strawberry+fig+mascarpone
I’m not sure what it is exactly about figs or fig jam but they immediately class up the joint. Have you noticed that? If you bring an appetizer or a charcuterie board to a party, and you tell people it includes figs in some way, the immediate response is “wow, figs!” or “how fancy!”
Honestly that’s why I absolutely love these strawberry fig crostinis – they give off classy vibes while truly being so simple in flavor and effort. I made these for every holiday party I went to this year and didn’t come home with one. single. crostini. From any of them.
Let’s talk about the combo of strawberry, fig and mascarpone. With a lot of these combinations, I’m throwing in one ingredient that doesn’t make it a gimme so I can continue to learn balance. Strawberry & fig – this is a pretty easy pairing to build a recipe from. In fact, I know strawberry & fig will be making future appearances on this site on my quest to be a flavor master. My add to these two this time was mascarpone.
Mascarpone cheese – most classically recognized by most of us by it’s starring role in tiramisu, mascarpone is so much more versatile than just for desserts. Originating in the Lombardy region of Northern Italy, Mascarpone is made with heavy cream while it’s more popular cousin Ricotta is made with milk. In terms of texture, Mascarpone is actually more similar to our cream cheese but has a higher fat content and there’s no tang that we would expect from cream cheese.
Why did I pick mascarpone instead of cream cheese? Though I think that cream cheese would add a nice tang to offset the sweetness of the fig jam, I think it would have just been one step further than I wanted for contrast. The mascarpone is primarily just creamy with a very very slight sweetness and that’s the baseline I wanted in this appetizer.
Could you use cream cheese? Sure, it’s your kitchen!
Strawberries and figs are both sweet fruits however a strawberry has an underlying tartness that adds just a little bit of contrast to the level of sweetness in figs. The hardest time I had here was not going overboard with the fig jam – it is delicious and my inclination is to want to use more of it when building these crostinis. However, too much fig jam overpowers that contrasting tartness and creamy baseline that the strawberries and mascarpone add to this appetizer.
I wouldn’t recommend this as a dish to make too far in advance if you want to keep the crostinis on the crunchier side, which I do like as a contrast to the remaining soft ingredients. The bread will absorb the moisture of the cheese, fruit and jam and soften up. These don’t take too long to put together if you have the strawberries sliced and ready to go.
To build each crostini, follow these steps:
- Spread a thin layer of mascarpone on a crostini
- What do I mean by thin? Thin for me on these is thick enough that I don’t really see the bread through the cheese but not piled on
- Add a thin layer of the fig jam and spread evenly across the mascarpone
- Depending on which fig jam you choose (I like this one), it can be a looser jam and will run off the crostini if you put too much on. Again, a little fig jam goes a long way so you don’t need to use much! For the crostinis in the pictures, I used about 1/2 a teaspoon for each crostini.
- Sprinkle just a grain or two of kosher or flaky salt on top of the fig jam. Just a grain or two! It doesn’t sound like much but it just helps elevate this bite of food.
- Top with a sliced strawberry.
- and voila!
strawberry+fig+mascarpone
Now it’s your turn! What would you make with this flavor combination? Tell me in the comments!
Printstrawberry fig crostinis
these elegant yet simple crostinis are a perfect add to any party menu
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 32 crostinis (half circle) or 16 full slice crostinis 1x
- Category: Appetizer
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 1 french baguette, cut into 1/4” -1/2″ slices or half-circle slices
- 1 pint strawberries, sliced
- 1 8oz container mascarpone cheese
- 1 jar fig preserves
- extra virgin olive oil for brushing
- Kosher or flaky salt
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place sliced baguette slices on a baking sheet and lightly brush with extra virgin olive oil. Bake for 5 minutes or until lightly toasted (not super crispy!) Remove from baking sheet to wire rack to cool and repeat with any additional baguette slices that didn’t fit the first time.
Once cool, spread each crostini with a light layer of mascarpone cheese, a layer of fig jam, followed by a very light sprinkle of salt (just a couple grains) and a sliced strawberry. Repeat until all baguette slices are completed.
Refrigerate until ready to serve, though I wouldn’t make more than an hour or so in advance to keep the crostinis from softening too much.
Notes
The number of crostinis this recipe makes is dependent on the size of the baguette and the thickness of the slices – in testing this recipe, a full container of strawberries, mascarpone and fig jam were more than enough for 2 whole french baguettes.
