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Anyone know of a very creamy and delicious white bean hummus/bruschetta topping recipe? I've found a few online, but wanted to know if any of you guys had a favorite. I'm looking for something more Italian than greek.

Hi. I can give you a great recipe for bruchetta - but I've yet to see a recipe for Italian hummus. Could you be looking for a fava-bean spread?

Bruchetta:

2-3 pounds ripe/sweet tomatoes (I suggest waiting until the end of July)
1-2 cloves of garlic, finely minced - no green pith
good handfull of fresh basil, rinsed and minced finely
1-2 T. Extra virgin olive oil
Salt to taste
pinch of sugar (brings out the sweetness of the tomatoes)
Several slices of good, dense Italian bread, lightly brushed with the EVO

Chop the tomatoes coarsley. Mix with the garlic and basil and olive oil. Add salt and sugar. Let sit for 2-3 hours, stir every now and then. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary.

Grill bread on both sides until crisped to your taste. Top with tomato mixture.

Another version is after you've toasted the bread, spread with good goat cheese and then top with the tomatoes.

I've made a nice white bean spread for crostini with cooked white beans, soaked bacalao, a little olive oil, garlic, and miscellaneous herbs, put into the food processor and pureed. Pretty easy.

Here is Mario Batali's recipe. I had this in one of his restaurants (Po, back in the day), and it was unbelievably great. Enjoy!

http://www.starchefs.com/kids/kids_meal ... e_05.shtml

I've made this several times and always get asked for the recipe. Its very simple but use good olive oil because the flavor really comes through.

1 (15-ounce) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
2 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup olive oil, plus 4 tablespoons
1/4 cup (loosely packed) fresh Italian parsley leaves
Salt

Process until smooth and serve with bread

I think you'll see a pattern here. I make this quite often and use a different "recipe" every time. The key points are:

Rinsed beans
Garlic
Olive oil
Acid
Salt
Herbs and/or spices

Blits the beans, add a little of your ingredients, taste, adjust, repeat.

Do not make immediately before serving. Let it sit for a while to let the flavors meld.

Best,
Michael

Cooking Light has one that's very good:

White Bean Bruschetta

Ingredients
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 large garlic clove
1 (19-ounce) can cannellini beans or other white beans, rinsed and drained
3 tablespoons extravirgin olive oil
2 teaspoons water
1 (10-ounce) French bread baguette, cut into 24 (1/2-inch-thick) slices


Preparation
Preheat oven to 350º.
Place parsley, juice, salt, pepper, garlic, and beans in a food processor; process until smooth. With processor on, slowly add oil through food chute. Add 2 teaspoons water, 1 teaspoon at a time; process until creamy.

Place bread on a baking sheet. Bake at 350º for 5 minutes on each side or until lightly browned. Serve with white bean spread.

Yield
12 servings (serving size: 2 baguette slices and about 2 tablespoons spread)

You could also make it easier on yourself and just go beans plus italian salad dressing.

haven't made it but i bet it would work.

I like to skip the acid and include baked til soft butternut squash in with the blitz in equal measure with the beans.

The best one I've ever had had truffle oil in it...I don't know if that was instead of the olive oil, or in what quantity, but I will say that it was phenomenally good.

I see, the recipe is pretty basic, and versatile. I've made this before, but it was more thick, and heavy then what I envision now. I thought maybe there was some secret to making it extra light and creamy, texture-wise. Oh well, it's plenty good how it normally is.

About the truffle white bean dip, was the truffle oil drizzled on top, or actually in it? Seems like if you substituted truffle for olive, it would overpower everything else. Maybe it had part olive oil, part truffle?

More oil. Drizzle it in slowly while the blades of the food processor are turning. The oil should emulsify, like in a salad dressing, and give it a smoother, creamier texture.

Best,
Michael

Like I said, I don't know how much truffle oil was used. I suspect you're right--that too much would overpower it, so you could experiment by adding it slowly, or perhaps search for a recipe that includes it.

This is almost exactly what I do I probably use a bit more garlic, and instead of sugar, I put in some balsamic vinegar and tabasco. Not enough to tell "oh, it has tabasco" but just to sharpen the flavors.

Here's a recipe from West Town Tavern that uses the white bean spread as a bruschetta topping. Definitely more of the Italian variety, with arugula and shaved parmesan added as toppings. It also includes truffle oil (drizzled over the finished product).