appetizer Archives • Ant & Anise

Garlic scapes and mushroom crostini

Ah yes, garlic scapes. This is only the third summer in my life that I’ve run across them, because of the CSA.

Working with ingredients that I don’t seek out regularly is partly why I love getting a weekly surprise box of vegetables every summer. It’s a challenge to make something good — as in, wow I want to make this again — when a key ingredient is unfamiliar.

Last year I made a garlic scape pesto, and eventually used it in a summery pasta dish with some prawns. (Truth be told, I found the pesto way too garlicky right after I made it. It hid in the back of the fridge for at least two weeks before I worked up enough courage to use it.)

This week when the scapes arrived in my veggie box, I thought I’d try a different tack. I mean, scapes are part of the garlic plant. They’re pungent. Maybe not as pungent as the bulb of the garlic, but there’s no mistaking that it’s garlic. So what, then?

…

Parsnip hummus

Do you like parsnips?

Ummm…well, I don’t dislike them. But I don’t go out my way to find them either. I guess I appreciate them more than I used to. Does that count as a yes?

When I was growing up parsnips didn’t make their way into too many of our dinners. As in, almost never, at least on the Johnson side. (Eve, can you think of a time?)

No, we stuck to the basic root vegetables: carrots, sometimes rutabaga (which we called turnips, but were really yellow-fleshed rutabaga), and potatoes. Especially potatoes. A never-ending rotation of mashed, boiled, baked, and, for special occasions, scalloped. And then more mashed ones again.

On the Neely side of the family, parsnips turned up only once every few years, around Christmas. At my cousins’ place my aunt Glennys made candied parsnips, with heaps of brown sugar and butter to make them more appealing to everyone, especially the kids. I knew my sweets though, and the candied parsnips didn’t have me fooled. When the parsnips got passed around the table to me I remember taking a token one or two small pieces, just to be polite.

Enter the CSA. This was our second summer enjoying a weekly box of fresh vegetables from Cropthorne Farm in Ladner, and I love it. Well, mostly I do. It’s exciting to see the season unfold week by week and to try veggies I don’t normally buy.

But every season, there’s a few weeks where my culinary creativity sinks to a low ebb. Maybe it goes on summer holiday. At those times, when I open up the weekly box and see something I don’t regularly eat — like kohlrabi or parsnips — I’m apt to shove it to the back of the crisper, thinking what am I ever going to do with that?

That’s exactly how I felt when we got parsnips 3 weeks in a row in the CSA box. I secretly hoped that Bob would discover them in the fridge and roast them all up for a big Sunday night dinner à la Jamie Oliver.

No such luck.

So I took up a challenge for myself: Find some inspiration, somewhere, and make a respectable dish out of the parsnips. Not a boring side dish you’ve seen before (boiled or roasted parsnips), and not a slavishly strange creation you’ll never see again (Heston Blumenthal’s parsnip cereal). More like a simple, slightly offbeat dish that would appeal to almost everyone over 12 years old.

How about parsnip hummus?

Yes, parsnip hummus. An earthy, thick spread of cooked parsnips, tahini, garlic and spices. Some lemon juice and zest for brightness, and a little olive oil and melted butter for a velvety mouthfeel. The texture is like hummus but lighter, a little sweeter and spicier than one made with chickpeas. (And Eve, everyone happily enjoyed more than a token amount at your dinner party. I’ll take that as two thumbs up.)

Parsnip Hummus

This is a fantastic way to use parsnips in an unexpected way. It's a healthy, gluten- and grain-free appetizer that pairs well with raw veggies or crackers. Plus, you can make it a day ahead of time.

Ingredients

1 lb parsnips, peeled and cut into 2-inch thick pieces
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
juice + zest of 1 lemon
1 tablespoon ground cumin, toasted (*see note)
1 teaspoon ground coriander, toasted (*see note)
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves, toasted (*see note)
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil for drizzling (optional)
fresh vegetables, crackers or bread for dipping

Instructions

Place the parsnip pieces in a medium saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil and simmer over medium-low heat until parsnips are tender, about 5 minutes. Drain and transfer to food processor.
Add lemon zest and juice, spices, and olive oil and blend together until smooth. Scrape down the sides of the processor, add the butter and blend together again. Add salt and pepper to taste. If the texture is thicker than you prefer, add a little more olive oil or lemon juice. If not using right away, cover and refrigerate.
To serve, spoon hummus into a ramekin or onto a plate, drizzle with some olive oil if desired, and surround with slices of fresh vegetables, crackers or bread. Makes about 1-1/2 cups.

Notes

Toasting and grinding your spices helps to boost their flavor: Heat spices in a dry sauté pan over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, until fragrant. (Keep a very close eye on your pan, as the spices go from fragrant to burnt in no time!) Remove from heat, cool, then grind in a spice grinder. I use an inexpensive coffee grinder which I use exclusively for spices.

Roasted Blackberry and Brie Crostini

I have no doubt it will be a good year for blackberries. We’ve had a stretch of warm weather that’s extended out for several weeks, to the point that I almost can’t remember the last time it rained in Vancouver. Almost.

Even with all the sun and heat, though, blackberries do take their time to ripen. It’s mid-August already, but over the weekend the two spots that Bob scoped out for picking had bushes mostly full of hard, light red berries that won’t be ready for at least another week.

There were a few juicy ones, though, the kind that practically fall off into your fingers when you give them a gentle tug.

We had to be selective, not only because of the few really ripe berries. For some reason, we both were wearing too few clothes to venture too far into the prickly bushes. (Shorts and a tank top for picking blackberries, and Bob shirtless? What were we thinking?)

In our defense, it was a very hot afternoon. And it was our first time out this season. More of a blackberry reconnaissance mission, since we weren’t sure what state the berries would be in once we got up close. We’ll know better next time, or at least we’ll bring some long sticks to push away the prickly shoots.

At the risk of duplicating your triple cream brie and honey dessert too closely, Eve, I experimented with an appetizer of roasted blackberries, lightly melted brie and toasted crostini. So we could have blackberries before and after dinner. It makes perfect sense in August, doesn’t it?

The roasted berries have a savory twist — a splash of olive oil and some salt and pepper before you roast them. (I love a sweet-salty flavor combination. The ripe, sweet berries together with the salt were rather moreish, as Bob would say.) Aahhhh, summer.

Roasted Blackberry and Brie Crostini

Yield: 24 crostini

A savory twist on blackberries, this cheesy fruity crostini is a delicious start a summer evening. Even better with a glass of crisp rose wine.

Ingredients

1 baguette, sliced 1/4 inch thick into 24 pieces
6-8 ounces brie cheese, cut evenly into 24 pieces
48-60 blackberries
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

For the crostini:

Preheat the oven to 350F.
Slice baguette into 1/4 inch slices and place on an unlined baking sheet. Bake until tops are lightly browned, about 5-7 minutes. Turn crostini over and bake until lightly browned, another 3-4 minutes. Move crostini to a cooling rack and let cool.

For the roasted blackberries:

Place blackberries on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for 5-8 minutes, or until just warmed through. (Keep an eye on them so they don't get too soft or start to burn!)

When you're ready to serve:

Set your oven to broil. Place the crostini on an unlined baking sheet. Top each with one slice of the brie and broil until the brie is slightly melted. Remove from oven. Top each crostini with 2-3 roasted blackberries and serve immediately.