Together, tapenade and goat’s cheese are a match made in heaven. Obviously you can eat the elements separately, but do encourage anyone you’re feeding to spread them on their crostini together.
A couple notes on anchovy. As long as everyone you’re feeding loves olives and isn’t a vegetarian, just put them in and don’t tell anyone. Once you’ve opened the tin, anchovies freeze really well – just wrap the open tin in plastic wrap and pop it in the freezer. Scrape out a little at a time and keep frozen to avoid waste.
Feeds 4
Ingredients
1 baguette
1 x 125g log of soft goat’s cheese
For the tapenade:
1 – 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 cup pitted Kalamata olives
1 fillet of anchovy (about 1 tsp anchovy paste)
1 small shallot, quartered
1/2 clove of garlic, put through a garlic press
1 teaspoon capers
Good grinding of pepper
1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley, chopped
To a food processor add 1 tbsp of olive oil, the olives, anchovy, shallot, garlic, capers and pepper. Blitz until you have a rough paste, adding a little extra olive oil until you have a smooth mixture. Stir in the parsley.
Make ahead: Tapenade can be made up to 2 days ahead. Bring to room temperature before serving.
For the crostini, slice the baguette into thin slices and place in a single layer on a baking tray. Toast under the broiler / grill until golden, then flip and toast the other side. Do not walk away or do anything else while toasting. Set aside at room temperature until ready to eat.
Make ahead: Crostini can be toasted up to 3 hours in advance. Keep at room temperature, uncovered, until ready to serve.
Remove the goat’s cheese from the fridge at least 30 minutes before serving. Place the goat’s cheese on a serving board, pile up the crostini and pop a shallow bowl of tapenade alongside. Sprinkle over a bit of chopped parsley and serve.
Caroline Feeds 