Edamame Dip With Garlic Crostini

Its funny, I ate bread very rarely before I started baking my own bread. I bought whole wheat pitas and sometimes made grilled cheeses with them or pita pizzas. English muffins were also a staple. With all these exotic breads, I’ve been slathering everything from spicy roasted red pepper spread, to goat brie, to natural peanut butter, to fig spread, and everything in between on little slices of happiness. Frankly, most of these breads are perfect with a little vegan butter or dredged in a garlic infused olive oil.

But I digress. In an attempt to use up the last bit of my flat leaf Italian parsley, Vidalia onion, and use the bit of Sun-Dried Tomato and Rosemary Baguette that I didn’t freeze before I head off to France-land, I found a recipe for Edamame Dip with Garlic Crostini on Whole Foods’ website. Since one of my “pantry” items is to always have a bag of frozen edamame on hand, I was in business. I cut the recipe into a third, cut the EVOO, and nixed the veggie stock it called for.

This dip is quick, easy, and very fresh-tasting. The dip makes for a wonderful contrast with the crostini I made from the baguette, and both are easy to make a day in advance…which means they are perfect to take to lunch the next day. This recipe makes two generous servings (enough for a meal with the crostinis, really) and rates A for nutrition, with 218 calories (sans crostini), 11.1g fat (1.4g saturated), 0 cholesterol, 21mg sodium, 6g dietary fiber, .6g sugars, 16.9g protein, 8% vitamin A, 69% vitamin C, 27% calcium, and 27% iron.


I sautéed ¼ medium Vidalia onion thinly sliced in ½ TBS EVOO until lightly carmelized. Then I added 1 clove of minced garlic and sautéed until golden brown. Add 1 tsp crumbled rosemary and 1 TBS chopped fresh flat leaf Italian parsley. You want a little browning on the bottom of your pan, assuming you have stainless steel pans (I own a wonderful set of All-Clad pans, which generally run over $1000 for the set and which I found at over 50% off… it was my first major purchase after starting lawyering) because when you throw in 1 cup of frozen edamame and ½ cup water a couple minutes later, it deglazes the pan and you get all that wonderful carmelized flavor in the dip.

Let this cook for about 7 or 8 minutes until the edamame is tender and take off heat for 5 minutes to let cool. Throw it in a blender or mini-chopper with ½ TBS EVOO (I used a really good quality one here – generally, EVOO breaks down when you cook with it, but when its kept at cooler temps, the flavor is imperative – I buy this olive oil at Litteri’s, a nearly century old Italian grocer and its about as good as it gets), salt and pepper to taste, and puree until almost smooth. I like my dips a little chunky so I don’t let it go for too long. Cover and chill until you are ready to eat it.

For the Garlic Crostini, I sliced the baguette into ¼ inch slices (any thinner and it will burn too fast as I found out on my first go around), and brushed one side with garlic infused EVOO (I keep some in the fridge in a little mason jar since I use it so much and its handy for brushing on bread, veggies, or anything else … I use a basting brush so it doesn’t go on too heavy). Then I stuck it in my toaster oven on a broiling pan for about 2 minutes on each side until golden brown. Watch these carefully because the 15 seconds between perfectly brown and burnt pass you by quickly. Take out, let cool, and wrap in tin foil until you are ready to use them.