There are always weekends when we just want to rest, nights when we are defeated by tiredness and want few complications... Or we need uncomplicated ideas to present a variety of appetizers or casual dinners! Today I bring you a proposal of Assorted toasts, all of them simple and very impressive, with which you'll brighten the table with minimal effort.
Some time ago we shared a few ideas for delicate, small-format appetizers ("Quick and delicious appetizers: 6 recipes to shine at family celebrations"). Today’s are assorted toasts: these toasts take a prominent place on my list of preparations when an informal dinner is planned. They are also perfect to accompany a good salad or as an appetizer or starter before the main course. Toasts are a perfect resource: you can adapt them to the ingredients you have in the fridge, they make meals more fun and they’re ideal so that both adults and kids at home eat a bit of everything.
The Assorted toasts I bring you today are, as you’ll see, five delicious and very easy-to-make proposals:
- Fresh cheese, mushroom and confit cherry tomato toasts
- Bacon toasts with fresh cheese, walnuts and pineapple
- Vegetable toasts on the grill with cream cheese
- Vegetable toasts with Parmesan
- Shrimp toasts
You’ll see that they all are prepared in very little time, that you can have the ingredients ready to assemble whenever you want or totally adapt them to your taste, so they’re as simple to make as they are delicious to eat. I hope you like them all and that they take a prominent place on your favorites list.
1. Fresh cheese, mushroom and confit cherry tomato toasts
Ingredients
- Creamy fresh cheese (whichever you prefer)
- Sliced mushrooms
- Confit cherry tomatoes
- Fresh basil leaves or fresh parsley
- Extra virgin olive oil (AOVE)
Preparation
- Confit the tomatoes. You can see how to do it here.
- Lightly sauté the sliced mushrooms over high heat so they don’t release water.
- Slice thin pieces of bread and toast them. If the bread is already crispy, you can skip this step.
- Spread each slice of bread with the cheese you chose and place a few mushrooms on top.
- Put a couple of cherry tomatoes on each slice of bread and a few basil or parsley leaves.
- Drizzle a little extra virgin olive oil (AOVE) over each toast and it’s ready to serve!
Notes
- Instead of using confit tomatoes, you can lightly sauté the cherries in a pan with a little oil until you see the skin start to wrinkle a bit. If you prefer, they also work wonderfully with fresh, clean cherry tomatoes as-is.
2. Toasts with roasted pineapple, bacon and honey
Ingredients
- Sliced sandwich bread or rusks
- Ricotta or, if not available, fresh cheese
- Sliced bacon
- Pineapple rings
- Mild honey
- Coarsely chopped walnuts
- Fresh basil leaves
Preparation
- If you use sandwich bread, toast the slices.
- Heat the bacon in the microwave until it browns a bit.
- Meanwhile, mark both sides of the pineapple rings on the grill with a drizzle of honey on top.
- Crumble the ricotta over the rusks or sandwich bread. If you use fresh cheese, spread it on the bread.
- Place the bacon slice and on top of it the pineapple ring.
- Sprinkle some coarsely chopped walnuts and garnish with a few fresh basil leaves.
3. Vegetable toasts on the grill with cream cheese
Ingredients
- Cream cheese
- Sliced mushrooms
- Green pepper cut into strips or not very thick slices
- Red tomato cut into cubes (use a fleshy variety, such as pear tomato, for example)
- Sun-dried tomatoes in oil
- Black and green olives
- Chopped parsley
- Chopped basil
- AOVE
Preparation
- Slice the loaf of bread (preferably use a wide loaf) and toast the slices a little.
- Sear the pepper strips and the sliced mushrooms on the grill.
- Drain the sun-dried tomatoes so they are not too oily and chop them finely.
- Cut the olives into two or three slices and the red tomato into 1 to 1.5 cm cubes approximately (cut in mirepoix).
- Spread the cheese on the bread slices and prepare assorted toasts by combining the ingredients, for example in the following ways:
- With green pepper: place some sliced mushrooms, a couple of strips or a slice of green pepper, a few more mushrooms on top and garnish with a bit of chopped sun-dried tomato and fresh cheese.
- With black olives: place some sliced mushrooms and some black olives on top; garnish with a few basil leaves or chopped basil and a little fresh cheese.
- With tomato: put some diced fresh tomato, some sliced mushrooms and some chopped green olives. Sprinkle a little chopped parsley.
- Drizzle a little AOVE over each slice before serving.
4. Vegetable toasts with Parmesan
Ingredients
- Yellow pepper
- Red onion
- Tomato (a fleshy variety, such as pear tomato)
- Parmesan cheese
- Microgreens or sprouts
- Chopped fresh basil
- Salt
- AOVE
Preparation
- Cut the pepper, onion and tomato into small dice (cut brunoise) and put everything in a bowl. You can do it by hand with a knife, with a mandoline or with a vegetable cutter.
- Add a little salt, the chopped fresh basil and a splash of AOVE and mix gently so the little vegetables, basil and oil combine well.
- Toast the bread slices and distribute the vegetables over them (one or two tablespoons on each toast).
- Cut some shavings of Parmesan cheese and place them over the vegetables on each slice of bread.
- Gracefully place a few microgreens on each toast and, ready!
5. Shrimp toasts
Ingredients
- Fresh shrimp or prawns (or frozen, whether whole or peeled, as you prefer)
- Chopped parsley
- Salt
- Paprika flakes
- AOVE
Preparation
- Peel the shrimp and remove the vein (the black "thread"), making a cut along the back of the shrimp with a sharp knife.
- With a silicone brush, paint each slice of bread with AOVE and toast them in the oven. You can also toast them in the toaster, adding the oil when they’re ready.
- Meanwhile, sauté the shrimp in a pan until they’re done (2-3 minutes) and add a little salt to taste.
- Arrange the shrimp over the toasted bread slices and sprinkle with chopped parsley and paprika flakes. Serve immediately.
Note
- If you want to add a delicious touch, you can pipe a few dots of aioli (with a piping bag) over the shrimp.
As you can see, these are easy ideas that you can have half-prepared to finish when the occasion arises. And they turn out very tasty and eye-catching. I hope you enjoy making and tasting them!
