Crostini With Mascarpone Berries And Honey Recipes

CROSTINI WITH MASCARPONE, BERRIES AND HONEY

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place bread slices on a baking sheet and toast for 12 to 15 minutes, or until golden brown.
• Arrange the toasts on a platter and spread about 1 teaspoon of marscarpone on each one.
• Arrange berries on top and drizzle lightly with honey.
• Serve immediately.
• NOTE: An attractive alternative for a brunch or dinner party is to arrange a soft, creamy blue cheese, a strong Cheddar, and a triple-cream cheese in a basket. Place slices of toasted raisin-nut bread around the cheese. Place a pot of honey in the basket and let your guests make their own selection and combination.

SWEET POLENTA CROSTINI WITH MASCARPONE, RASPBERRIES, PISTACHIOS, AND LAVENDAR HONEY

Steps:

• Prepare the polenta: Line an 8 by 4-inch loaf pan with plastic wrap and set aside.
• Bring the water to a rolling boil in a large pot. Add the salt, then gradually sprinkle in the cornmeal, stirring constantly to avoid lumps. Keep stirring after the last of the cornmeal has been added: the mixture will begin to thicken quite quickly. Reduce the heat to medium and cook the polenta for about 30 to 40 minutes, stirring frequently. Spoon a little of the polenta onto a plate and taste it: when it is no longer crunchy and granular, it's done.
• Scrape the polenta into the loaf pan, flattening the top and pressing the mass into a rough rectangle, ending halfway to two-thirds down the length of the pan. This sounds a little confusing, but you should now have a 2-inch-thick rectangle of polenta pressed into the loaf pan. It will be very stiff and have no trouble staying put. Cool the polenta to room temperature, then press a piece of plastic wrap onto the surface and refrigerate until chilled, at least 2 hours, or up to 3 days.
• No more that 2 or 3 hours before you plan to serve the dessert, remove the loaf pan from the refrigerator and unmold the polenta. With a long, thin-bladed knife, slice the loaf into 1/4-inch thick slices and cut each of these in half. You should end up with about 24 (2-inch) squares, 1/4-inch thick.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of butter and 1/2 tablespoon of vegetable oil in a large frying pan (non-stick is fine) over medium heat. When the foam subsides, add half of the polenta slices and fry about 4 minutes, turning once, until golden and crisp on both sides. Carefully transfer the slices to a platter lined with paper towels and sprinkle the slices with half of the sugar. Repeat with the remaining butter, oil, polenta, and sugar. Cool the sugared polenta slices to room temperature.
• To assemble the crostini, spoon the mascarpone into a piping bag fitted with a medium star tip (about 1/2-inch or so). Pipe a generous amount of mascarpone on each polenta square and arrange two or three raspberries on the cheese. Press some pistachio pieces around the berries into the cheese and drizzle the crostini with a little of the honey (a honey dripper or even a teaspoon dipped into the jar then waved over the squares works really well, don't even bother measuring the honey!). The finished crostini should be eaten as soon as possible, but can be kept covered at room temperature for a few hours.

THREE CHEESE CROSTINI WITH HONEY

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Place the baguette slices on a sheet tray and drizzle with olive oil. Toast just until crispy and golden brown, about 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, combine the goat cheese, mascarpone, ricotta and lemon zest, and season with salt and pepper.
• Remove the toasts from the oven and spread the herbed cheese generously over each toast. Drizzle with honey and serve warm.

CROSTINI AL MASCARPONE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400.
• Mix cheeses and add marjoram. Salt and pepper to taste.
• Slice baguette in thin (about 1/2 inch) slices.
• Spread cheese mixture on slices.
• Place prepared slices on a baking sheet and put sheet into preheated oven.
• Bake for a few minutes until hot an bubbly. Watch closely--don't let the bread get too brown.
• Bon Appétit!