The thing about cooking and summer is that often times, meals are thrown together. It’s lighter longer, we’re outside and it’s so warm out that less actual cooking and more assembly sounds more like it. Tomatoes with a thinned pesto drizzled on top and thick slices of bread on the bbq. Peaches and lentils and lots of herbs mixed into some quick-cooking quinoa. I love when it can be both easy and good, not exclusively one or the other. There is so much great produce this time of year to pull it off. With a toddler and a very messy mash-eating baby at the table, Hugh and I have found it more peaceful to feed, bathe and put the kids to bed and then have dinner ourselves. We can actually talk, sip wine instead of swig it, and no one is asking me to pull the green bits out of their turkey meatballs. And lunch, since we’re usually all around for now, my default is sandwiches but everyone is tiring of those lately too. I started piling things on crackers instead, same but different. In this case, I used the new Wasa THINS. The ingredient list is short and wholesome, they’re great to eat on their own, but also sturdy enough to hold some of my favorite toppings. I have vivid memories of original Wasa crispbread from my childhood - my mom would eat them with mustard as part of some diet she was trying or slather them in peanut butter and honey for my sister and me. These are not just for Curran, these most definitely end up being for all of us. If we’re pulling a late afternoon beach day and I know everyone will get hungry, I bring some dips and cheese to keep everyone happy until dinner time. I can’t get over zealous with the vegetables for the toddler but I can make these recipes below to taste and they make for a quick little lunch. I love that these crackers are thin and delicate so they don’t take over. Crackers can be too much sometimes. All said, let’s just keep snacks and meals easy while the produce is amazing and we’d rather be outside.
This post was sponsored by Wasa Crackers. All words, photos and opinions are my own. Visit their site for more recipe ideas or check out the #snackingwithwasa hashtag.
CRACKER CRISP TARTINES
The trick is to make sure you have a “glue” to hold things down - mashed avocado, nut butter, hummus, ricotta, maybe a soft goat cheese. I have a toaster oven that I use daily so it’s easy to warm up the pizza one but I understand this isn’t the case for everyone. It only needs a minute for the cheese to melt so you could pop 'er in the real oven as well.
I wrote the recipes for one, but if you are going to make one, you might as well make a few whether it’s a snack or lunch situation. These recipes will work on any Wasa cracker or sturdy cracker of choice.
Pizza Crisp
1 Wasa THINS or similar cracker
1 Tbsp. pizza sauce
1 Tbsp. grated mozzerella
1 Tbsp. grated parmesan
chopped olives
dried Italian Herbs, for garnish
chopped basil, for garnish
Preheat a toasted oven or oven to 375º. Spread the pizza sauce on top of the cracker. Evenly sprinkle the mozzarella and parmesan. Toast for 1 minute for the cheese to just melt. Top with a sprinkle of dried herbs and fresh basil. Enjoy warm.
Peach Crisp
1 Wasa THINS or similar cracker
1 Tbsp. mascarpone
1 tsp. maple syrup
pinch of cinnamon
1/2 a ripe peach, sliced thin
granola, for garnish
Mix the mascarpone with the maple and cinnamon. Spread it on top of the cracker. Arrange the peach slices on top and garnish with granola.
Veggie Crisp
1 Wasa THINS or similar cracker
2 Tbsp. prepared hummus or mashed avocado
1/4 of a cucumber, thinly sliced
shaved fennel
chopped herbs and celery leaves
sea salt and pepper, for garnish
Spread the hummus or avocado on the surface of the cracker. Arrange the vegetables and herbs. Finish with a sprinkle or salt and pepper.