Ricotta Toast Off
Have you heard that ricotta toast is the new avocado toast? In the past week, I have read at least five Instagram posts telling me that avocado toast is out and ricotta toast is in. Not one to be left out of a food fad, I challenged Mallory to a “Ricotta Toast Off” over the weekend. What, isn’t this what everyone does on a Saturday evening for dinner?!?!
Our “Ricotta Toast Off” consisted of five different ricotta toast recipes. The results are below. For each of the recipes, we used Grand Central Bakery’s Como Bread. A favorite in our household and available at QFC, the Como is an Italian-style hearth bread that undenounced to me until this post was actually named one of the country’s best artisan loaves by Saveur magazine. And, don’t worry, Mallory also made her Kardashian Chop Salad to balance out the excessive amount of carbs.
The winner of the “Ricotta Toast Off” savory toast category was Mallory’s Whipped Ricotta Toast with Roasted Tomatoes. Its similar to a bruschetta appetizer but on steroids. The ricotta cheese and roasted garlic make it extra decadent.
#1 Whipped Ricotta Toast with Roasted Tomatoes
- 1 medium head garlic
- 3 teaspoons olive oil
- Kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
- 1 medium shallot, cut into ¼-inch slices
- Olive oil spray
- 1 cup ricotta cheese
- Loaf of crusty bread
- ¼ cup chopped basil, for garnish
- Crushed red pepper flakes, for garnish (optional)
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut just the top of the head of garlic off, leaving cloves intact and exposed. Drizzle with 1 teaspoon oil, wrap tightly in aluminum foil, place on medium sheet pan and roast for 25 minutes. In a medium bowl, combine the tomatoes, shallots, remaining 2 teaspoons oil, ½ teaspoon salt and pepper, to taste. Toss to coat. Transfer to a sheet pan lined with parchment. After garlic has roasted for 25 minutes, leave it in the oven then add the sheet pan with the tomatoes and shallots and roast for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, cut bread into 20 (½-inch) slices. Remove both sheet pans from the oven. Turn the oven off, take wrapped garlic off sheet pan and allow to cool for 5 minutes. Lay bread slices in an even layer on the sheet pan, spray lightly with olive oil and place the sheet pan in the oven to allow bread to toast while you whip the ricotta. Unwrap the garlic and carefully squeeze or scoop cloves into a food processor fitted with metal blade or a blender. Add the ricotta, ¼ teaspoon salt and pepper, to taste then process for 30 seconds. Scrap sides with a spatula and pulse 2-3 times to thoroughly combine. Remove bread from oven and assemble toast. Scoop the whipped ricotta onto each piece of bread. Evenly distribute tomatoes and shallots on to toasts. Top each with basil, a pinch of salt and red pepper flakes, if using. Serve immediately.
Recipe Credit: Skinnytaste
The first runner-up of the “Ricotta Toast Off” was Mallory’s Broccoli and Ricotta Toasts with Hot Honey. Mallory used the extra garlic whipped ricotta from the roasted tomatoes recipe to make this broccoli toast recipe and simplify the meal. And, of course, serving broccoli on ricotta is genius!
#2 Broccoli and Ricotta Toasts with Hot Honey
- 6 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, divided
- 1 head of broccoli, stem peeled, stem and florets chopped into ½” pieces
- 1 head of garlic, cloves separated
- Kosher salt
- 1 Tbsp. honey
- 1 Tbsp. white wine vinegar
- ½ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 ½ cups ricotta cheese
- Loaf of crusty bread
- Freshly ground black pepper
Place racks in upper and lower thirds of oven; preheat to 400 degrees. Arrange bread slices in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet and drizzle with 2 Tbsp. oil. Toss on baking sheet to coat, then arrange again in a single layer. Place broccoli and garlic on another rimmed baking sheet and drizzle with remaining 4 Tbsp. oil. Season generously with salt and toss to combine. Place broccoli on top rack and bread on bottom rack and roast until bread is golden brown and crisp, 10–12 minutes. Remove bread from oven and continue to roast broccoli and garlic, tossing once, until broccoli is browned all over and garlic is tender, another 15–20 minutes. Let cool slightly. Meanwhile, whisk honey, vinegar, and red pepper flakes in a small bowl. As soon as garlic is cool enough to handle, squeeze cloves out of their skins and mash in another small bowl to form a paste. Add ricotta and mix well; season with salt and black pepper. Spread ricotta over toasts and top with roasted broccoli. Arrange on a platter and drizzle with honey mixture.
Recipe Credit: Bon Appetit
My favorite recipe of the “Ricotta Toast Off” (not just because I made this one), was the Ricotta Toast with Peas and Prosciutto. I loved the addition of the lemon zest to this recipe along with prosciutto. Downside, the peas like to roll off the toast making it difficult to eat. Admittedly, first world problems that could be solved using a fork and knife to eat but who wants more dishes to clean?!?!
#3 Ricotta Toast with Peas and Prosciutto
- Loaf of crusty bread
- 1 cup ricotta cheese
- 2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest (from 1 lemon), divided
- 1 teaspoon honey
- Pinch crushed red pepper flakes, plus more to taste
- Fine sea salt
- Freshly cracked black pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 6 stalks scallions, trimmed, halved lengthwise and cut into 1- to 2-inch pieces
- 1/2 cup water
- 6 ounces frozen peas
- 4 to 8 slices prosciutto
In the bowl of a food processor, combine the ricotta, 1 teaspoon of lemon zest, honey, red pepper flakes, a pinch of salt and a few grinds of black pepper. Process until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. When ready to serve, preheat oven to 400-degrees. Brush the slices of bread on both sides with the olive oil. Place on baking sheet covered with parchment paper, put in the oven and toast until crunchy on the outside, about 4-5 minutes per side. Meanwhile, in a medium skillet over high heat, warm the oil until it shimmers. Add the scallions and cook, using tongs to toss occasionally, until the stalks start to char, 2 to 3 minutes. Scrape the vegetable onto a plate. Return the skillet to high heat and add the water, followed by the frozen peas and another pinch of salt. Simmer until the peas turn bright green and the water evaporates, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and toss with the remaining lemon zest. To assemble the toasts, use a spoon to divide the ricotta among the bread slices, spreading it into an even layer. Top with the peas, scallions and more black pepper and chile flakes, if desired. Serve topped with bits of prosciutto.
Recipe Credit: Washington Post
And #4 Whipped Avocado and Ricotta Toast aka AvoCotta Toast with Spicy Honey. The toast recipe itself was admittedly a little disappointing – too salty and not quite enough flavor. But, for those of you not quite ready to give up avocado toast just yet (I’m raising my hand!!), I would suggest reducing the amount of salt (as I have done in the recipe below) and adding a poached or fried egg on top (which I did for breakfast this morning, yum!!). The spicy honey was the hit of the recipe – who knew you could just add hot sauce to honey?!? Will definitely be using this spicy honey again.
#4 AvoCotta Toast with Spicy Honey
- 1 ripe avocado
- 1 cup ricotta cheese
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil + more to brush slices of bread
- 4 slices thick cut bread
- 4 tablespoons hot sauce
- 1/2 cup honey
- smoked paprika and coarse salt for garnish
In a large bowl, combine the avocado and ricotta cheese. Season with salt and pepper and add olive oil. Whip it with a hand-held mixer or immersion blender until it combines and comes light and fluffy. For the spicy honey, combine honey with hot sauce and whisk until combined. When ready to serve, preheat oven to 400-degrees. Brush the slices of bread on both sides with the olive oil. Place on baking sheet covered with parchment paper, put in the oven and toast until crunchy on the outside, about 4-5 minutes per side. Cover the toasted bread in the AvoCotta mixture, add the spicy honey and sprinkle with paprika and coarse salt.
Recipe Credit: @thejoshelkin
Saved the dessert i.e. Chocolate Ricotta Toast recipe for last, but it was delicious! Ryan voted this Chocolate Ricotta Toast his favorite recipe of the evening probably because it tastes a little bit like cannoli filling on warm toast. Cannot wait to use the leftover chocolate ricotta for more toasts after dinner tonight!
#5 Chocolate Ricotta Toast
- 1 cup fresh ricotta cheese
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 ounces dark chocolate (about 70-percent)
- Four 1/2-inch-thick slices rustic bread
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- Strawberries, sliced for garnish
In the bowl of a food processor or blender, whip together the ricotta, sugar, cinnamon, vanilla and chocolate using a rubber spatula to occasionally scrape down the sides. Whip until the chocolate is fully incorporated. Set aside or refrigerate until ready to use. When ready to serve, preheat oven to 400-degrees. Brush the slices of bread on both sides with the olive oil. Place on baking sheet covered with parchment paper, put in the oven and toast until crunchy on the outside, about 4-5 minutes per side. While bread is toasting, slice the strawberries. Top each slice with a good amount of the ricotta mixture and spread evenly. Garnish with sliced strawberries.
Recipe Inspiration: Food Network
Looking for some different ricotta toast recipes to try out, here are some others that caught Mallory and I’s eye: Whipped Ricotta Toasts with Roasted Peaches; Blueberry Ricotta Toast with Hot Honey Walnuts; Whipped Ricotta Toast with Marinated Tomatoes and Lemon Thyme Honey; 8 Ricotta Toast Recipes From TikTok; Ricotta Toast with Fried Eggs; and Ricotta Toast Two Ways (Strawberry & Balsamic and Spring Crunch).
So, the big life question to ponder this week, are you Team Ricotta Toast or Team Avocado Toast? Try one of this post’s ricotta toast recipe ideas and let us know!
