Roasted Red Pepper Pesto Crostini - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 baguette, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus
2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled
2 roasted red peppers, peeled, seeded and coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons slivered almonds, toasted
3 tablespoons grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1 pinch cayenne pepper
salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste
4 ounces goat cheese

Preparation

Preheat an oven to 350\u00b0F.
Arrange the baguette slices on a baking sheet and brush lightly on both sides with the 1/4 cup olive oil.
Lightly toast both sides of bread in oven.
While the crostini are still warm, rub the top of each one with 1 of the garlic cloves. Set aside.
In the bowl of a food processor, combine the red peppers, the remaining garlic clove, the almonds, cheese, 3 Tbs. of the parsley, the lemon juice, the 2 teaspoons olive oil and the cayenne pepper. Pulse until a coarse puree forms. Season with salt and black pepper.
Place the crostini in a single layer on a baking sheet.
Spread about 2 teaspoons of the goat cheese on each crostini.
Bake until the cheese is slightly soft and the crostini are warm, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a platter and top each with about 1 Tbs. of the red pepper pesto.
Sprinkle with the remaining 1 Tbs. parsley.