Appetizer: Trio of Crostini Toppings

For our appetizer made crostini with three toppings: pesto, tapenade and white bean dip. 

Chunky White Bean Dip
ingredients

• One 15 1/2-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• One 15-ounce can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
• 2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
• One 8-ounce container plain fat-free yogurt
• 1 tomato, seeded and cut into 1/4-inch dice
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• Juice of 1 lemon
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• directions
• Place half the chickpeas and half the cannelloni beans in the bowl of a food processor along with garlic and yogurt. Puree until smooth. Add remaining beans, and pulse until coarsely chopped.
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• Transfer mixture to a bowl; stir in tomato, cumin, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and lemon juice. 

Changes: In the figure I'd reduce the lemon juice to 1-2 tablespoons and add it immediately before serving, a whole lemon's juice was a lot! I'd also add some fresh thyme (1-2 teaspoons). 

Original recipe here. 

Tapenade 

ingredients 

1/2 lb mixed pitted olives

2 anchovy fillets, rinsed

1 clove garlic (I used 4)

2-3 fresh basil leaves

1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 

directions 

Thoroughly rinse the olives in cool water. Place all ingredients in the bowl of food processor. Process to combine, stopping to scrape down sides of the bowl, until the mixture becomes a course paste (1-2 minuets). Transfer to bowl and serve. 

Original recipe here.

Basil Pesto

I make this pesto every 4-6 weeks, and keep it in a mason jar in the fridge. We use it on pasta, stir it into tomato soup, thin it with EVOO and use it as salad dressing. It's a staple in our house. The awesome thing about this recipe is that you can change the proportions as much as you want to fit your taste. 

ingredients

2.5 cups fresh basil leaves

3 tablespoons pine nuts

5 cloves fresh garlic (the fresher the better!)

1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese (you can leave this out all together for a healthier/vegan version)

1/4 cup olive oil 

1 t kosher salt

directions

Place all ingredients in the bowl of food processor. Process to combine, stopping to scrape down sides of the bowl, until the mixture reaches desired consistency (1-2 minuets). I've also made a more course version of this with a mortar and pestle and served it with poached eggs and polenta.