Homemade Bruschetta

Steve and I ate at Mozza Mia, one of the best pizza places in the Twin Cities, a while back and ever since tasting their fresh mozzarella, I had been craving homemade bruschetta. I ran out to buy the ingredients for it, and could not find fresh basil anywhere. The bruschetta craving was strong enough that after stopping at three stores, I eventually drove to Menard's and just bought a basil plant and stripped it of its pretty, delicious leaves. (Don't worry, the basil plant has healed and is now living happily in a large pot on my deck, with its tomato plant friend.)

As I said in my gnocchi post, bruschetta is kind of a no-brainer but everyone makes it differently and sometimes knowing the right combination of the ingredients can be tricky. Luckily, it really cannot be messed up unless you add twelve cups of basil or a whole bottle of balsamic, or whatever. It's best made to taste, but my one tip is to watch your bread in the broiler when it's toasting (step 4) because the second you look away, the slices will turn to hockey pucks (note the slice on the right side of the below picture). Oh, and some people like to tear up the mozzarella and throw it in with the tomato mixture; whatever suits your fancy.

Mmm.

Ingredients:

• 5 ripe roma tomatoes
• 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves
• 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• Salt and pepper
• 1 baguette
• Fresh mozzarella, sliced (one piece for each slice of bread)

Directions:

1. Chop the tomatoes, onions, and basil into fine pieces and add to a large mixing bowl. Stir in the vinegar and olive oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (For the easiest way to chop fresh basil, check out this link.)
2. Preheat oven on low broil.
3. Cut baguette bread into individual slices about 1/2 inch thick.
4. Arrange pieces of bread on a baking sheet and place the sheet in the middle of the oven to toast the bread, about 1 to 2 minutes.
5. Top each piece of bread with a spoonful of the tomato mixture, and one slice of mozzarella cheese.
6. Place the baking sheet in the middle of the oven to melt the cheese, approximately 1 minute or until slightly melted.
7. Remove from oven and serve.

*If you have leftover tomato mixture, it keeps in the refrigerator for about five days. Put a slice or two of baguette in the toaster and top with the leftover bruschetta for a quick snack.

Happy eating!

Emily