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+ servings
a ricotta dip blended with lemon, parsley and anchovies in a white bowl on a wooden cutting board with bell pepper strips, baby carrots and sliced toasted bread and baguettes
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5 from 3 votes

Anchovy Ricotta Toast

This Anchovy Ricotta Toast features a creamy, savory ricotta mixture spread over crunchy toast, or serve it as a dip with fresh vegetables. Plus it's easy to make it gluten-free and keto friendly!
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time0 minutes
Total Time10 minutes
Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: Italian
Servings: 18 servings
Calories: 75kcal
Author: Don Baiocchi

Ingredients

  • 1 pound (15-16 oz.) full-fat ricotta
  • 13-14 anchovies, packed in oil, drained and patted dry (save the oil for another use)
  • ½ cup Italian (flat leaf) parsley leaves, rinsed and patted dry, plus more for garnish, if desired
  • 2 tablespoons butter or ghee, room temperature
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more for garnish, if desired
  • zest of one large lemon
  • freshly ground black pepper

For serving

  • 7 slices white bread, lightly toasted, crusts trimmed off, cut in half or in quarters (I prefer cutting from corner to corner to get triangle shapes)
  • 1 baguette, sliced, toasted and drizzled with a bit of extra virgin olive oil
  • raw vegetables such as carrots, celery, bell pepper strips, and/or sliced cucumbers
  • toasted pine nuts for garnish, if desired

Instructions

  • To the bowl of a food processor, add the ricotta, anchovies, parsley, butter or ghee, extra virgin olive oil, lemon zest and about 1/4 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper. Blitz until smooth and creamy. You might have to stop once or twice to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl (the oil can pool at the bottom).
  • Taste and add more black pepper, if desired.
  • Scrape into a serving bowl and garnish with chopped parsley, a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and toasted pine nuts, if desired. Spread on the toasted bread or baguette slices or serve as a dip with the vegetables.
    Yields 2 cups of dip.

Notes

Nutrition note: Nutrition info is only for the dip, not including the bread, vegetables or pine nuts.
Since anchovies are salty, you do not need any additional salt.
If you're really bold, you might also decide you want even more anchovy flavor, so feel free to add more, one a time, blending after each addition.
To make it gluten-free: use gluten-free bread or baguette, or serve with only the raw vegetables.
To make it keto: serve only with the raw vegetables.
Substitutions or variations
  • If you want to skip the anchovies, you could leave them out altogether and add a big pinch of salt. Then you'd have a perfectly decent whipped ricotta.
  • If you want to make this dairy-free, you could use dairy-free ricotta and dairy-free butter (or ghee, if you can tolerate that). I haven't tried it this way, so if you try it let me know how it goes!
  • You could try other herbs like fresh basil (use the same amount as the parsley), thyme (start with 2 tablespoons) or rosemary (start with 1 tablespoon)
  • You could add one minced fresh garlic clove or 1-2 roasted garlic cloves
Make ahead and storage
The anchovy ricotta spread, without the garnishes, can be stored in the fridge for up to 5 days.
I also have to add: the anchovy ricotta mixture dolloped over a hot steak or burger is fantastic.

Nutrition

Calories: 75kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 19mg | Sodium: 138mg | Potassium: 52mg | Fiber: 0.1g | Sugar: 0.1g | Vitamin A: 293IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 62mg | Iron: 0.3mg