You are only limited by your imagination and what you’ve got in your pantry. To make crostini, cut a baguette, French stick, small ciabatta or similar bread into 1 cm (0.4 in) slices. Drizzle with a little olive oil and either cook on a grill plate or bake in the oven until golden and crisp. Once cool, store in an airtight container. Top with your favourite ingredients prior to serving. <strong>Topping ideas</strong> <strong>Kalamata Olive Tapenade With Ricotta And Thyme</strong> <strong>1</strong> Make a tapenade by blitzing 175 g (6 oz) of pitted Kalamata olives with a small garlic clove, 2 anchovy fillets, 1 tsp capers, 2 tbsp olive oil, the juice and zest of 1⁄2 a lemon, and some freshly ground black pepper. <strong>2</strong> Spread some fresh ricotta onto each crostino, top with a spoonful of tapenade, a drizzle of olive oil and some fresh thyme leaves. <strong>Broad Bean, Roasted Capsicum, Feta, Balsamic Syrup</strong> <strong>1</strong> Cook frozen or fresh broad beans in boiling salted water until tender. Drain and pinch the skins off. <strong>2</strong> Mash and combine with some finely chopped red onion, chopped fresh basil, mint, a little chili, lemon juice and some extra virgin olive oil until you have a chunky puree. <strong>3</strong> Season with salt and pepper. Spoon onto each crostino, top with some roasted capsicum (bell pepper), crumbled feta and a drizzling of balsamic syrup. <strong>Stracchino, Salami, Tomato & Fennel</strong> <em>Stracchino is a beautiful creamy Italian cheese. If you can’t find it use mascarpone instead.</em> <strong>1</strong> Spread each crostino with some stracchino cheese, top with thinly sliced salami, sliced fresh fennel, quartered cherry tomatoes, a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkling of crushed fennel seed. <img src="https://womenlove.health/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/food-for-sharing-book-cover.jpg" alt="Italian-Inspired Crostini With Three Gorgeous Toppings " width="205" height="251" class="alignleft wp-image-80889" title="Italian-Inspired Crostini With Three Gorgeous Toppings " /><em>Recipe and images from Food For Sharing Italian Style by Liliana Battle, published by New Holland Publishers. Purchase the book here</em>
