Today, I am sharing a recipe for Peach and Blueberry Crostini with Balsamic Glaze. This is a lovely sweet and savory appetizer, snack, or hors d’oeuvre to serve especially when blueberries and peaches are in season.
Begin by bringing the cream cheese spread to room temperature for about 30 minutes. Use any flavored cream cheese spread you like. Because there is a small piece of a cold cut on each crostini, a herb and garlic cream cheese spread works well but so, too, do spreads that are more fruit flavored. Add approximately ¾ tsp liquid honey or maple syrup to the cheese to sweeten it just a wee bit, add another flavor note, and make the spread a tad more pliable to spread. Mix the cheese and honey or maple syrup together very well.
You will need a French baguette and 12 slices from it, each cut at a slight diagonal angle, into ½“ thick slices. Using a pastry brush, brush the slices with olive oil and toast them in a preheated 375°F oven for approximately 7-10 minutes, or just until they tan a light golden color. Be careful to ensure the bread does not burn. Let the toasted slices cool before proceeding with the toppings.
How much cream cheese spread and jelly will be required will depend on the size of the baguette slices. The baguettes I use are small so I spread each cooled baguette slice with about a teaspoon or so of jelly of choice. I like to use my homemade crabapple jelly but any favorite jelly of choice will work. Top each baguette slice with a couple of teaspoons of the softened cream cheese spread then place a small, thinly sliced peach wedge on top. Try to use small peaches for this recipe as the baguette slices are very small. Pleat, or roll, one-half of each cold cut semi-circle and nestle it in beside the peach wedge. Add 2-3 lovely plump highbush blueberries. Garnish with a small Basil leaf or two then drizzle with a balsamic glaze to add a little tang. This really is the finishing touch on the sweet and savory crostini.
While balsamic glaze can be made by bringing a good quality pure balsamic vinegar to a boil over medium heat then reducing it to a low temperature until it reduces by half its original amount, I find it just as easy to buy a bottle of ready-made balsamic glaze. There are many uses for balsamic glaze that include Caprese Salad, bruschetta, roasted veggies, salad greens, and pizza, to name but a few. The balsamic glaze can be found in most large supermarkets in the section where balsamic vinegars are found.
These little Peach and Blueberry Crostini with Balsamic Glaze appetizers or hors d’oeuvres pack a lot of flavor notes into their tiny size. Because of the fresh product in them, these tiny tasty morsels are best served as soon as they are made.
Peach and Blueberry Crostini
with Balsamic Glaze
Ingredients:
1 French baguette, sliced at a slight diagonal, into twelve (12) ½-inch thick slices
Olive oil
6 very thin slices of cold cut of choice (e.g., pepperoni, salami, etc), each cut in half
Apx. ¼ cup of jelly of choice
Apx. 3½ oz (100g) cream cheese spread of choice, softened at room temperature
¾ tsp liquid honey or maple syrup
1 – 2 small peaches, peeled and cut into small thin wedges
Handful of fresh highbush blueberries
Small fresh Basil leaves
2 – 3 tbsp Balsamic Glaze/balsamic reduction (*See Note below)
Method:
Position oven rack in center of oven and preheat oven to 375°F.
Bring cheese to room temperature for about 30 minutes to soften.
Using a serrated bread knife, slice baguette, at a slight diagonal angle, into 12 slices, each apx. ½“ thick. Brush slices with olive oil. Place slices, single layer, on baking sheet. Transfer to oven for 7-10 minutes or just until slices are slightly toasted golden. Do not let bread burn. Remove baguette slices from oven and let cool.
Spread approximately 1 teaspoon of jelly on cooled crostini.
In small bowl, beat the cheese and honey or maple syrup together until combined and smooth. Spread a couple of teaspoons on each crostini.
Peel and slice the peaches into small, thin wedges. Place one wedge on each crostini.
Cut each circle of cold cut in half. Pleat, or roll, each half and nestle it alongside the peach slice on each crostini.
Add two to three blueberries on top of each crostini. Garnish with a small Basil leaf or two.
Drizzle with a balsamic glaze. Serve immediately.
Yield: Apx. 12 appetizers or hors d’oeuvres
NOTE 1: How much actual jelly and cream cheese will be needed will depend on the size of each baguette slice.
NOTE 2: Balsamic glaze can be made from a good quality pure balsamic vinegar by bringing ½ cup of vinegar to a boil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat then reducing the heat to a low temperature until the mixture has reduced by half. Bottled balsamic glaze is also commercially available in most large supermarkets in the section where the balsamic vinegars are found.
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Peach and Blueberry Crostini with Balsamic Glaze
Ingredients
- 1 French baguette, sliced at a slight diagonal, into twelve (12) ½-inch thick slices
- Olive oil
- 6 very thin slices of cold cut of choice (e.g., pepperoni, salami, etc), each cut in half
- Apx. ¼ cup of jelly of choice (See Note 1 below)
- Apx. 3½ oz (100g) cream cheese spread of choice, softened at room temperature
- ¾ tsp liquid honey or maple syrup (See Note 1 below)
- 1 - 2 small peaches, peeled and cut into small thin wedges
- Handful of fresh highbush blueberries
- Small fresh Basil leaves
- 2 – 3 tbsp Balsamic Glaze/balsamic reduction (See Note 2 below)
Instructions
- Position oven rack in center of oven and preheat oven to 375°F.
- Bring cheese to room temperature for about 30 minutes to soften.
- Using a serrated bread knife, slice baguette, at a slight diagonal angle, into 12 slices, each apx. ½“ thick. Brush slices with olive oil. Place slices, single layer, on baking sheet. Transfer to oven for 7-10 minutes or just until slices are slightly toasted golden. Do not let bread burn. Remove baguette slices from oven and let cool.
- Spread approximately 1 teaspoon of jelly on cooled crostini.
- In small bowl, beat the cheese and honey or maple syrup together until combined and smooth. Spread a couple of teaspoons on each crostini.
- Peel and slice the peaches into small, thin wedges. Place one wedge on each crostini.
- Cut each circle of cold cut in half. Pleat, or roll, each half and nestle it alongside the peach slice on each crostini.
- Add two to three blueberries on top of each crostini. Garnish with a small Basil leaf or two.
- Drizzle with a balsamic glaze. Serve immediately.
Recipe Notes
Yield: Apx. 12 appetizers or hors d’oeuvres
NOTE 1: How much actual jelly and cream cheese will be needed will depend on the size of each baguette slice.
NOTE 2: Balsamic glaze can be made from a good quality pure balsamic vinegar by bringing ½ cup of vinegar to a boil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat then reducing the heat to a low temperature until the mixture has reduced by half. Bottled balsamic glaze is also commercially available in most large supermarkets in the section where the balsamic vinegars are found.
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