Almogrote (Canarian Cheese Pâté)

A recipe for Almogrote (Canarian Cheese Pâté)! Grated cheese is blended with garlic, paprika, and olive oil for a robust accompaniment to bread and crackers.

During a recent visit to Grand Cata in the Mosaic District, Chad picked up a bottle of Suertes del Marques 7 Fuentes 2020 from Valle de la Orotava, Canary Islands. I was looking up ideas for pairings and came across the inspiration for this Almogrote recipe over on The Spanish Radish!

Almogrote (Almogrote Gomero) is a cheese spread from La Gomera in the Canary Islands and was developed as a way to use up older goat cheese.

The cheese is crushed with garlic, paprika, and olive oil to form a flavor-packed, spreadable paste perfect for pairing with crackers or bread slices. It is also fantastic with grilled vegetables/meat or Papas Arrugadas (Wrinkled Potatoes) to make Papas con Almogrote.

Notable Ingredients

This Canarian Cheese Pâté (Paté de Queso Canario) is traditionally made with an aged goat cheese. The more mature and drier, the better. Cheese from La Gomera can be difficult to source, so if unavailable, swap for an aged Manchego (at least 6 months and ideally around a year) or other hard sheep/goat cheese that is easily grated.

Many of the recipes I came across added in a Pimienta Palmera, a small dried red pepper from La Palma. The closest substitute I could get was a ñora pepper. Ñora peppers are dried, deep red round peppers with minimal heat and a subtle sweet, smoky flavor. To rehydrate, soak in a bowl of hot water for at least 30 minutes and up to about 4 hours. Scrape off the interior pulp to use and discard the thick skin, seeds, and stem. Ready-to-use pulp in paste form is sometimes available in jars. If unavailable, omit.

Smoked Paprika (Pimentón) is made from red peppers slowly smoked and dried over an oak wood fire, then ground into a powder. It can be found with varying levels of heat from Dulce (Sweet) to Agridulce (bittersweet) and Picante (hot).

A Few Almogrote Tips

I have tried this recipe using both a mortar and pestle and a food processor. The mortar and pestle is more traditional. The food processor is quicker, but you need to be careful to not over process. There should still be small bits of cheese visible in the spread.

Slowly add the olive oil to the cheese mixture until the texture is just spreadable. If too thick, continue to add more olive oil, a little at a time. If there is too much liquid or the spices are too prominent, add a little more grated cheese.

Adjust the seasonings and the smoked paprika as desired. I used 1 1/2 tablespoon (8 grams) of smoked hot paprika and 1/2 tablespoon (4 grams) of smoked sweet paprika. If you want less heat, decrease the amount of hot and slightly bump up the amount of sweet.

This cheese spread is best at room temperature shortly after bringing together. Have leftovers? Store the Almogrote in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days. The olive oil in the spread will cause it to solidify. Bring to room temperature for a few minutes before serving.

Looking for more cheese-based spreads?

Try my:

• Sachsenhäuser Schneegestöber (Sachsenhäuser Cheese Spread)
• Baked Chorizo Spinach Dip
• Liptauer (Austrian Cheese Spread)

Almogrote (Canarian Cheese Pâté) Recipe

Adapted from The Spanish Radish

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Almogrote (Canarian Cheese Pâté)

A recipe for Almogrote (Canarian Cheese Pâté)! Grated cheese is blended with garlic, paprika, and olive oil for a robust accompaniment to bread and crackers.

Course Appetizer

Cuisine Canarian

Keyword appetizer, Canary Islands, cheese, garlic, La Gomera, ñora pepper, olive oil, paprika, Spain, Spanish, spread

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 0 minutes minutes

Resting Time: 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 45 minutes minutes

Servings 4 -6 Servings

Ingredients

• 1 ñora pepper
• 2 cloves garlic peeled and minced
• 8 ounces (227 grams) mature goat cheese or Aged Manchego, crust discarded and grated
• 1 tablespoon (8 grams) smoked hot paprika
• 1/2 tablespoon (4 grams) smoked sweet paprika
• pinch salt
• 1/3-1/2 cup (80-120 milliliters) olive oil

Instructions

• Place the ñora pepper in a bowl of hot water. Set aside for at least 30 minutes or up to 4 hours until the pepper has hydrated enough to easily discard the stem and seeds.
• Scrape as much of the pulp of the ñora pepper as possible, discarding the thick skin, and add to a large mortar or food processor.
• Crush or pulse along with the garlic.
• Add the grated cheese, hot paprika, sweet paprika, and salt. Blend until evenly combined.
• Continue to crush or pulse the mixture while slowly pouring in the olive oil to create a thick spread. If too thick, slowly add a little more olive oil. If too thin to spread, add a little more grated cheese.
• Adjust the seasonings to taste.
• Serve with slices of bread or crackers.