Lemon-Thyme Bruschetta

I served lemon-thyme bruschetta as an appetizer on Christmas Eve, and it was gone pretty quickly—definitely a big hit!  I made it tonight again because I had bought way too much ricotta, and this is so delicious, quick, and easy to make that it just seemed like a good idea. Oh, and our taste buds were screaming for it. ;-)

This is a really simple recipe that doesn't require any exotic ingredients, but comes out tasting very fancy and exotic. It's got a fresh yet sweet flavor that goes well before any meal.  The original recipe came from a blog called the Kitchn and for once, I stayed pretty true to it. I would recommend using a regular ricotta—not the ricotta salata I seem to see everywhere nowadays (they add salt, which dehydrates it and makes it crumbly—but for this recipe you'll want a creamy texture, so you'd just end up re-hydrating the cheese).

Lemon-Thyme Bruschetta
1 baguette, thinly sliced
8 ounces ricotta cheese
1 lemon, zested
salt
freshly cracked black pepper
Honey
8 or so sprigs of fresh thyme

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Toast baguette slices in the oven for about 5-7 minutes until slightly browned and warm.

Mix together the ricotta and lemon zest. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Spread the cheese mixture liberally onto the toasted baguette slices. Drizzle with honey and sprinkle with thyme. Serve warm.


Enjoy!