Bruschetta

There are so many wonderful things you can do with a tomato. It’s an incredibly versatile ingredient. One of my favorite tomato-based recipes is Bruschetta. It’s a very common appetizer made in all kinds of restaurants. Everyone makes their dish a little different, uses different ingredients, different herbs. I enjoy trying everyone’s different interpretation and seeing how it varies from mine.

I remember the first time I made Bruschetta. It was when I was first beginning to discover the joy of cooking. Through most of high school my dad and I had a lot in common. Sports, cars, politics; I was growing into a man, and had a lot going on that closely related to my father. My mother and I didn’t have the same level of similar interests. I had never been interested in cooking, but we both saw it as an opportunity to spend some time together. As I recall, I was home from college and wanted to help out with dinner. Somehow I volunteered to make Bruschetta. I had no idea what I was doing and asked questions throughout the entire ordeal. But I will say this, add enough fresh basil and garlic to pretty much anything and you’ve got a winning recipe. I’ve made Bruschetta many times since that first try and I believe I’ve developed a pretty good version. Here is my rendition of this popular appetizer.

- Tomatoes: get the best looking, freshest tomatoes you can find. If you have a garden, there is no doubt that homegrown is the best. For this attempt I used a couple of different colors to change things up.
- Fresh Garlic
- Basil
- Onions
- Kalamata Olives
- Feta Cheese
- Olive Oil
- Balsamic Vinegar
- Salt & Pepper

These are the base ingredients. Like always I don’t have specific measurements, just keep adding whatever you think is missing or whatever taste you want more distinct.

You will need a French Baguette as well. Slice the Baguette in pretty thin slices, between ¼ and ½ inch thick. I like to put some cheese on the bread and stick it under the broiler for a few minutes until the cheese is browned and the bread is toasted. I have found Mozzarella to work well for this. Once you pull the bread and cheese out from the broiler spoon as much of the Bruschetta on top of each piece as possible. Just know that it will spill, that’s part of the joy. Serve while still warm.

This blog posted whilst listening to Mambo Italiano.