Description
Celebrate National Cheese Lovers Day with these easy, elegant appetizers made with some of my favorite French cheeses!
Ingredients
Scale
- 2 tablespoons peanut oil
- 3 pounds sweet onions, sliced 1/8-inch thick
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 fresh baguette, sliced on a bias about 1/2-inch thick
- Olive oil
Cheeses:
- Bleu D'Auvergne
- Mimolette
- Raclette
Toppings:
- Whole clove garlic, peeled, tip sliced off to expose the flesh
- Aged balsamic
- Fresh parsley, chopped
- Fresh thyme, leaves stripped
- Apple, thinly sliced
- Green onions, chopped
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large, heavy skillet (preferably cast iron) over medium-low heat. Add onions, sprinkle with salt and let cook nice and slow, stirring occasionally, until they are deeply golden brown (this will take at least an hour, maybe even 2 - see my notes in the post above about the quantity of onions).
- Once caramelized, remove onions from heat and preheat your broiler. Arrange baguette slices in a single layer on a baking sheet (you may need to do this in 2 batches, depending on the size of your baguette). Brush the top side of each slice with a little olive oil and place in the oven. Place under the broiler and cook until golden on one side. Remove from the oven, flip each slice over and brush the top of each with another thin layer of oil. Pop back into the broiler and cook until golden.
- Remove 1/3 of the baguette slices to a platter. Rub each of the remaining 2/3 with the garlic clove, letting the garlic grind into the toasted bread while still warm.
- For the Bleu D'Auvergne crostini: use a knife to smear a bit of the cheese over each slice of the toasted baguette that was placed on the platter (not the ones with garlic rubbed on top). Top each with a little pile of caramelized onions, a drizzle of aged balsamic and a sprinkle of fresh parsley.
- For the Mimolette and Raclette crostini: still working on the baking sheet, top each garlicky baguette slice with a pile of caramelized onions. Place a slice of Mimolette on top of half of those, and a slice of Raclette on the remaining half. Place the tray back under the broiler until the cheese gets melty and bubbly, being careful not to burn. Remove the crostini to the serving platter.
- Press a slice of apple into the top of each Mimolette crostini, then sprinkle with thyme leaves. Sprinkle each of the Raclette crostini with green onions. Enjoy!
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 598
- Sugar: 30 g
- Sodium: 938.5 mg
- Fat: 9.8 g
- Saturated Fat: 1.7 g
- Carbohydrates: 111.5 g
- Fiber: 8.7 g
- Protein: 19.2 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
