I know, it's a bit cheesy...

After a couple of gloriously sunny days, the heavens opened yesterday and my backyard looked like an aquarium: loads of plants, all standing in 3 feet of water... I just needed to add the goldfish...

The temperature has dropped slightly and, with every drop of rain, the 'closeness' slowly dissipated. And so did my lethargy. When the temperature is too high I don't fancy eating or cooking/baking. As a matter of fact, I don't feel like doing much of anything until the temperature drops below 20ºC. And so, I had a crazy run of baking: wholemeal bread with rye flakes, rye flake buns, cheesy rye flake buns, chocolate chip cookies, mini fruit and walnut scones, fresh garlic bread... I think I might have gone a bit overboard...

As England was playing last night (gotta pretend that I am keeping up with the World Cup...) I was looking for a nice snack as the match started at 11 p.m. The night before we had 'kroketten' as Spain was trying to hold back The Netherlands (what a marvelous score, 1-5). So, for yesterday, I wanted something typically British but also something typically me. A cheese board is too simple, although tasty, and pasties are too heavy for this type of weather. What is a girl to do???

Eventually my brain started spouting out all kinds of typically British fare: crumpets (really??? as a snack???), Broccoli and Stilton soup (it's not that cold), Welsh Rarebit (not quite the kind of snack I had in mind). That was cheese twice... I love cheese, so does hubby. I might be onto something here... The UK has some lovely cheeses but 'plain and simple' cheddar does remain one of my favourites when it comes to snacks. Don't get me wrong, baked camembert with raw vegetables and boiled new potatoes to 'dip in' is good. So are breaded brie bites with jalapeño relish. But, sometimes, nothing beats 

Ooey-gooey baked cheddar cheese dip

Ingredients:

• 1 punnet grape or cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• 340 gram cream cheese, I used plain but you could choose a flavoured version)
• 225 gram mozzarella, torn into little pieces or freshly grated
• 225 gram extra mature cheddar, grated
• 2 tablespoons finely grated parmesan cheese, plus extra for garnish
• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped or grated
• 4 tablespoons freshly chopped basil
• 2 tablespoons freshly chopped thyme leaves
• ½ tablespoon freshly chopped oregano leaves (or 1 teaspoon dried oregano)

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 200ºC
2. Line a baking sheet with tin foil and spread the tomatoes in a single layer on the sheet
3. Sprinkle the olive oil, salt and pepper over the tomatoes and place in the oven to roast for 20-25 minutes
• the skins on the tomatoes will start to split
4. Whilst the tomatoes are roasting, mix the cream cheese with 200 grams of the cheddar and mozzarella and the parmesan
5. Add the herbs, garlic and the roasted tomatoes and mix well
6. Transfer the cheese mixture into an ovenproof dish and sprinkle the remaining cheddar and mozzarella on top
7. Bake the cheese for 25-30 minutes, until the top is golden and bubbling

Serve with a little sprinkling of parmesan and crusty bread, fresh veggies, crackers, boiled new (or baby) potatoes, or whatever you fancy.

Perhaps I should have gone for cheddar and Wensleydale with parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme, or English mustard and ale: the Italians beat the Brits 1-2... Oops, my bad... Still, I can only tell you to...

Enjoy