Inspired by The Herb Quarterly, Spring 2012.
Fresh herbs are the focus of this light and healthy crostini as the crunchy baguette is topped with a mixture of spices and beautiful, green herbs. Herbs and spices are known for containing high levels of antioxidants and are an easy way to take a meal from ho-hum to gourmet.
Grab some fresh herbs from your local farmer’s market – they should be in full swing right now. A bunch of parsley, cilantro or basil can be as cheap as $2/bunch or less.
There wasn’t much to do to make this recipe any healthier. I swapped toasted spelt bread instead of a baguette, but that’s about it.
Makes enough to cover 10 to 15 crostinis.
Ingredients
2 cups shelled fresh fava beans (or shelled edamame beans, fresh or frozen)
1-3 cloves garlic
½ tsp ground cumin
1 tsp coriander
¼ tsp cayenne or red pepper flakes
½ tsp toasted sesame oil
5 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
¼ cup packed cilantro leaves
¼ cup packed Italian parsley leaves
¼ cup chopped fresh basil
½ cup olive oil
sea salt
fresh ground pepper
1 baguette (or small slices of toast if that’s what you’ve got)
4 cups arugula
dash of tabasco
toasted sesame seeds
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1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Blanch shelled favas/ edamame in boiling water until tender (about 4 minutes). Drain and cool under cold, running water and set aside.
3. Throw the next 9 ingredients (garlic, cumin, coriander, red pepper flakes, sesame oil, lemon juice, cilantro, parsley and basil) in a blender or food processor. Pulse several times and add the olive oil. Puree until smooth. Add salt and pepper, adjusting flavours to taste.
4. Cut baguette in diagonal slices ¼-inch thick. Brush with olive oil and toast in oven until just lightly crisp.
5. In a large sauté pan over medium heat, add 2 Tbsp olive oil.
6. Add arugula and cook until just slightly wilted.
7. Add 1 Tbsp lemon juice, dash of Tabasco, salt and pepper and set aside.
8. Spoon fava bean mixture onto crostini. Top with wilted arugula and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds.
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The Herb Quarterly is jam-packed with information about the healing properties of different kinds of herbs, both in food and natural beauty and home-care products. If you’ve got an herb garden overflowing with plants you don’t know what to do with – this publication will give you all the inspiration you need!
