Mushroom and Fontina Crostini

By BobD

Maria Helm Sinskey likes to use Italian Fontina cheese, which melts beautifully, but young Gouda would be equally delicious.

Ingredients

• Four 1/2-inch-thick slices of peasant bread, halved diagonally
• 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 1/2 pounds white mushrooms
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 medium shallots, finely chopped
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
• 1 teaspoon chopped thyme
• 3 tablespoons water
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1/4 pound Fontina cheese, coarsely shredded (about 1 cup)
• 1 tablespoon chopped parsley

Details

Servings 4
Cooking time 35mins
Adapted from foodandwine.com

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 400°. Arrange the bread on a baking sheet and drizzle with 3 tablespoons of the olive oil. Toast for 12 minutes, until slightly golden around the edges. Turn the broiler on.

Meanwhile, thinly slice the mushrooms. In a large skillet, cook the butter over high heat until lightly browned, 2 minutes. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil and the mushrooms and cook undisturbed until the mushrooms are browned on the bottom, 2 minutes. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until browned all over, 10 minutes. Add the shallots, garlic and thyme, lower the heat to moderate and cook until the shallots are tender, 5 minutes. Add the water and scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan, then cook for 3 minutes longer. Season the mushrooms with salt and pepper and remove from the heat.

Spoon the mushroom mixture on the toasts and sprinkle the cheese on top. Broil for 2 minutes, or until the cheese is melted. Transfer the crostini to a platter, sprinkle with the parsley and serve.