Fresh herbs…they seem like they are such a luxury but they can truly be an everyday affordable thing! I’m new to the scene of using fresh herbs in my cooking! I finally have space to keep a planter of my favorites whether it be inside or outside. I would suggest doing some research ahead of time for anyone looking to begin an herb garden or herb container. There is a lot of information out there online that is helpful when choosing herbs and how to tend to them. That is not what I am here for, I am here to show you 2 fresh tasty appetizers that you can make with garden fresh or store bought herbs…but mine are proudly from my new garden! And I’m loving the chalkboard slate markers I bought at the Target Dollar spot and hand-lettered myself…so fun!
My two fresh herb appetizer creations may look kinda fancy but they are for the mom who wants to impress but doesn’t want or have the energy for the “cook from scratch” lifestyle. So with no further ado, I present:
Baked Mozzarella-Salami Naan Bread with fresh herb infusion of parsley and thyme AND then Tomato & Feta Bruschetta on toasted french bread with fresh herb infusions of parsley and oregano.
The super savory element to both of these appetizers begins with a thyme, parsley, and garlic infused olive oil! I learned about using herbs to infuse olive oil from my favorite chef, Sunny, on Food Network’s show – The Kitchen.
Herb & Garlic Infused Olive Oil
All you need to do in order to achieve perfectly infused olive oil is find some of your favorite Olive Oil – I’d recommend Extra Virgin Olive Oil – and pour about 1 cup in a small sauce pan over medium heat. Add in 2 cloves of fresh garlic that you’ve crushed open with a knife to allow the flavors to really escape. And then the herbs, throw in a few sprigs of thyme and about 5 parsley leaves.
Let it heat up for about 15 minutes, remove from the heat and let it cool down and bottle OR in this case, hold to the side to use for appetizers. There will be a good amount leftover for dipping oil or to cook with too. It is so simple but adds such crazy flavor to the dishes.
To begin let’s look at the base or in this case, the carbs for each appetizer.
On the left you have just a basic loaf of french bread you can pick up fresh at any grocery store. Easy peasy! The naan bread appetizer…don’t get crazy, I just bought a package of fresh baked naan from Sam’s! It bakes up and is very similar to flatbread so don’t be scared of it! Of course if you want to make your own from scratch there are tons of recipes out there but I am a mom of an active 1 year old and if I want to make an impressive appetizer, the short cuts are a must.
These are both done at the same temperature in the oven and could be made together or separate. The heavy creamy notes in the naan bread appetizer marry well though with the tart fresh flavors in the bruschetta, so I think they are good appetizer companions. The portions I outline below are enough to serve a small dinner party of 4 people so adjust as needed from there for proper quantity.
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Baked Mozzarella-Salami Naan Bread
Ingredients:
1 slice of Naan Bread
1/2 package of fresh whole Mozzarella in 4 – 1/4″ slices
4 pieces of deli or fresh salami
A few sprigs of fresh Parsley chopped
1 tablespoon of infused olive oil (see above for directions)
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Coat the naan in a light brushing of the infused olive oil and then top with the mozzarella cheese slices evenly distributed.
Fresh mozzarella melts and expands greatly so don’t place too close to the edges and if you need to fill in gaps, just tear a few pieces to do so. Then roll up the 4 pieces of salami and cut into thin slices – about 5-6 to be exact. Place what you can of the salami rolled up as a pinwheel shape – very fun looking. Some will unroll though, so if that happens just “roll” with it! Nerdy recipe humor…sorry!
Then sprinkle on the fresh herbs and some pepper and then pop it into the oven for about 10 minutes.
until it looks about like this…
Make sure to pull this bubbly creation out onto a baking sheet or cutting board as it will soft still. You don’t want a crispy bottom on this in my opinion. But you will need something to cut it on neatly and then transfer to the showcase platter.
I wouldn’t let this cool for too long before cutting it up and serving – maybe 2-3 minutes at most. This fresh mozzarella firms up quick and just isn’t as appealing when it isn’t gooey.
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Tomato & Feta Bruschetta on toasted French Bread
Ingredients:
6-8 slices of french bread sliced about 1/4″ thick
1/2 carton of cherry tomatoes quartered
1/2 cup of feta crumbles
1-2 tablespoons of infused olive oil
(see above for full instructions)
5 leaves of oregano chopped
5 leaves of parsley chopped
Directions:
Slice up about 6-8 pieces of french bread about 1/4″ thick. Brush with infused olive oil and place on a baking sheet.
Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for about 5 min to just warm up and slightly toast the bread.
While those are toasting up, combine the chopped cherry tomatoes with the feta, chopped herbs and a drizzling of 1 tablespoon of the infused olive oil into a bowl. Toss to marry all the flavors.
The moisture in the olive oil will allow the feta to moisten and meld with the tomato and herbs to create a softer texture versus the original crumbly feta texture.
Top the bruschetta mixture on the warm toasts once they come out of the oven and place back in the oven for about 2-3 minutes. This may seem pointless but it really just warms up the mixture so it isn’t hot toast and cold topping.
And viola – both appetizers are complete and with prep time included, they took me around 20 minutes to make and serve up!
These really do look like and taste like a fancy showstopper and are a great way to welcome in the warm weather with some yummy garden fresh herbs!
Thanks for coming to join with me in this fun cooking with fresh herbs adventure! Please use the image below or any image in this post (with proper credits to my site) and share via social media!
