When I travel for work one thing I can’t wait for is cable in the hotel room, and most specifically The Food Network. I love food competition shows and celebrity chef programming. A few years ago Giada de Laurentiis had a holiday special for hosting parties and she made these Charred Brussels Sprout Crostinis. I made them a few times that Christmas and they were always a hit. Over the past few years I’ve continued to make them, simplifying the recipe where I could find some shortcuts or simply didn’t have the ingredients on hand. Here is my take on Giada’s appetizer.
Roasted Brussels Sprout and Ricotta Crostini
Original recipe: Charred Brussels Sprout Crostini by Giada de Laurentiis
30 mins
Tip: step 1-6 can be done ahead of time. You can store the ricotta and brussel sprout mixture in the fridge until ready to serve.
Ingredients:
3 cups of brussels sprouts, shaved or thinly sliced*
1 ½ tbsp olive oil
¼ tsp kosher salt
¼ -½ tsp red pepper flakes, depending on your heat preference
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
2 tbsp maple syrup
¼ cup dried cranberries
1 container of extra smooth ricotta
½ tsp kosher salt
1 baguette, or your choice of bread, cut into ¾ inch slices
Method:
Preheat oven to 400F
Prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper. Toss the thinly sliced brussels sprouts with the olive oil, kosher salt, and red pepper flakes on the sheet and pop into the oven for 12-15 minutes. You want the edges to be crispy and almost burnt - that’s flavour!
Meanwhile, combine the apple cider vinegar, maple syrup and dried cranberries in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Simmer for 5 - 7 minutes until has thickened. Set aside.
Once the brussels sprouts are out of the oven toss in a bowl with the reduced vinegar mixture.
Place the sliced baguette onto the same baking sheet and place into the 400F oven for 5-7 minutes until the bread has crisped on the outside
Meanwhile stir the ½ tsp of kosher salt into the ricotta to add some extra seasoning. Cracked black pepper is also nice added here.
When you are ready to assemble, schmear ricotta onto the bread crisps, and then top with a spoonful of the brussels sprout mixture.
*to shave the brussels sprouts I start by cutting the end off the brussels sprout. I place this flat end onto my cutting board and slice as thinly as I can until I reach half way. At this point, I flip the half flat side onto the cutting board and start thinly slicing until I reach a quarter. At this time I flip again the quarter flat side onto the cutting board and thinly slice until complete. This method leads to some half slices, some quarter slices - that’s ok! It adds different textures.