Cheesy Grilled Vegetable Crostinis

Necessity and frugality are the mothers of invention. Or at least of Cheesy Grilled Vegetable Crostinis.

It was well past 1:30 pm when we were able to sit down for something to eat today.  I wanted my honey to take me out to lunch.  But most restaurants would be cleaning up from the noon crowd by then.  The timing just wasn't great.

I half-heartedly offered to make something for us at home instead. Our fridge contained the last of Wednesday night's dinner - grilled vegetables, including grilled asparagus.  I suggested making an omelette, although we did that yesterday for lunch. It seemed lame, but without another idea we both reluctantly agreed.

I got a bit stuck when I pulled out the garlic that was stored with the veggies. Because the cloves were so large, they did not completely roast through on the grill. They were almost cooked but not caramelized. We had set them aside at dinner and I ignored them again yesterday.

But I just couldn't give up on that garlic.  It was soft enough.  Just under-done.  I decided to mince it, not too sure where this was heading.  There was A LOT of minced garlic. That's when the plan changed and I tossed aside the idea of eggs.

I had slices of Art-is-in Bakery's Dynamite White Baguette in the freezer as leftovers from Monday's picnic. So instead, I decided to make Cheesy Grilled Vegetable Crostinis.

They turned out looking so tasty that I decided to have wine and eat on fancy plates.
 

Cheesy Grilled Vegetable Crostinis
Slices of baguette
Lightly roasted garlic cloves, minced
Butter
Grilled vegetables, chopped - cremini mushrooms, zucchini, red and orange peppers, onion
Grilled asparagus, tips removed and set aside, then chopped
Mozzarella cheese, shredded
Parmigiano Reggiano, grated

Set the oven to broil at 450F.

Toast the slices of bread under the broiler. Just on one side for about one minute.

Mix the minced garlic with enough butter to be able to cover all the bread slices. Spread on the untoasted side. Toast again under the broiler until the garlic butter and bread are a very light brown.

Cover each toast with heaps of the grilled vegetables.
Cover the vegetables with shredded mozzarella cheese, an asparagus tip and some grated Parmigiano Reggiano.

Place under the broiler until the cheese has melted and is lightly browned.