Springtime morel and fava bean crostini

Ingredients

1 baguette
Extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp. butter
1 cup halved or quartered fresh morel mushrooms
1 tsp. minced shallots
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp. cream sherry
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup cooked, hulled fava beans
1/8 cup chiffonade-cut garlic scapes (see note)
1 strip bacon, cooked crisp and chopped
1/4 lb. aged Sonoma Jack or pepato cheese, shaved

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cut 8 thin slices of baguette, brush both sides very lightly with olive oil and place on a cookie sheet. Bake for 3 to 4 minutes, turn each slice over and continue to bake another few minutes until lightly browned. Set aside.

In a sauté pan, melt butter and cook over medium-high heat until lightly browned. Immediately add morels and shallots and sauté 1 minute. Season with a pinch of salt and a few turns of black pepper.

Deglaze pan with cream sherry. Add heavy cream and reduce a few minutes to thicken slightly. Add fava beans and garlic scapes, and stir.

Spoon a little of the ragout on each toasted baguette slice, sprinkle with bacon and top with a little cheese.

Note: Scapes are the flower stems that garlic plants produce before the bulbs mature. As an alternative, you may add 1 clove garlic, minced, to the pan with the morels and shallots.

Serves 4