Tomato Bruschetta

Welcome back!

Today, we have a classic - perhaps even the most classic - Italian antipasto: bruschetta! This is an extremely simple dish that you can quickly whip together to start off a nice Italian meal. There are many, many different ways to prepare bruschetta - after all, it is just toasted bread with toppings - but the most common is this one, which features tomatoes. The way that the fresh tomatoes really pop with flavor and juiciness in contrast with the crunch of the bread is absolutely delightful!

Tomato Bruschetta

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 large tomatoes, seeded and diced (you could also use 8 roma tomatoes)
1/4 cup basil, cut into ribbons (aka chiffonade)
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
Salt and pepper to taste
1 large baguette, sliced about 1/2" thick
More extra virgin olive oil for brushing
1 clove garlic, halved

Directions:

In a bowl, mix the olive oil, tomatoes, basil, garlic, salt, and pepper.
Lay the slices of the baguette on a baking pan. Brush some olive oil on top.
Bake the baguette at 400°F until golden, about 8 to 10 minutes.
Take the baguette out and rub the halved garlic on top, with the cut side facing the bread. You want to get the garlic flavor into the bread.
Scoop some of the tomato mixture onto the bread and enjoy!

Even this type of tomato bruschetta has quite a bit of variation too. We've seen some recipe incorporate a little bit of onion into the topping or some that omit the pepper. One thing that seems to be pretty common is the use of balsamic vinegar - it adds a new level of flavor, but it doesn't match the taste of the bruschetta that we've had in Italy. Plus, if you browse authentic Italian recipes, you won't find the vinegar.

Last but not least, freshness is key when it comes to the tomatoes. Since the dish is really centered around that one ingredient, if you have really nice tomatoes, it'll be so much better.

-Chefpo

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