Spring Pea and Asparagus Crostini

Get a little taste of spring in every bite with Spring Pea and Asparagus Crostini

Spring Pea and Asparagus Crostini from The Girl In The Little Red Kitchen

Spring?! Where did you go?

Were the last few weeks all just a big tease? Did winter never really end?  All those magnificent cherry blossoms and magnolia blooms were there to get our hopes up and then rip the joy from our heart?

Am I being overdramatic? No! Case in point – my weekends haven’t allowed me recently to get over to my favorite farmer’s markets but thanks to winter returning again I finally had a free day to hit the market.  No amount of rain was going to stop me, I had visions of glorious stalks of asparagus, spring peas, rhubarb, artichokes and perhaps even ramps (maybe? one can hope) on my mind.

Do you know what I found? Apples. Lots and lots of apples! Where was my spring produce?!?!

It felt like a scene from the twilight zone where I would never get out of the cycle of storage crops.

Spring Pea and Asparagus Crostini | girlinthelittleredkitchen.com

Sigh, not one to be deterred from the desire of spring vegetables at home, I settled for store bought asparagus and the handy dandy bag of frozen spring peas in my freezer (seriously, no one had fresh peas!).

For weeks this spring pea crostini had been creeping up in my mind and it needed to come to fruition sooner rather than later.  It is essentially spring in each and every bite and in my opinion the perfect spring time snack or appetizer bite.

Spring Pea and Asparagus Crostini | girlinthelittleredkitchen.com

Seriously though you can’t get any easier than the 5 ingredients that go into this.  Start off with a good crusty baguette cut into rounds and toasted, then season up some fresh ricotta, mash peas with fresh mint and top with asparagus tips.  I prefer mine with a touch of flaky sea salt to balance out the sweetness of the peas but I’ll let you be the judge.

That’s it!

So now while I hope you don’t have as many issues of me finding your spring vegetables, at least you can get a little taste and color with this crostini.

Spring Pea and Asparagus Crostini
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Ingredients

  • 1 small bunch asparagus
  • 2 cups spring peas (fresh or frozen)
  • 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint
  • 8 ounces ricotta cheese
  • 1 baguette cut into 1/2 inch thick rounds, toasted
  • salt and pepper

Instructions

  1. Using a sharp knife cut the tips off the top of the asparagus (about the first inch off the top) and set aside.
  2. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil and blanch the peas and asparagus for 1 minute.
  3. Drain and run under cold water to stop the cooking process.
  4. Remove the asparagus from the peas and set aside.
  5. In the bowl of your food processor, add the peas and olive oil and pulse about 8-10 times until the peas are mashed but still have some texture to them.
  6. Transfer to a small bowl and stir in the mint and season with salt and pepper.
  7. To assemble the crostini: Season the ricotta with salt and pepper and then smear a small amount on the bottom of a toasted baguette round, top with about 2 tablespoons of mashed peas and top with 2 asparagus tips.
  8. Top with a touch of flaky sea salt and if deserved a few dashes of cracked black pepper.
Recipe Type: Appetizer, Vegetable

Notes

For this recipe you will only need the tips of the asparagus, reserve the remaining ends for another use - such as roasting or shaving into a salad.

https://girlinthelittleredkitchen.com/2016/04/spring-pea-asparagus-crostini/

Spring Pea and Asparagus Crostini | girlinthelittleredkitchen.com

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