Charred Shishito Peppers with Goat Cheese, Pancetta and Honey

Ingredients:

24-30 Shishito Peppers

1 tablespoon canola or vegetable oil

5 oz soft goat cheese

2 tablespoons heavy cream

1 lime

1 tablespoon chives, thinly sliced

1 clove of garlic, minced

3 slices of thinly sliced pancetta

1-2 tablespoons honey

salt and pepper

Directions:

In a medium bowl toss together the peppers, oil and 1 teaspoon salt. In small bowl stir together the goat cheese, heavy cream, zest of the lime, 1 teaspoon of lime juice, chives, garlic, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and a few grindings of fresh pepper until well combined. Smear this onto a plate or platter.

Heat a cast iron pan over medium heat on your stovetop. Lay the pancetta in the dry pan and cook for 1-2 minutes on each side, or until crispy. Remove from the pan and set aside.

Turn the heat up to high and add the peppers to the pan. Cook, stirring often, until starting to char, blacken in spots and soften. Alternately, you can cook the peppers over a medium fire on a barbecue until charred and starting to soften. Place the charred peppers on top of the goat cheese and sprinkle with a few pinches of salt. Drizzle the honey on top. Crumble the crispy pancetta on top of everything on the platter and serve.