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Canape- Crostini with Spanakopita

Source of Recipe

Frank Papa's Ristorante


List of Ingredients




For crostini:
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
About 1/2 loaf French bread, sliced as thinly as possible (about 25 pieces)
1 tablespoon minced garlic
Ground white pepper (use fresh, if possible)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

For spanakopita:
4 ounces feta cheese
2 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 1/2 tablespoons pine nuts, roughly chopped
2 ounces fresh spinach, blanched, drained, squeezed dry and chopped
1 pinch ground white pepper
1 pinch granulated garlic or garlic powder




Recipe

To prepare crostini: Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Melt butter over moderate heat. Let sit until milky solids sink to the bottom. Skim off golden melted butter from top. Discard solids.
Spread bread slices on a cookie sheet.
Combine melted butter and garlic. Add pepper to taste. Brush butter onto bread slices.
Bake for 10 minutes or until slightly crisp. Sprinkle baked slices with Parmesan cheese. Return to the oven for a minute so that cheese can melt.
Remove from oven; let cool.

To prepare spanakopita: Combine feta cheese, cream cheese, pine nuts, spinach, white pepper and garlic in a medium bowl. Mix well with hands. Put small amounts of mixture on crostini. Warm in oven for about 3 minutes. Serve warm.
Yield: 8 to 12 servings.
You can prepare the crostini early in the day if you store them in a paper bag (a plastic bag will make them soggy). Make the spanakopita in advance as well and refrigerate. Assemble and heat just before serving.
Restaurateur Frank Papa notes that the spanakopita can be used as a topping for any kind of bread or cracker. It also works well as a stuffing or topping for many other dishes.

From St Louis Post 01/01/01