Thursday, August 4, 2011

Arugula and Edamame Crostini


A light and tangy summertime dinner. These ingredients can really create two separate recipes. If you use a blender, the result will be a smooth and creamy edamame dip/spread. Lacking a blender, however, I chopped all the ingredients as finely as I could, with a much chunkier but delicious result. I think it would be great either way. Adapted from epicurious.com.

1 cup shelled edamame (I used frozen from Trader Joe's)
a few tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 cups packed baby arugula
3 tablespoons grated parmesan
1/4 teaspoon grated lemon zest
2 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 baguette
16 mint leaves

Cook edamame in boiling water, uncovered, until just heated through, 1-2 minutes, then drain.

If you're using a blender or food processor:
Pulse edamame beans in a food processor until very coarsely chopped, then transfer half of mixture to a large bowl. Add a few tablespoons of oil, 1/2 cup arugula, cheese, lemon zest and juice, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper to edamame in processor and purée until smooth. Add to bowl. Coarsely chop remaining cup arugula and fold into edamame mixture.

If it's just you, your knife, and your cutting board:
Chop edamame as finely as possible. I then transferred some to my little mortar and pestle so I could smash it into a smoother paste - this helped keep the mixture together. Chop the arugula and the mint very finely as well. In a big bowl, combine the chopped veggies and herbs with the parmesan, lemon zest and juice, and olive oil. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Cut 16 diagonal slices (1/3 inch thick) from baguette (you can toast these in the oven for a few minutes if you like). Spread mixture over bread and enjoy!

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