Vegan Spring Vegetable Crostini Recipe with Macadamia Ricotta (2024)

This vegan Spring Vegetable Crostini Recipe features homemade macadamia nut ricotta and some of the season’s prettiest produce – a vegan appetizer that is easily adaptable.

I can’t even with how utterly gorgeous these Spring Vegetable Crostini are!!

I’ve been dying to share this easy vegetable crostini recipe with you ever since I shot it a couple of weeks ago.

Reasons to love this easy vegetable crostini recipe:

• These vegan vegetable crostini are the perfect party appetizer. What’s not to love about a little carb-loading at a party, right?
• This vegan crostini recipe is sublimely adaptable. Use the vegan ricotta as a base and top with any vegetables that are in season where you live.
• You can whip this easy appetizer up in less than half an hour.

I suppose you could also call these vegan vegetable crostini a tartine, being that I used such a large loaf of bread.

Typically you might use a thinner baguette for crostini, but I’m here to tell you that either way, it works.

What better vehicle than a crunchy, toasted slice of bread is there to highlight some of spring’s most stunning produce?

I’m talking sugar snap peas, baby Chioggia beets, and the tiniest white radishes.

I picked up this stunning bounty at the farmer’s market, along with a bunch of fresh mint leaves.

I love to accent my dishes with fresh herbs, and this Spring Vegetable Crostini recipe is no exception.

For a touch of rich, creaminess to offset the crisp, fresh vegetables, a shmear of macadamia nut ricotta is just the thing. It’s also just the thing to sneak spoonfuls of straight from the container. Just saying…

The beauty of this vegan crostini recipe is that it’s sublimely adaptable.

Feel free to use any kind of bread, any variety of spring vegetables you can get your hands on, any type of fresh herb and even any kind of cheese, be it vegan or not!

Try this Spring Vegetable Crostini recipe with:

• almond ricotta, goat cheese, burrata or whipped cream cheese instead of macadamia ricotta
• shaved asparagus, watermelon radish, fava beans or avocado instead of the vegetables pictured here
• tarragon, parsley, chives or micro arugula instead of mint

See? The possibilities are quite endless.

That’s one of the things I love about a crostini/tartine situation.

Tips for making this vegan vegetable crostini recipe:

• Make sure your macadamia nuts are properly soaked. Just like cashews, macadamias are so-called short-soak nuts. They require only 2 to 4 hours soaking at room temperature or overnight in the fridge. Do not soak these nuts for much longer or they will start to break down their health-promoting oils.
• The nutritional yeast adds the cheesy flavor to the vegan macadamia ricotta, so don’t skip it.
• Top your crostini right before serving them as they will get softer with time.

What’s the difference between a crostini and a bruschetta?

The real difference between bruschettas and crostini is the bread used and its size.

Bruschetta is made by toasting whole, wide slices of a rustic white Italian or sourdough type white bread. Mostly, bruschetta is served with fresh toppings, like tomatoes and basil.

Crostini are sliced smaller and toasted from a smaller, round, finer-textured bread, more like a white bread baguette. Toppings are on the richer side and are more likely to spread than fresh ingredients.

Atartine, on the other hand,is the French version of an open-faced sandwich, pretty much the same thing as acrostini, just bigger.

Really, the difference is not a big one.

All three start with a crisp slice of toasted bread. As mentioned above, this crostini recipe might actually be more a tartine than a crostini as my slices were pretty big.

Can I make the crostini ahead of time?

To make crostini ahead of time, cut the bread into smaller slices. You want them super crisp and if you have very thick slices they might still have soft parts in the middle, which is not optimal for storing.

Prepare the toasted bread and cool completely to room temperature.

Store the toasted cooled slices in airtight containers up to two days. If the air is very humid where you live you might want to re-crisp the crostini in the preheated oven for a few minutes.

Wait until you are ready to serve them to top with the macadamia ricotta and veggies.

For more vegan appetizers, check out my Vegan Fish Tostadas (yes, I said it) or my Vegan Chickpea Sliders.

Thanks for reading! To keep up with me in the kitchen, follow me onFacebook,Instagram,TwitterandPinterest.If you make this Spring Vegetable Crostini Recipe with Macadamia Nut Ricotta, please share it using the hashtag #LePetitEats!