This recipe is a fun new version of traditional bruschetta, and perfect for celebrating Spring. Adding the mint to the peas brings out the sweetness of both ingredients, and the balsamic vinegar adds a great tangy taste to the appetizer. If you don’t have a nice, aged balsamic, you can buy balsamic glaze at the grocery store pretty inexpensively. It adds a great contrasting color to the bright green peas, and looks beautiful on a white serving platter.
Makes: about 30 bite sized bruschetta
Prep Time: 15 minutes Total Time: 25 minutes
1 narrow baguette, about 2 inches in diameter
1/4 cup olive oil or olive oil spray
3 cups peas (if frozen, thawed to room temperature)
1 medium clove garlic, finely minced
juice and zest of 1 lemon
1/4 cup mint leaves minced
1/4 cup thick balsamic vinegar or balsamic glaze
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- To make the crostini, slice the baguette into 30, 1/2 inch pieces. Throw away the ends.
- Brush or spray the pieces with olive oil and place on a cookie sheet. Season with a little bit of sea salt and bake for 15 minutes, or until lightly browned. Remove from oven and set aside.
- In a large saute pan, heat 1 tbs olive oil on medium heat. Add the garlic, peas, and lemon zest and juice. Saute for 5 minutes, or until the garlic is fragrant. Do not brown the peas!
- Remove from the saute pan and place 2/3 of the mixture in a food processor with the mint. Lightly pulse the pea mix until it becomes broken up, but not pasty.
- Combine the pulsed pea mix and the remaining peas in a bowl.
- Place a scant tbs of pea mixture onto each crostini piece. Lightly drizzle with the balsamic vinegar or balsamic glaze before placing onto a serving platter.
- Can be served at room temperature, or placed in the refrigerator for up to one hour and served cold.
Cooking In Red Socks 