Goat cheese bruschetta starts with soft creamy cheese, topped with sautéed shiitake mushrooms, briney capers and anchovies. A provocative combination of flavors. An easy goat cheese appetizer that is perfect for a Summer Evening Tapas on the back deck. Don’t forget that glass of white wine.
This recipe has everything you love about bruschetta and more.
- Crusty toasted bread
- Creamy tangy goat cheese
- Earthy shiitake mushrooms
- Salty tart capers
- Garlic
- Anchovies
Our rock and roll loving, wine drinking, bird watching friends Nancy and Neal (California) and Thomas (Ohio) descended on Colorado last week.
A couple of days spent in Denver included a lovely dinner at Ja little French Bistro, and a tapas-style dinner on our back deck the next evening.
Throw in a week-long trip to the high country where we stayed at a rustic cabin at the base of Rocky Mountain National Park on a sleepy little mountain lake, complete with moose, marmot, mink, otter, chipmunk, chickoree, ptarmigan, elk, deer, bats and miscellaneous riff-raff (racoon), and you’ve got a fabulous little vacation. “Paradise” as one of us coined it.
Our patio Summer tapas menu included some mighty fine small bite appetizers, but hands down, this was the most popular item of the evening.
You’ve got to give this one a try. It’s one of those oh-for-pitty-sake good combos. It’s now in my database as a favorite.
- 1 Tablespoon Butter
- 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
- 4-6 shiitake mushrooms Stems diced, caps thin sliced
- 4-8 anchovy fillets minced. (I used 4)
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 Tablespoons salted capers rinsed and chopped
- 2 Tablespoons dry vermouth
- 1 Tablespoon fresh parsley chopped
- Salt/pepper
- 1 French Baguette sliced
- 4 ounces goat cheese room temperature
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Melt 1 tbsp butter with 1 tbsp olive oil in a frying pan and saute mushrooms until browned.
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Add anchovies and garlic and cook until the fish liquifies.
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Add capers and parsley and cook on medium for a minute more.
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Add vermouth and deglaze pan. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with crusty bread slices covered in a layer of goat cheese.
Let’s take a look at some of the water features in Rocky Mountain National Park. It’s just short of a 2 1/2 hour drive northwest of our house. We are so fortunate to have such a jaw dropping, spectacular, pristine piece of our country in our back yard. We make a trip to RMNP at least once each summer and I’m always in awe of its grandeur.
Moose Pond. Our cabin was on this pond. Plus a moose or two.
Nautical Neal, our pontoon boat ride on Grand Lake and Shadow Mountain Lake
Heading under the bridge on our way from Shadow Mountain Lake to Grand Lake
Nancy and me, enjoying the ride.
View of Lake Irene from our picnic table, Milner Pass, Continental Divide, Rocky Mountain National Park
View of Grand Lake from our dinner on the porch at Grand Lake Lodge.
Looking around for other great bruschetta ideas? How about Julia Child’s classic tomato bruschetta. This recipe is a must for your recipe collection. And if you’re in the mood for bread appetizer recipes, take a look at this one Mushroom Bread. Lordie it’s good.
Goat Cheese Bruschetta, with Mushrooms, Capers and Anchovies…It’s What’s for a Summer Tapas Menu.
From the Kitchen of Lea Ann Brown, Cooking On The Ranch
