Next Post
Vietnamese Meatball Lettuce Wraps with Mango Salad + Cilantro-Basil Cashew Sauce.
This post may contain affiliate links, please see our privacy policy for details.
I made us an appetizer!!
I never make appetizers, but today, today I did!!
I feel like I should get a pat on the back or something…Whoo Hoo!
I don’t know why I never make appetizers, I mean they are SO good. Like better than a full meal because with an appetizer you just get to keep snacking, which is awesome.
Well I guess I kind of know why I never make appetizers. It’s because I pretty much never entertain. Well, unless you count snowboarder groupies, which I completely don’t.
Also, even though these crab stuffed piquillo pepper ciabatta pizzette’s are clearly an appetizer, I served them as dinner. It worked out pretty freaking well too. Toast, cheese, avocados and crab. Totally my thing… and my Dad’s… and Brendan’s. No one else’s in this family, but hey… their loss, our gain!
AND right, that aioli. Do not for get that aioli. Love that aioli!
I actually made it from scratch because I do not regularly keep mayo on hand and I clearly NEEDED to have some sauce for these pizzette’s. My dad has raised me to be a sauce freak. Never enough sauce. Never.
Making aioli from scratch was surprisingly easy, and I totally find comfort in saying that I made it 100% myself. This way, I know exactly whats going on in that sauce, you know?
But about those peppers and that ciabatta? Well yeah, those two are definitely the stars here. The peppers are really an app on their own, and originally this recipe was going to be just about the peppers, but then me being me, decided carbs were needed. Plus, I have become a major toast freak, so you know, I went with it.
Ok, that and, well the ciabatta was basically eyeing me down in the store. I just had to go for it. Go big or go home, right? Yuppers!
So you can serve the peppers and the toast on their own, but I find them better together. To each their own though.
The peppers are stuffed with a mix of avocado, crab and manchego cheese. They sort of have a Spanish thing going on, which I am totally into. The ciabatta/pizzette’s are so simple. They’re basically toasted ciabatta and blue cheese. Too good. If you are not a fan of blue cheese, just use your favorite melty cheese, anything will do (but I love blue cheese).
So what do you say? Lunch? Dinner (add a fried egg!)? Easter snack/appetizer (YES! You can make them in advance!)?
All three? Totally game for that.
END NOTE: Sorry for the semi-crazy post here, my mind is currently thinking about my broken dishwasher. It is FULL (so stickin’ full!) of dirty dishes that I now need to go hand wash. The thoughts are driving me insane and I am apologizing in advance for my scattered words today…hang in there though! This recipe is one of my favorites!!
And uumm???? It’s official, not only do all ovens HATE me, but pretty much all kitchen appliances hate me too. Even from afar! My parent’s dishwasher, that they got at the same time as me – same kind too, is also broken!
Cheesy Avocado Crab Stuffed Piquillo Pepper Ciabatta Pizzette's with Sriracha Aioli.
Servings: 8 Servings
Calories Per Serving: 404 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
Sriracha Aioli
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- juice of 1 lemon
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1 tablespoon sriracha or more to taste
- salt and pepper to taste
Peppers
- 1 ripe avocado peeled + pitted, chopped
- 3 tablespoons mascarpone cheese or cream cheese
- 2 teaspoons dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro chopped
- 2 green onions chopped
- 8 ounces lump crab meat
- 1/4 cup manchego cheese shredded
- 8 ounces blue cheese crumbled (may sub goat cheese, mozzarella or your favorite cheese)
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 (16 ounce) jar grilled Piquillo Peppers drained
- 1 slice loaf ciabatta bread into thick slices
- olive oil for cooking
Instructions
Sriracha Aioli
- Place the egg yolk in a large mixing bowl. Add the apple cider vinegar and lemon juice. Whisk vigorously until creamy and pale for about 2 minutes. Next add the smoked paprika and a pinch of salt, whisking vigorously for another minute. The mixture should be starting to thicken. Now, slowly begin to add the olive oil to the mixture, adding 1 tablespoon at a time, while continuously whisking fast to incorporate the oil. Next whisk in the sriracha, and then the salt and pepper to taste. The aioli will be thick and creamy in texture. Store in the fridge until ready to use.
Peppers
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
- In a bowl add the diced avocado, mascarpone cheese, dijon mustard, lemon juice, cilantro, green onions, crab meat, machego cheese and about 2 ounces of crumbled blue cheese. Mash everything together with a spoon and season lightly with salt and pepper.
- Grab your piquillo peppers, and begin stuffing about 1-2 tablespoons of the filling in each pepper. Place the stuffed peppers on a lightly greased baking sheet. Once all the peppers have been filled, place them in the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until the cheese is oozing out.
- Remove the peppers from the oven and turn the oven to broil. Place the ciabatta on a greased baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper. Place under the broiler for 1-2 minutes or until toasted (watch carefully). Remove and sprinkle each piece of toast with blue cheese. Place back in the oven for about 30 seconds. Remove from the oven.
- Serve the peppers atop the ciabatta toast and drizzle with aioli. Enjoy warm!
Notes
*The aioli can be made about 3 days in advance. *The peppers can be stuffed and stored in the fridge 1 day in advance, prepare as directed.
Off I go…my dirty dishes await me…probably laughing at me too. Help!
I haven’t cooked in years , let alone bake,but your beautiful blog has sent me happily back into the kitchen ! So glad I found your recipes ! Inspired.
Thank you. Maria
Oh my gosh, yeah! This makes me so happy! Hope you love everything you try! :0
Girl! Is there anything you can’t do?? I’m definitely making these asap!
Trust me, yes, there is! Thanks! 🙂
Thank you so much for this recipe, it looks delicious! Today is my birthday and this appetizer is perfect for my birthday party! It has all of my favorite foods!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! I hope you had a great day!!
Smiling here. Piquillo peppers are so great; I love them on pizza. This appetizer/meal could be the basis for a lot of different things, and I’ll bet even canned crab would be good here as there is so much else going on. Of course, fresh is wonderful. You are not alone in your dishwashing suffering; my dishwasher is broken too, and I have a sink full and counter full of dishes. . . . sigh. Never thought of basically doing cheese toasts as the base of an appetizer/dinner, the blue cheese is brilliant. Finally, HOW do you slice your bread so uniformly? I’ve been trying all my life. 🙂
Thanks so much, Terry! I have to try these peppers on pizza, YUM! Oh and hang in there, hope your dishwasher is fixed soon!!
Amazing! What do you think would be a good crab subsitiute for my vegetarian guests? Artichoke hearts?
Oh yum! I bet artichokes would be awesome! Hope these are a hit! THANKS!
Uhm.. Bruschetta just got a new look!!
Looks like a must try!! ;o)
Thanks so much! Hope you enjoy!
I absolutely hate the wordiness of your recipe titles. Good thing the recipes are decent otherwise I would never get past the titles.
Tieghan,
Haters gotta hate…shake it off!
these look and sound amazing! I have the perfect opportunity coming up to make these and Dunginess crabmeat (that I caught,cooked,cleaned myself) in the freezer. Your recipes aren’t decent; they are genius! Beautiful photos!
Yay, Terri! My sentiments exactly!
Thank you so much, Joan!!! 🙂 Hope you had a great week and have a great weekend!!
THANK YOU!! So kind of you to write this, making me smile!! 🙂
Hope you are having a great week!
Laura, if you don’t like Tieghan’s unique and amazingly descriptive titles then please stay off her blog or buy a children’s cook book so the titles are basic enough for you lol
HAHAHAHA Cheers to that!!! HBH rocks my socks!
THANK YOU!!
Have the best weekend!!
Thank you for the support! 🙂
Hope you are having a great weekend!!
These look great! And I feel ya on dreadingg the fact that you have to do those dishes by hand. Broken dishwashers suck!
They so suck! Thanks Naomi!! 🙂
Bravo for making the aioli from scratch, so much healthier than store bought mayo!
Oh my gah, they’re like little sushi hand rolls but with peppers instead of nori! I just love these, Tieghan! We should do apps more often! 😉
Here you go again! Museum quality photography! Stunning really! And the Piquillo peppers explode off the page! You hit the jackpot with this one!
If THIS is how you make appetizers, then you should make them for ALL THE DAYS. Stuffing crab into a pepper and making your OWN Aioli?
You are a kitchen wizard. Pinned!
What a title! 😉
These piquillo peppers look delicious! Crab and avocado is a combo I definitely need to try 🙂
These look amazing! I have to make the sriracha aioli. Already thinking of what I can use it with!
Woo! Hoo! Awesome job making the aioli from scratch. It always does a nice job of topping off any dish. And can we talk about how delicioso this app looks? Me, personally…I would scarf it all down as a stand alone dinner.