Simple Roasted Apricots with Honey Marscapone

This is the best use for fresh apricots I have had! I literally licked my plate when I was done. Thank you to Joy the Baker for this recipe! It was my first time using marscapone, which was incredibly thick and rich with the texture of butter. I recommend using 2 apricots per person.

Simple Roasted Apricots with Honey Marscapone

4 apricots, halved and pits removed

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1/2 cup marscarpone cheese

1 teaspoon honey

1 teaspoon chopped mint

1 teaspoon chopped lemon balm (optional)

Preheat broiler. Place sugar in a shallow bowl. Dip apricot halves in sugar and place in a oven safe dish (I used a cast iron pan).

Place dish under the broiler and bake for 3 to 4 minutes. Keep an eye on the apricots, and carefully rotate the pan as necessary. Sugar will melt, boil and begin to brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly.

In a small bowl, mix honey into mascarpone cheese. Place slightly cooled apricots on a plate. Top with a dollop of mascarpone mixture, and a sprinkling of fresh mint and lemon balm. Serve. These apricots are best served just after they’re baked.

Newest Herb Acquisition: Cuban Oregano

We made our second trip to the West Sacramento Farmer’s Market last night. We bought:

- $8 half flat of super-sweet strawberries

- A bag of crisp snap peas for $2.50

- Flank steaks ($8/lb) from Lucky Dog Ranch, which I realized is the same meat they serve at the wonderful Roxy restaurant. Tonight we’re grilling it and making a stab at our first chimmichurri sauce. Looking forward to it!

- Two kinds of Oregano. I needed something replace the parsley that went to seed in the last month, as it typically does in the second year. I knew I needed to replenish my herb box, so I thought I would take a stab at oregano for the first time. The first plant I saw was familiar enough and looked like a baby version of this:

This is Greek Oregano, the typical kind grown.

The second is new to me : Cuban Oregano!

See how different it looks? The fellow who sold it to me said it was good to slice and put in a green salad. Does anyone have any suggestions for using this unique herb? Maybe I should try my hand at Cuban food.