My close friend, Ada, introduced me to the delicious combination of sun dried tomatoes and cream cheese almost fifteen years ago. Back then, I was definitely not as adventurous of an eater as I am now. She had purchased a jar of sun dried tomatoes at Costco and started playing around with flavors. When our other close friend, Colleen and I went over to her house one day, she insisted we try these appetizers she had quickly whipped up in the kitchen. It was only cream cheese spread thinly on Ritz crackers and topped with sun dried tomatoes. It wasn’t fancy, but at the time, I had never had sun dried tomatoes before, so I was a bit skeptical. I still tried it and was pleasantly surprised at how well the flavors worked together. The tanginess of the tomatoes balanced very well with the creaminess of the cream cheese. Thinking back, I should have realized the flavors are very similar to the flavors of pizza. After one bite of the crackers, I was hooked on the flavor profile. My version strayed a bit from hers. I like to top pieces of crusty baguette bread with the sun dried tomatoes and cream cheese. These crostini bites became a very easy, elegant, and quick appetizer to serve in between meals throughout the day.
Sun Dried Tomato and Cream Cheese Crostini
· ½ baguette, sliced on a diagonal
· 2 ounces cream cheese Cream cheese
· ¼ jar julienned sun dried tomatoes
· (Optional) dried parsley
· (Optional) freshly cracked black pepper
Directions:
1) Preheat the oven to 400°F. Once oven is heated, toast the baguette slices in the oven for 5-7 minutes.
2) Spread on a thin layer of cream cheese. Top with a few julienned sundried tomatoes.
3) As an optional step, sprinkle on dried parsley and freshly cracked black pepper.
Takeaways: These easy appetizers can be topped with any toppings of your choice. The crostini also pair well with fresh basil and a drizzle of olive oil.