Best Crostini With Roasted Vegetables And Smoked Mozzarella Recipes

ROASTED GARLIC CROSTINI WITH ASSORTED TOPPINGS

Steps:

• 1. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Put the garlic in a roasting pan and drizzle on the olive oil. Toss to coat thoroughly. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, or until the garlic bulbs are very tender but not overly brown. Test by carefully giving a bulb a gentle squeeze while protecting your hand with a folded kitchen towel or an oven glove. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
• 2. Using a sharp serrated knife, cut each head of garlic crosswise in half, midway between its leaf and root ends, to expose all the cloves inside. Their pulp will be golden brown and as soft as butter. You can squeeze it out of each half by hand or scoop it out with a small spoon or knife. Transfer the roasted garlic to a small bowl, pour in any olive oil from the baking dish, and stir and mash with a fork to form a smooth purée. You'll have 1/3 to 1/2 cup of purée, depending on the size of the garlic heads.
• 3. To make the Roasted Garlic Crostini, preheat the oven to 375° F. Brush the bread slices with the olive oil and arrange them on a baking sheet. Bake them until golden, 12 to 15 minutes. Remove them from the oven and let them cool to room temperature. Spread the puréed roasted garlic evenly on the tops of the crostini. Top the crostini with any of the options listed above, or make an assortment. Spread some with 1 tablespoon each of goat cheese; then decorate the cheese with strips of roasted bell pepper or a mixture of sun-dried tomato strips and capers, or a smear of tapenade. In place of the goat cheese, top others with diced tomato tossed with some fresh basil, a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes, and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar; with prosciutto and Parmesan cheese; with anchovy fillets and freshly ground black pepper; or with slices of Roma tomato and fresh mozzarella, topped with fresh basil leaves.

CROSTINI WITH ROASTED VEGETABLES AND SMOKED MOZZARELLA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C).
• MAKE THE ROASTED VEGETABLES: Mix the olive oil, garlic, salt, and pepper together in a small bowl and set aside.
• Stand the bell pepper up vertically and slice from the stem end downward on each of the 4 sides of the pepper. You will have four flat pieces of pepper. Cut the zucchini in half lengthwise, and then slice the halves again vertically so that you have 4 long pieces of zucchini. Slice the onion into 4 pieces horizontally, as in cutting for onion rings.
• Place the vegetables in one layer in a small roasting pan and drizzle them with the olive oil mixture. Toss vegetables so that they are well coated with the oil. Transfer to the oven and roast for 20 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven, turn the vegetables over, return to the oven, and continue roasting for 10 to 15 minutes longer, until the vegetables are golden brown. Remove the pan from the oven and set aside.
• When the vegetables are cool enough to handle, use a sharp knife to cut the bell pepper and zucchini into strips 1/4 inch wide and separate the onion into rings. Set aside.
• MAKE THE CROSTINI: Position the oven rack so that it sits about 3 inches from the heat source. Preheat broiler to high.
• Cut the baguette at a diagonal angle into 1/3-inch-thick slices. Using a pastry brush, sparingly coat both sides of the bread with olive oil and place the bread on a baking sheet. Transfer to the oven and toast, turning once, until the bread is a light golden brown on both sides. (Alternatively, place the slices of bread in a panini grill and toast until the bread is light golden brown and crisp.).
• Remove the toasts from the oven and rub each toast lightly on one side with the whole garlic clove. Turn the oven to 350°F (175°C).
• Return the toasts to the baking sheet. Top each piece of toast with slices of smoked mozzarella to cover the surface of the bread. Arrange the vegetables over the cheese, with the zucchini at one end of the slice of bread, the red bell pepper in the center, and the onion at the other end.

CROSTINI

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Brush the bread on both sides with the olive oil and season lightly with salt and pepper. Arrange on a baking sheet and bake until crusty and brown, about 10 to 12 minutes. Turn once about halfway through cooking, and dust with Parmesan, if using. Serve hot, warm, or room temperature.

ROASTED TOMATO, AVOCADO, AND FRESH MOZZARELLA CROSTINI

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Arrange tomato slices on the baking sheet and top with about 3 tablespoons olive oil, sea salt, and pepper.
• Roast in the preheated oven until tomatoes are wilted, wrinkly, and scorched in some places, 25 to 30 minutes. Set aside to cool.
• Heat butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Place bread slices in the skillet and cook until crisp and golden in parts, 2 to 3 minutes per side.
• Remove bread from skillet and rub garlic onto each slice; sprinkle sea salt over bread.
• Layer mozzarella cheese on the toasted bread and top with avocado slices. Sprinkle sea salt over avocado and squeeze lemon over it. Top with roasted tomatoes and dill. Drizzle remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil over crostini and sprinkle with flaked salt.

SIMPLE CROSTINI

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Arrange baguette slices on two large rimmed baking sheets; brush both sides with oil, and season with salt and pepper.
• Bake, rotating sheets halfway through, until golden, 15 to 20 minutes (if undersides are not browning, turn crostini over once during baking). Let cool on baking sheets. Top crostini with desired toppings, and serve.