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Well, I think we made it!  I don’t want to celebrate too soon, but we only have 5 days left of school.  My kids, me, the dogs… are so ready for school to get out for summer.  Now, because I am a woman I reserve the right to change my excitement to counting down days until school starts… that will begin in about 2 weeks. But for now we are fired up about sleeping in and not “requesting” that homework gets done.  Frankly, after this year I do not care if my kid’s brains turn to mush this summer just as long as I don’t have to fight about, “read your book”, “study for Spanish” or “go to BED”. Can you hear my voice? Just imagine Charlie Brown’s teacher, “Wah, Wah” and that is what my kids hear.

Back to the topic at hand-food!  This week we have a lot of “end-of-the-year” parties and I hate showing up empty handed so this is a good go-to recipe.  Bruschetta is a perfect summer appetizer because the tomatoes are ripe and the basil is growing like a weed.  And it is EASY.
I don’t normally serve this dish already assembled because the bread gets soggy.  I put the tomato mixture in a bowl along side toasted baguette slices.  Then it can sit out for awhile and you don’t have to worry about it or babysit it.
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Bruschetta

The absolute best way to use up those beautiful summer tomatoes and fresh basil. This recipe has very few ingredients and is easy to whip up for an appetizer, afternoon snack or side dish.

Servings 4

Ingredients

  • 1 French Baguette, sliced on an angle
  • 1 lb. Vine ripened tomatoes, chopped, (or use a mixture of any tomatoes you have on hand).
  • 4 Tablespoons Olive Oil
  • 1 Tablespoon Fresh basil, chiffonade (stack the basil leaves, roll up like a cigar and cut on the diagonal)
  • 1 Clove garlic, minced
  • Salt and Pepper to taste (use Kosher salt and cracked pepper)

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350°

  2. Slice baguette on an angle in 1/2" slices.  

  3. Brush or drizzle 3 Tablespoons oil over sliced bread and place on a baking sheet. Toast in the oven for about 7-10 minutes until golden brown.

  4. In a medium bowl, mix gently together the tomatoes, basil, 1 Tablespoon olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper.  Transfer to a serving bowl.  This can sit in the refrigerator for a couple hours before serving.

  5. Arrange toasted bread on a serving platter with the tomato mixture.

Recipe Notes

These measurements do not need to be exact.  Just dump the ingredients in a bowl and adjust the amounts to your taste or what you have on hand. 

Use your very best Olive oil for this recipe.  Since the oil will be "raw" you want the best tasting.