Roasted Strawberries on Creamy, Cheesy Bruschetta

This is a great seasonal appetizer, or even a dessert. The key is to use fresh, seasonal strawberries because they will be the sweetest and provide the most juice.

You need to roast the berries ahead so that they have time to cool down before assembling the dish, but they are super easy to make; basically you just put them into the oven and walk away with only one quick stir halfway through. I’ve added lemon juice and optional honey which will help balance the sweetness so if your berries are not the sweetest (even in season), the honey will help.

Depending on the size of the bread that you use, you can get anywhere from a dozen to two dozen.  I started with an average size baguette, sliced it on the thin side, brushed both sides with a little oil (just enough to moisten) and then I put them in the oven on a baking sheet while the oven was preheating.  It took between 5-10 minutes without flipping them over, but you definitely need to keep an eye on them if you do it this way. The quicker way is to pop them under the broiler for 1-2 minutes per side, but again, you need to keep an eye on them so they don’t burn.  Alternatively, you could serve them with pitas or a sturdy cracker like a sourdough.

You can also choose to add some basil into the cream and cheese mixture instead of sprinkling it on the top.  Same flavor, just a different way.

The bonus to this dish, is that you can use the strawberries in this recipe, but don’t make the full amount of creamy cheese and then put the berries together with some yogurt and maybe some granola for a delicious breakfast!

Ingredients:

• 1 (16 oz) package of strawberries
• baguette slices or crackers
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1 Tablespoon honey (optional)
• 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
• 2/3 cup cream cheese
• zest of 1 lemon
• basil

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375
2. Wash, dry and hull strawberries, slicing any of the really large ones in half or quarters. Place in ovenproof dish and add lemon juice, vanilla and honey(if using).  Stir well and put in oven. Roast for 20 minutes, stir, then roast for 20 minutes more, checking at the 15 minute mark. Remove from oven and allow to cool before refrigerating.
3. When you are ready to serve, stir, whisk or beat the ricotta cheese, cream cheese and lemon zest together.
4. Spread the creamy cheese mixture onto the baguette slices, then top with a spoonful of the strawberries. Chop or slice some basil and sprinkle on top.

Enjoy!