Fig and Whipped Goat Cheese Crostini with Honey and Pistachios
A creamy whipped blend of ricotta and goat cheese piped onto golden crostini, topped with fresh fig slices, crushed pistachios, honey, and mint. Sweet, tangy, crunchy, and impressive enough for any gathering.
Servings 6
Equipment
- baking sheet
- Small food processor or blender
- Quart-size zip-lock bag
- Knife and cutting board
- Serving platter
Ingredients
Crostini Base
- 1 ciabatta roll or baguette sliced into 1/2 inch rounds (or store bought crostini)
- Olive oil spray
Whipped Goat Cheese
- 1 cup ricotta
- 8 oz goat cheese
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Juice of 1/2 lemon about 1.5 tablespoons
Toppings
- 5-6 Fresh figs sliced 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick
- 1 tbsp Crushed pistachios
- 8 to 10 fresh mint leaves
- Honey or hot honey for drizzling
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Slice bread into 1/2 inch rounds and arrange on a baking sheet. Spray both sides lightly with olive oil.
- Toast in the oven for 3 to 5 minutes per side until golden and crisp. Remove and let cool. Skip this step if using store bought crostini.
- Add ricotta, goat cheese, honey, olive oil, and lemon juice to a small food processor. Blend until completely smooth, scraping down the sides as needed.
- Transfer the whipped cheese into a quart size zip-lock bag. Seal, press out the air, and refrigerate for at least 10 minutes.
- While the cheese chills, slice the figs and crush the pistachios. Pull mint leaves from the stems.
- When ready to assemble, snip approximately 1/4 inch off one bottom corner of the zip-lock bag.
- Pipe a generous mound of whipped cheese onto each crostini.
- Sprinkle crushed pistachios over the cheese, then top each one with a fig slice.
- Arrange on a serving platter, tuck in fresh torn mint leaves, and drizzle honey over the entire platter just before serving.
Notes
- The whipped cheese can be made up to 24 hours in advance and stored sealed in the zip-lock bag in the refrigerator.
- Toast the crostini a few hours ahead and store uncovered at room temperature to keep them crisp.
- Assemble no more than 30 minutes before serving to preserve the crunch of the crostini.
- Hot honey adds a subtle heat that pairs beautifully with the sweet fig and tangy cheese.
- If fresh figs are not available, high quality fig jam makes a great substitute year round.
