Parmesan Bowls
These Parmesan Bowls are so cool! They not only look awesome, but you get to eat them! What better way to serve a salad then in an edible bowl?
Start with a baking sheet lined with a silicon mat. If you don't have one of these, you must get one! You can use them for pretty much everything, it keeps your food from sticking and makes cleaning up a cinch.
Parmesan cheese, it's one of my favorite cheeses. It has a rich, nutty flavor and a medium to hard texture. You can grate it yourself, or you can cheat like me and buy it already shredded. I like to use the coarse shred, it makes for a better "nest".
Depending on the size bowl you are wanting to make, spread the cheese out on the mat in a 6-8" circle. You should still be able to see parts of the mat under the cheese. You don't want it to be too thick or it wont get crunchy. I was able to fit 2 per sheet. To make sure your making the right size bowl, you can place the actual sized bowl you want over the cheese and just make it about an inch larger. Remember, they're not meant to be perfect.
Bake in a 375 degrees(f) for about 8-10 minutes. You want the cheese to be just slightly golden, just like this. Pull the sheets out of the oven and let them cool for a couple minutes.
While the cheese is baking, set up the bowls. The cheese bowl is going to form by laying over an upside down bowl. Set the bowls upside down on a flat surface.
Let the cheese cool long enough so that when put the end of a spatula under it, it stays together. They should still be hot to the touch though, don't let them get too cool, or they won't form into the bowl mold.
CAREFULLY pull the cheese up off the sheet and place it evenly over the upside bowls. It should be hot enough to lay itself over the bowl, almost like its melting onto it. You have to be quick with these, so the others don't cool!
They should look like this. The folds you see are perfect, it almost looks like one of those tortilla bowls for a taco salad.
Once you have all the cheese on the bowls, let them cool. Parmesan has a lot of fat in it, so you may see some grease on the bowls. Once the cheese cools, you can carefully lift it off and place a paper towel or napkin under it and lay the cheese back on the bowl. These bowls are something you want to make the day you will be using them, you don't want to put them in any kind of covered or air tight storage or they will gain moisture and get soggy. I just layered them with a napkin in between each and kept them on the counter with a piece of foil tented over them.
You can serve any kind of salad in these, but of course, a Caesar salad is the best. When you are ready to serve, place each Parmesan bowl on a salad plate (you still need a plate due to the holes in the cheese), spoon dressed salad into bowls and top with croutons and fresh Parmesan. I also made a few small Parmesan discs to place as a garnish in the middle of the salad (and to snack on!). Your guests will be amazed at how beautiful and delicious these are!
RECIPE
PARMESAN BOWLS
| Prep Time: 5 Minutes | Cook Time: 8-10 Minutes | Difficulty: Medium | Servings: 4 |
Ingredients:
- 8 ounces shredded Parmesan cheese
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees(f).
Line 2 baking sheets with silicon mats. Make 6" flat circles with about 2 ounces of cheese.
Bake for about 8 minutes or until cheese is melted and slightly golden.
Let cheese cool for a minute, then using a thin spatula, quickly lift the cheese from the sheet and place over an upside bowl.
Let cool until firm.
To serve, place cheese bowls on serving plates, spoon Caesar salad into bowls and top with croutons.
Garnish with extra Parmesan crisps.
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