Mati's Kitchen: BRUSCHETTA

BRUSCHETTA

Bruschetta can be made in minutes. Easy and tasty. Can be eaten as a starter or a quick snack , way healthier than snacking on crisps or cookies !

In case you don't have baguette or ciabatta , no need to go shopping. Any bread will do. Students have no time to waste shopping when they are busy studying !

Dry toasts are great too when you are so hungry !

Ingredients:

1 Bread -Any which is convenient : White or brown or mixed grains French Baguette or Ciabatta
500 gms Tomatoes ( any which is easily available. In summer, I love to use cherry tomatoes)
Fresh Basil leaves - 6 to 8 leaves
Extra Virgin (or any) Olive oil - 1 tbsp
Balsamic Vinegar - 1 Tsp
Garlic - 2 cloves - finely chopped or sliced
Salt and freshly milled pepper - to taste
1/4 cup olive oil (of which use according to your liking)

Method:

Turn on the oven to 180°C to preheat.
While the oven is heating, chop up the tomatoes finely. Put tomatoes, garlic, 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar in a bowl and mix. Add the chopped basil. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Slice the baguette diagonally into about 1/2 inch thick slices.
On one side of each slice apply olive oil using a pastry brush. Place on a cooking sheet, olive oil side down. You will want to toast them in the top rack in your oven, so you may need to do these in batches depending on the size of your oven. Once the oven has reached 180 C , place a tray of bread slices in the oven on the top rack. Toast for 5-6 minutes, until the bread just begins to turn golden brown.
In case you don't have an oven, you can toast the bread without coating it in olive oil first. Toast on a griddle for 1 minute on each side. Take a sharp knife and score each slice 3 times. Rub some garlic in the slices and drizzle half a teaspoon of olive oil on each slice.
Arrange the bread on a serving platter, olive oil side up. Either place the tomato topping in a bowl separately with a spoon for people to serve themselves over the bread, or place some topping on each slice of bread and serve. If you top each slice with the tomatoes, do it right before serving or the bread may get soggy.