Grilled aubergine and pepper crostini recipe

These crostini are fabulous to serve as an appetiser or canapé to hand around with drinks at a summer buffet, or to serve as a starter for an alfresco meal. All the preparation can be done in advance so all you have to do is assemble them a few minutes before your guests arrive. You can even cheat and use jars of char-grilled anti pasti vegetables. Serve on toasted French stick, ciabatta or rustic sour dough breads. Sprinkle the crostini with a little grated Parmesan if liked too.

Ingredients

• 1 small aubergine
• 2 courgettes
• 1 red and 1 yellow pepper
• 6tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped plus 1 clove, halved (optional)
• 1 French stick
• Handful of fresh basil leaves

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Fan160°C/Gas Mark 4 .Cut the aubergine and courgette into thin slices, deseed and cut the peppers into wedges.
2. Grease a baking tray with half the olive oil, then lay the vegetables on top and season well. Drizzle with most of the remaining oil, sprinkle with garlic and season well.
3. Bake for 20-30 mins, turning once or twice until all the vegetables are softened.
4. Slice the bread diagonally and brush each slice on both sides with a little olive oil, then place on another baking tray and bake for 5 mins or until golden and crisp. Rub each slice with a cut clove of garlic if liked. Layer the vegetables on top of the bread with basil leaves in between the vegetables.