Experiment: Crostini with Pesto, Prosciutto and Provolone
After my post featuring Steak with Lemon-Cumin Pesto, I had about a quarter cup of the pesto left. That amount wasn’t enough to use to make another whole meal (like using it for a pasta sauce, for example), so I decided to whip up some sort of appetizer, finally settling on the Crostini you see pictured above.
Crostini, if you haven’t come across them before, are an Italian treat consisting of slices of grilled bread with various toppings, and they are a close relative of the more common Bruschetta. I had some slices of Provolone in the fridge I needed to use and I went out and bought a package of Prosciutto and some cherry tomatoes to go along with it. To be honest, there really isn’t anything terribly special about this little appetizer (and I really hadn’t planned to feature it in a post), but then I thought that you might like to see it and maybe use it as a starting point for your own creations…
The ingredients, as you can see, are fairly simple and consist of nothing more than some nice crusty bread, the cheese, meat, tomatoes and my leftover Lemon-Cumin Pesto. I know cumin is not a typical Italian ingredient but there really wasn’t a lot in the pesto so I don’t think I am straying to far from Crostini’s traditional roots. If you don’t want to bother following my recipe, then any commercial pesto will likely work nicely instead.
I would love to have a barbecue for this step, but my ridged pan actually does a nice job of ‘grilling’ the bread slices.
Here are the slices of bread in two stages of the construction. After grilling the bread, I spread the pesto on top and let it sit for a while. As I am not using butter or extra oil, I wanted the bread to absorb just a little of the pesto oil for moistness. I put some rolled Prosciutto on each slice, placed some tomato slices on either side and then covered everything with some crossed strips of cheese. After that, I popped them all under the oven grill for a few minutes until the cheese was melted.
The Verdict
Well, it would be hard to go wrong with such a simple little recipe and my wife and I both enjoyed them as snack. As I say, there is nothing particularly special about these but they are pretty enough, I would say, to make a nice appetizer at a barbecue, or other meal. I am sure that you will enjoy them as is but you can also have plenty of fun modifying the basic idea with all sorts of interesting additions…
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Inspiration is always great. And even if one knows about crostini, a hint to make them again is never bad.
These are a gorgeous snack to have with family and friends.
Mandy
I was expecting the pesto to darken and look a bit unappetizing after being under the grill but the colour held up really nicely!
simple is good and this look wonderful
Wow, this is a combination of flavors I adore! What a deliciousl way to start a meal~
I Love crostini and so do my hips! try making them with apples and walnuts and honey and fontina next.
My wife would love those!
Glad the experiment turned out successful!
A great way to use up your pesto. And love the photographs.
A classic combination, and a delightful inspiration for those who have not found how absolutely wonderful crostini can be. Virginia
Reblogged this on bcfoodieblogger.
yummy!
I would like one of those now as a midnight snack.
I’d happily whip you some up but delivery from this part of the world is just a *tad* expensive
That looks pretty wonderful. I love grilling bread just like that. Cute too how you nestled the prosciutto in-between the tomato slices. It’s like a tomato hug!!!!!
That looks awesome, the cheese 0__0
My wife especially enjoyed this one