Butternut Squash Bruschetta with Maple Bacon and Whipped Ricotta Cheese
With so many ways to enjoy these wonderful fall harvests, don’t stop at a pureed side dish or soup! This great comforting dish is a mix between Saturday’s dinner party and Sunday’s brunch.
Whip it, whip it good! When I first started cooking, I snubbed my nose a bit at the concept of whipping ricotta. Cheese is cheese, right? Whether I eat a piece of sliced cheddar or a pinch of shredded, in a blind taste test….isn’t it all still cheddar? For the sake of science I decided to test my theory and whipped this until I had the best dang silky ricotta there was in an effort to prove my stubbornness. What started as a slightly course cheese that I use mostly in a lasagna transformed to become an almost frosting, and completely changed this dish from a basic appetizer to a real work of art. While I was half right that the flavor was still ricotta, the creaminess against the crunchy bread was perfection, and also gave a softer bed for the toppings to sink into. I’m converted. Absolutely worth the 3 minutes of whisking!
Pour some sugar on me! This recipe actually came about by chance. I originally intended to just use bacon, but in my fridge was maple flavored bacon. As I’m always a fan of using what you have, I thought I would roll with this, and even kick it up a notch by amplifying the flavor with a little syrup. Sometimes the best recipes are stumbled upon not planned, and this was a wonderful accidental discovery! I personally am a bit more of a savory fan, so this was the right amount of sweet to compliment the cheese and squash, but to test this in multiple ways, I did try a small drizzle of additional syrup on a few bites and it was equally fantastic, just a sweeter variety. You could also add a dash of the syrup right into the ricotta if you are looking for a sweeter bite!
Squash season is here! How are you using your fall harvest? Stay tuned for more recipes coming shortly!
This was a part of the Tour of the Markets challenge, where I tried use seasonal produce in new and creative ways. Follow along here as we finish out the year’s stops!
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Butternut Squash Bruschetta with Maple Bacon and Whipped Ricotta Cheese
Equipment
- Sheet Pan
- Skillet
- Kitchen knife
- Mixing bowl
- Immersion Blender or Whisk
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp Olive Oil
- 1 loaf Baguette
- 4 strips Bacon I used maple flavor, but not required
- 5-6 leaves Fresh Sage
- 1 cup Ricotta Cheese
- 2 tsp Real Maple Syrup
- 1/2 medium Butternut Squash
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350, and slicing baguette into diagonal slices, lightly spread olive oil on each side and place in oven to roast. Flip halfway through, about 8 minutes, depending on thickness of slices. Be careful not to burn, but I do find a heavier crunch holds the ingredients better as they are more liquid.
- While the bread is baking, in skillet, cook the bacon and set aside, reserving about half of the grease.
- Peel and cube the butternut squash into small pieces, about 1/8", and add to skillet, tossing in reserved bacon grease.
- When the squash is mostly tender, add in bacon (sliced to smaller pieces), as well as the maple syrup. Blend well.
- As all is combined and squash is tender, add a few leaves of sliced sage, just long enough for the flavor to add. Turn off heat.
- In a small mixing bowl, add the ricotta cheese and using either your immersion blender or the whisk, beat until a smooth consistency. Because I was making a small batch, I used a whisk and treated this like beating an egg. Enough to remove any of the coarse consistency.
- Removing your bread from the oven, plate with a spread of the ricotta and the squash and bacon mixture. Use a few more slices of the fresh sage for garnish and enjoy!
