Go Back

Vegan Mushroom Duxelles Crostini Appetizer

5 from 1 reader review
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes
Servings 8
Print Recipe Pin On Pinterest Leave Review

Ingredients

Crostini

  • ½ baguette, sliced thin
  • olive oil
  • 1 clove garlic, peeled and halved

Vegan Mushroom Duxelles

  • 1 lb (454 grams) mushrooms, tough stems removed
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 medium shallot, fine dice (about ½ cup diced shallot)
  • 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves, minced
  • sea salt and ground black pepper, to taste
  • 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
  • ½ teaspoon Tamari

To Serve

  • soft vegan cheese of choice
  • chopped/whole leaf herbs

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  • Place the sliced baguette on the baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Toss the pieces of bread with your hands to make sure they have a decently even coating of olive oil. Pop in the oven for about 18-20 minutes, or until golden and crisp. Rub the halved garlic cloves into the warm toasted crostini. Set aside.
  • Start the duxelles. Finely chop the mushrooms with a food processor in 2 batches. You want the pieces to be the size of small peas. You can also do this by hand with a chef’s knife if you like.
  • Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat. Once hot, pour in the olive oil and swirl it around. Add the shallots and thyme, and sauté until soft and translucent, about 4-5 minutes.
  • Add the mushrooms all at once and season with pepper. Cook the mushrooms on medium high, stirring often, until they start to release liquid. Then, lower the heat to medium low. Continue to cook and stir often until the mushrooms dry out a bit, darken, and become paste-like, about 18-20 minutes.
  • Once the duxelles is dry, add the balsamic vinegar and Tamari. Cook until the liquid evaporates and then season with salt.
  • Serve the vegan mushroom duxelles warm or at room temperature on top of crostini with soft vegan cheese and herbs if you like. Duxelles can be made up to 5 days in advance and kept in the fridge in a sealed container.

Equipment

Recipe Notes

  • Any type of mushrooms that you like are great! I went with cremini because I enjoy the flavour, they’re affordable, and they seem to be widely available. If you opt for portobello mushrooms, I would scrape out the gills before chopping.
  • This recipe is not traditional. Typically mushroom duxelles is cooked in butter and is sometimes finished with sherry. The recipe that I’m sharing here keeps the basic essence and structure of duxelles, but I cook it in olive oil to keep things plant-based. I also finish with balsamic vinegar for some acid lift and a small amount of Tamari for extra umami. 
  • I topped my crostini with Nuts For Cheese’s Smoky Gouda and it was delightful.
Umami-rich and paté-like, this vegan mushroom duxelles is the perfect topper for golden crostini. Perfect warm or at room temperature, made with 10 ingredients, and it can be prepped up to 5 days ahead of time and kept in the fridge.