Lettuce Ricotta Crostini
The perfect party appetiser or starter. Crunchy, creamy and fresh; three words to describe these crowd pleaser lettuce ricotta crostini.
Substitutes:
- No lettuce? You can use spinach and rocket instead of lettuce. Follow the same steps!
- No ricotta? Choose another creamy, fresh and mild cheese. Vegan almond ricotta substitute would be delicious.
- No lemon? Use lime instead.
- No chilli flakes? You can use fresh chilli, or simply do without.
- No peas? Edamame would be a good substitute in this recipe.
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 5 minutes
Total time: 25 minutes
Servings: 2
Ingredients:
½ lettuce
150 g Ricotta cheese / vegan ricotta style cheese
½ Lemon (juice)
½ tsp chilli flakes
10 Mint leaves
120 g frozen peas
Olive oil
1 Garlic clove (cut in half)
Salt & pepper
6 slice Bread
Recipe:
- Make the first layer: Mix the ricotta/vegan alternative with lemon juice, salt, pepper and chilli flakes. Put in the fridge to set.
- Make the second layer: Roughly chop the lettuce and pick the mint leaves. Save the mint stems to make mint infusion - simply pour hot water over the stems, add sweetener of choice and let sit for 5 minutes to infuse. Pour hot water over the frozen peas to defrost them. Drain after 3 minutes. Place the lettuce, mint leaves and peas in a food processor along with a drizzle of olive oil, and blend to a chunky consistency. Place in a bowl and season with salt, pepper. Mix well.
- Make the crostini bread: Brush bread slices with olive oil, season with salt and scrub with garlic. Bake at 180C/160 fan/4 gas mark, for 5-10 minutes, until crispy and golden.
- Assemble the lettuce crostini:Layer your toasted bread with a layer of ricotta/vegan substitute mixture, and top with the green shresh lettuce mixture.
How to store
How to store: Store your lettuce mixture, ricotta mixture and bread separately. This will prevent your crostini from getting soggy. Store all the fresh in the fridge for up to 3 days, and the bread in an airtight container at room temperature.
Leftovers
Leftovers: Both ricotta and lettuce mixture would be delicious used as a pasta sauce recipe. Mix them together to a creamy consistency, and add your al dente pasta.
