I haven’t been the biggest fan of bruschetta – it just didn’t do it for me. Like many I’ve had bruschetta in restaurants numerous times but it never tickled me enough that I’d prepare it in my own kitchen. Too often it seemed to be an afterthought or simply it struck me as someone cleaning out their refrigerator – are there some beans or chopped tomatoes left - toss it with some dried Italian herb, then heap it on yesterday’s bread which touched the grill briefly and here you go you have a presentable dish.
(sweet potatoes with ricotta salata and radish on Italian bread)
Then Again …
Recently I have been exploring bruschetta’s possibilities. Since we are opening a cheese focused restaurant I have been munching away on various breads, crackers and toasts deciding what to add to our menu, and, well bruschetta made a come-back into my world. Heaping seasonal vegetables onto good grilled bread appealed to me. So we created some delicious bruschetta variations with all kinds of vegetable of the moment – just picked up early in the morning from the farmer’s market.
(shaved sunchokes and crushed chestnuts bruschetta with Italian parsley)
The Fun’s in the Variations
Technically bruschetta is simply the grilled bread brushed with olive oil, garlic and some herbs originating in the Abruzzo region of Italy. The tomatoes and basil are the most basic or traditional variation so why not keep going and have some more fun with raw, thinly sliced Jerusalem artichokes or fennel. Or try adding pickled vegetables which work great too – we have done pickled, paper thin shaved cauliflower and beets or add cooked vegetables if you prefer. The fact is these little vegetable laden toasts are a great snack in appetizer portion size or they can be prepared in a larger portion for the entre part of the meal. You can see I’ve turned the corner and am ready to make my whole meal of these now.
Bruschetta tips
O When we started working with bruschetta we thought we did good by
cutting off the crust of the bread – think again! These toasts were not wholesome or toothy -- in fact they were boring. So we came to the conclusion that bruschetta needs
the crust. It was missing that satisfying crunch when biting into the bread and that side-to-side head twist when you wrestle it into your mouth
O A connector is needed between bread and topping. I suggest some sort of a puree
or crushed vegetable e.g. beans – this way the topping won’t fall off when
biting into it
O I prefer to serve bruschetta slightly warmed so the flavors are more
intense
Following is a recipe which will get you started and since holiday socializing season is upon us it’s nice to have a simple snack recipe on hand.
(cranberry beans, tomatoes and red wine bruschetta on sourdough)
Bean & Red wine Bruschetta
(recipe yields four portions)
2 cups (small can) cooked beans
1 cup red wine such as Chianti
1 sprig rosemary (2-inch long)
Salt, to taste
Fresh black pepper, to taste
1. In a pot (1 quart sized) cook red wine on medium heat setting for ten minutes
2. Pour beans into a strainer and reserve the liquid
3. Combine cooked red wine, strained beans, rosemary and season with pepper and
continue to cook until mixture is dry (ten minutes or so)
4. Drizzle bread with olive oil then brown in a skillet over medium heat setting (or
brown in a toaster)
5. Distribute bean mixture over browned toasts, discard rosemary sprig
Chef’s tip: Rub a garlic glove cut in half into bread before toasting – this will add a faint
garlic scent
