ratio of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium available in that product).

* Prune and fertilize spring-flowering shrubs and trees after they bloom. Try using well-composted manure, spread 1-inch thick under the tree. This serves as both fertilizer and mulch, retaining moisture while cutting down on weeds.

* Cut back and fertilize perennial herbs to encourage new growth.

* Seed and renovate the lawn (if you still have one). Feed cool-season grasses such as bent, blue, rye and fescue with a slow-release fertilizer. Check the irrigation system and perform maintenance. Make sure sprinkler heads are turned toward the lawn, not the sidewalk.

* In the vegetable garden, transplant lettuce and cole family plants, such as cabbage, broccoli, collards and kale.

* Seed chard and beets directly into the ground.

* Plant summer bulbs, including gladiolus, tuberous begonias and callas. Also plant dahlia tubers.

* Shop for perennials. Many varieties are available in local nurseries and at plant events. They can be transplanted now while the weather remains relatively cool.

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