White Bean-and-Black Olive Crostini

Makes about 3 dozen

Ingredients

• 1 (8.5-oz.) French bread baguette, cut diagonally into 1/4-inch slices
• Olive oil cooking spray
• 1 (15.5-oz.) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives, coarsely chopped
• 1/2 cup diced jarred roasted red bell peppers
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• Garnish: torn basil leaves

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425°. Arrange bread slices on a baking sheet, and coat with cooking spray. Sprinkle with desired amount of salt and pepper. Bake 8 minutes or until toasted.

2. Process beans and next 3 ingredients in a food processor until smooth, stopping to scrape down sides as needed. Toss together olives and next 2 ingredients. Spread bean mixture on toasted bread slices, and dollop with olive mixture. Garnish, if desired.

Baked Apple and Chèvre Chaud Crostini with Honey

Yields: about 25 pieces

Ingredients:

• 1 French baguette
• 4 Fuji apples
• 6-8 oz Chevre (goat cheese)
• 1 cup Apple juice
• 1/2 cup Sugar
• 1 Tbsp Italian herbs
• 2 Tbsp EVOO
• 2 Tbsp Butter
• 1 tsp Cinnamin
• 1/4 tsp Ground Nutmeg
• Honey

Directions:

Apples:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Combine cinnamon, nutmeg, and sugar in a small bowl. Set aside.

Core apples, making sure not to puncture the bottom of the apples so that the juices will remain. Remove skin from 1/2-inch around top of apples at the opening. Fill each cavity with the cinnamon-sugar mixture. Top each apple with a teaspoon of butter. Place apples in casserole dish and pour apple juice around them. Cover pan with aluminum foil and bake for approximately 30-45 minutes. When apples are fork tender, remove from oven and allow to cool.

Once apples have cooled cut into quarters then slice as thin as preferred to top each slice of bread.

Crostini:

• Slice the baguette, and place the slices flat on a cookie sheet. Make sure there is some room between the slices, but as close together as you can get them without touching. Drizzle the EVOO over the slices, and sprinkle 1/2 of the fresh herbs evenly over all the pieces Pop them in the oven to get them light brown, and a little crispy--keep an eye on them, so they don't burn--this can happen fast, so be careful!
• Take the light brown crostini out of the oven and turn oven to BROIL. Top slices with 1 tsp goat cheese and put crostini back in the oven for ~2 minutes to brown the cheese.

Once cheese has browned, top each piece with a thin slice of apple and a drop (or two) of honey.