Christmas Appetizers: Plum and Mascarpone Crostini

A few days ago I brought you a wonderful muffin for your Christmas Breakfast.  Today's goody is going to be a simple yet elegant appetizer to make.

Appetizers are wonderful little tidbits to serve to family and guests at a holiday party, Christmas dinner, or even New Years eve.  They are perfect for keeping hunger at bay while the dinner is being cooked.  Wouldn't it be fun to host a holiday party of all appetizers?  Just an array of small bites?  I often do that for New Years Eve.

MGG is a BIG snacker.  So keeping him from munching on all the food that I'm cooking is a task.  By preparing a few appetizers ahead of time and having them on hand when the snack monster attacks seems to do the trick!  Does anyone else have a snack monster in their house, or am I facing this monster alone??

These Plum and Mascarpone Crostini are super delishhh!  They go together pretty quickly once you re-constitute the plums, and they can be made ahead of time and assembled at the last minute.

What's better than toasted bites of bread, a blend of mascarpone and ricotta cheese, a little arugula, and some dried plums reconstituted in Sherry?  Not much!  This dish is very easy to change depending upon your tastes too.  Use figs, or cherries instead.  The Sherry can be substituted out if your don't want the alcohol, but I must say it's mighty tasty with it!

That's all there is to it!  Simple and elegant, that's what I like during the holiday festivities.  Enjoy!

Plum and Mascarpone Crostini 

8-10 dried plums, chopped
1/3 c Sherry
1 french baguette, sliced into thin rounds
1/4 c mascarpone cheese
1/4 c ricotta cheese
1/2 c arugula leaves
balsamic vinegar for drizzling

In a small saucepan place the chopped plums and the sherry.  Bring to a simmer over medium heat.  Turn heat down to low and allow to simmer for about 10-15 minutes until plums have plumped up and the sherry is thick and syrupy.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Take the baguette rounds and place them flat on a baking sheet, not touching.  Bake in the oven until toasted, about 5 minutes.  Remove from the oven.

Meanwhile combine the mascarpone cheese and the ricotta cheese together in a small bowl and blend to mix.  

To assemble take one bread round and spread some of the cheese mixture on the toasted side.  Top with a leaf of arugula and a small spoon full of the reconstituted plums.  Drizzle with a little balsamic vinegar.  Serve immediately.