California Central Coast Recipes
Fresh Heirloom Tomato Bruschetta
©2010 TheRomanticTable.com
One of the delights of late summer harvest time is when the fresh heirloom tomatoes are at their peak and we kick off a barbecue with an appetizer of bruschetta with fresh tomato topping.
Bruschetta in its simplest form is just toasted - preferable over a flame - pieces of rustic country bread, scraped with a fresh clove of garlic and dribbled with a bit of high quality extra virgin olive oil. We like to use an Italian style rustic bread like Pugliese Bread. We grill the bread until the edges turn a bit black and just a tad bitter for complexity.
Add the tomato toppings of multicolored heirloom tomatoes with a little basil (and a bit more extra virgin olive oil of course!), and the bruschetta steps up to new level.
Cooking time:
Ingredients.
1 loaf Rustic Country Style Bread , cut in 1/2 inch thick slices
4 medium Tomatoes , preferably heirloom of different taste and colors
Several Fresh Basil Leaves
4 large cloves Fresh garlic , pealed
Extra Virgin Olive oil
Salt and Black Pepper
Preparation Directions.
1 Slice the bread into 1/2 inch thick pieces The slices should be thick enough to be substantial, but no so thick that they are tough to eat.
2 Grill or toast the bread under a broiler until the top is toasted to a what- ever done-ness is desired. Flip and toast the bottom side.
3 While the bread is toasting, cut the tomatoes in half, and if necessary remove some of the seeds if the tomato seems excessively liquidly.
4 Coarsely chop the tomatoes into small dice. You can place all the chopped tomatoes into a single bowl, or keep separate if you want different colored toppings.
5 Tear the basil leaves into small pieces or cut the basil leaves into thin strips and mix with the chopped tomatoes.
6 To serve, take a piece of toast and with clove of garlic and give the toast a couple of scrapes with the garlic. Then dribble a little bit of extra virgin olive oil on top. Next place a spoon of the tomato topping on the toast, add a little salt and pepper, and if desired, a little extra dribble of extra virgin olive oil.
Wine and Food Pairing and Serving Suggestions.
This is a fun "audience participation type" appetizer. The tastes (except for the garlic - be careful it can be surprisingly hot!), are very fresh and mild, so keep the wine selection young and simple.
If you are drinking white wines, a Roussanne or Sauvignon Blanc would be a good choice.
If you are drinking reds, a Sangiovese or a Montepulciano would be good selections.