Mediterranean Crostini makes a beautiful and delicious appetizer or snack. Slices of baguette bread is toasted and topped with your favorite hummus, chopped vegetables like tomatoes, carrots and cucumbers, creamy feta cheese and microgreens.
Why You’ll Love This Mediterranean Crostini Recipe
Regular readers of my blog will know my love for all things Mediterranean inspired. The ingredients of the Mediterranean region are not only healthy they are also delicious. They work together so nicely in this easy Mediterranean crostini recipe.
I enjoy hummus paired with fresh vegetables and creamy feta cheese, especially when there is bread involved. For this easy appetizer, I topped the toasted crostini with my homemade Classic Hummus. This delicious hummus works well with the other ingredients.
If you are having a get together for a large group this would be a great appetizer to make for a crowd. It is also very easy to put together, making it such an easy snack to serve your guests.
Here are more reasons it’s a must-try dish:
- Seasonal Ingredients: With a garden and weekly trips to the farmers market, this recipe is a delicious way to use seasonal produce.
- Easy Preparation: Preparation for this recipe is minimal, you can get everything ready in advance, then store and assemble when you are ready to eat.
- Versatile: This recipe is easily adapted to suit your own tastes, you can use any flavor hummus and any variety of veggies.
- Healthy & Nutritious: This easy crostini recipe is a great way to add to your 5-a-day with all those crunchy vegetables, and also the protein rich hummus.
If you’re a fan of easy appetizers that you can pick up and enjoy, try my Beef Crostini with Caramelized Onion, Southwestern Roasted Sweet Potato Rounds, Guacamole Stuffed Potato Skins, Honey Goat Cheese Balls, or Jalapeno Poppers with Bacon.
Ingredients You’ll Need:
- Bread: I use a whole loaf baguette bread, sliced 1/4 inch thick which serves 6-8 diners.
- Oil: I use extra virgin olive oil in this recipe as it has a great nutty flavor.
- Seasoning: I season the crostini with a little sea salt and black pepper.
- Hummus: I always use my homemade classic hummus, but you can use any flavor of hummus, homemade or store bought.
- Vegetables: I use grape tomatoes, English cucumber and carrots to top the hummus.
- Cheese: I crumble some feta cheese over the vegetables before serving.
- Garnish: I like to garnish the crostini with some microgreens and chopped parsley for flavor.
For exact ingredient amounts and instructions, see the full recipe card below.
Recipe Variations
This recipe is versatile and easy to adapt to your tastes:
- Hummus: The spread that I used on this crostini is my homemade Classic Hummus. However, you can easily use any flavor hummus, like a Roasted Red Pepper Hummus or a Lemon Hummus.
- Other Spreads: I also think a White Bean Artichoke Dip or my Lemon Whipped Feta Dip would work on this crostini.
- Fresh Vegetables: I used diced tomatoes, cucumber and carrots, but you can add your favorite vegetables like mushrooms, zucchini, or bell peppers.
- Cheese: Feta cheese is always my go-to for Mediterranean style recipes but it isn’t the only option. You can try a crumbly or soft goat cheese, shredded cheddar, Parmesan or mozzarella cheese.
- Greens: I love adding microgreens to my crostini recipes as they are small enough to fit onto a small crostini. You can also chop up kale, spinach or arugula and add that.
- Pesto: Swirl on a little pesto for a burst of herby and garlicky goodness.
How to Make Mediterranean Crostini
Step 1: Prepare the Bread
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Slice the baguette into 1/4 inch thick slices. Arrange the slices on baking sheets and brush both sides of the bread with the olive oil and a dash of salt and pepper.
Step 2: Bake the Bread
Bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes, or until it begins to turn golden and becomes slightly crispy. Remove from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes.
Step 3: Top and Garnish the Crostini
Spread a thin layer of hummus on the crostini followed by the tomatoes, cucumber, matchstick carrots and feta cheese.
Garnish with microgreens and fresh parsley.
Expert Tips for Perfect Mediterranean Crostini
- When cutting the bread, cut it into 1/4 inch slices – it needs to be thin enough to eat, but thick enough to support all the toppings.
- Take care when toasting the crostini that you don’t over cook it. You don’t want the bread to be so hard that it become difficult to eat. The bread should be lightly toasted on the outside and soft on the inside.
Make-Ahead and Storage Tips:
These crostini can be made a little ahead of time, and stored in the refrigerator until you are ready to eat. However, you want the bread to be crunchy and it will start to soften and become soggy with the hummus if left to sit too long.
A better way to get ahead when making crostini, is to prepare and toast the bread then store in an airtight container at room temperature. You can also prepare the vegetables and store them in individual containers in the refrigerator. Then when you are ready to serve, all you need to do is quickly assemble the crostini.
Recipe FAQs
Crostini is an appetizer that originates from Italy.
The difference comes down to the type of bread used. Bruschetta is often made with larger slices of rustic bread, toasted then rubbed with garlic before being topped. Whereas, crostini is smaller and neater, often made with baguette style bread, making it easy to pick up and eat.
When toasting crostini take care not to over toast the bread. The bread should be crunchy and golden on the outside, but soft on the inside.
Other Mediterranean Recipes:
Vegetarian
Mediterranean Hummus Toast with Za’atar
Appetizers
Baba Ghanoush
Mediterranean
Mediterranean Flatbread
Mediterranean Crostini
Ingredients
- 1 loaf baguette bread, sliced 1/4 inch thick
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- sea salt & black pepper , to taste
- 1/2 cup hummus, homemade or store bought, any flavor
- 1 cup grape tomatoes, cut into quarters
- 1 English cucumber, diced, around 1 1/2 to 2 cups
- 1/4 cup carrots, cut into matchsticks
- 1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled
- microgreen and parsley, to garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Slice the baguette into 1/4 inch thick slices. Arrange the slices on baking sheets and brush both sides of the bread with the olive oil and a dash of salt and pepper.
- Bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes, or until it begins to turn golden and becomes slightly crispy.
- Remove from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes.
- Spread a thin layer of hummus on the crostini followed by the tomatoes, cucumber, matchstick carrots and feta cheese.
- Garnish with microgreens and fresh parsley.
