Growing up, I did not enjoy early springs. Exams looming ahead, peak allergy season and the worst, my parents' annual vegetable garden. They spent hours, trolling between home depot, nurseries and the backyard. Digging, sowing and basically what I refer as 'farming.' And it was always the same, opo squash (what the wha).
I don't know what is it with Bengali parents and 'lau' (aka opo squash). As the summers got hotter (Canadian hot), the squashes gained increased popularity. Friends and family from all over Toronto, wooing over my dad's hand built vegetable cages, my mom's green thumb and how the entire backyard was turned into an opo farm. Summer after summer, it was always the same gig.
What does all this have to do with grape crostini? Nothing, but really everything. My neighbor who actually had a beautiful backyard with flowers, apples trees and green grass, also had a luscious grape vine that would cascade over our fence. The only thing pretty about our backyard, was our neighbors grape vine and the clusters of dark red grapes. So cutting this story short, something about grapes brings childhood memories, and to my surprise a touch of nostalgia.
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Roasted Grape & Ricotta Crostini
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Crispy Crositni with warm roasted grapes and creamy ricotta
cheese!
Prep Time: 15
minutes Cook Time: 15-20 minutes
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Ingredients:
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1/2 lb Seedless Red Grapes (halved)
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2-3 fresh Rosemary sprigs
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1/2 teaspoon Sea Salt (coarse grind)
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1/2 teaspoon Black Peppercorn (coarse grind)
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1 cup Ricotta Cheese
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Crostini, toasted
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Olive Oil
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Directions:
1: Preheat oven to 425F. In a large bowl, mix grapes
and olive oil for even coat.
2: Place grapes on a baking sheet, in a single
even layer. Sprinkle salt, pepper and rosemary. Bake for 12-15
minutes, until the grapes are shriveled and the juices come out.
* I like to bake my grapes, until they loose
composure for easy topping.
3: On a toasted crostini, spread a thick layer
ricotta cheese and top with grapes.
The combination of grapes and ricotta is just drool worthy!
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