A recipe for success: Crostini with Edamame Pesto
By Veronica Morgan, Dusted Valley
Spread on crisp baguette with a dollop of mascarpone, this edamame pesto makes for a delicious vegetarian appetizer that we love to pair with our light, crisp Dusted Valley Ramblin’ Rosé. The edamame pesto is a versatile dish, think: chip dip with your favorite crinkle cut potato chips or spread in your favorite sandwich. Included in the recipe notes are instructions on how to make this appetizer vegan. Depending on how many baguettes you need to slice or how meticulous you are with your assembly, this recipe will take you about 45 minutes.
Crostini:
The number of baguettes you need will ultimately depend on how many crostini you would like to make and how thick you like to cut your bread. As written, the edamame pesto recipe will yield approximately 72 crostini, but it is easily scalable and as mentioned above, the leftovers have many uses. While the crostini are baking, you can make your pesto.
Ingredients
- Baguette
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Garlic salt
Method
- Preheat oven to 375*F and place a rack in the middle of the oven.
- Slice bread diagonally into ¼” slices, or to desired thickness.
- Lightly brush olive oil onto both sides of each slice of baguette. Or use an olive oil spray and spray both sides of each slice.
- Season with garlic salt, whether you season one side or both sides is entirely up to you.
- Arrange the slices in a single layer on a baking sheet, with at least a little space between each slice so the air can circulate for a nice, even crunch.
- Bake 5-7 minutes. Remove from oven and flip each slice over. Place back in oven and bake for another 5-7 minutes until crispy and browned to your liking.
- Remove from oven. Crostini can be served warm or at room temp.
- To store, allow crostini to cool completely and store in an airtight container at room temp for up to 5 days.
Edamame Pesto
Ingredients
- 1 – 16oz bag shelled edamame – frozen is the easiest to find and works great
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 oz shredded Parmesan
- 12 mint leaves
- 4 tbsp of high-quality olive oil
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- Flaky sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
Method
- If using frozen edamame, defrost by soaking in water, then strain well.
- Add edamame, minced garlic, parmesan, and mint leaves to blender or bowl of food processor.
- Blend or process ingredients until well mixed and edamame are a coarse grainy texture, like course breadcrumbs.
- Add the olive oil and lemon juice. Blend or process until you have a smooth consistency.
- Taste. Season with flaky sea salt and pepper and blend or process to incorporate.
- If you would like to balance the flavors with a little more acid, add lemon juice 1 tsp at a time, as necessary.
Notes
- We prefer the edamame pesto to have a slightly creamy consistency that is spreadable without crumbling. You may need to add water, 1 tbsp at a time, along with a little drizzle of olive oil, to achieve this, especially if you are using the vegan version noted below.
- To make vegan:
- Substitute 1 oz of nutritional yeast for the parmesan cheese
- Omit the mascarpone garnish or substitute your favorite vegan mascarpone or cream cheese alternative.
Garnish
- 1 container mascarpone, stirred up so it’s easier to dollop
- Micro greens or fresh, finely minced mint
- Flaky sea salt
Assembly and Serving Suggestion
- Spread a heaping ½ tbsp of edamame pesto onto each crostini, then place a small dollop of mascarpone on top. To finish, sprinkle with a few micro greens or minced mint and a small pinch of flaky sea salt.
- Enjoy with Dusted Valley Ramblin’ Rosé poured into your favorite glass, while you lounge in your favorite patio chair. Or, while you stand in your kitchen drinking Ramblin’ Rosé from a mason jar. Whatever makes you happy.
