Eve’s Chef 101 Humpday Recipe: Tomato (and more) Bruschetta

The recipe below, was for 12 and for once I didn’t have to monkey around making adjustments.  I had eight people coming over for a wine tasting and this would be enough for them and for me the next day.  Making the tomato mixture hours in advance, like a good spaghetti sauce simmering, helped the flavors comingle and set.  The next day, you guessed it, it was even better.

We tried a couple before the guests arrived, and noticing how soggy the toasted bread had become, opted to serve it separately.  The guests seemed to enjoy spooning out the amount of the stuff they wanted.  Other adjustments included:  Using more of the fresh basil, adding Champagne vinegar and leaving the oven light on as those puppies can burn fast!  From TuscanRecipes.com:

Tomato Bruschetta

This is one of the more common appetizers known and found everywhere. But in case you have yet to find a good recipe for tomato bruschetta, you’ve just found it!

(modestly speaking, of course)

Serves: 12

INGREDIENTS

  • 8 chopped ripe roma (plum) tomatoes
  • 5 leaves chopped fresh basil
  • 2 cloves minced garlic
  • 1 pinch of dried oregano
  • 1 dash of crushed red pepper
  • 1 pinch salt
  • 1 pinch ground black pepper
  • 2-3 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 loaf of Italian-style (or French) bread, cut into diagonal slices
  1. In a large bowl, combine the tomatoes, basil, garlic, oregano, red pepper, salt, pepper and olive oil. Use more olive oil, if necessary, to coat the entire mixture. Allow the mixture to sit for 10-15 minutes for flavors to blend.
  2. In the meantime, preheat the broiler. On a baking sheet, arrange the slices of bread in a single layer and brown both sides slightly in the oven. Remove the slices from the oven.
  3. Spread the tomato mixture on the still warm toasted bread slices and serve.

Buon appetito!