Look! Out on the buffet table ... it's bruschetta ... it's French bread pizza ... it's ... bruschetta pizza!
Okay, I couldn't decide which one to call it, so it's both.
Ingredients
1 large can (28 ounce) diced tomatoes
1/2 loaf French bread
2 tablespoons basil pesto
8 ounces shredded mozzarella
olive pomace oil
Directions
Prep
If you've got fresh pesto, fabulous. What I've got is the stuff I made last summer and froze. So I took it out early and let it thaw. Putting it in a metal bowl will make it thaw faster. If you care about the reason why, talk to your local computer geek or car nut about radiators.[1]
So anyway ... here's the thawed pesto.
Open the tomatoes, but leave the lid attached a little bit. You don't want all the extra juice, as it will make the bread soggy, so pour it out.
Then set the can, with the lid still on, upside-down in the sink to drain while you work on the bread.
Slice half the loaf about a half-inch thick. Don't slice on an angle. You want each piece to be as small as possible, and cutting on a angle makes them bigger.
Appetizers are frequently made to take to someone else's house. Since that's what I was doing, I've got some tips for traveling. First is to do the prep at home and final assembly at the event. So the bread needed to go back into the paper bag it came in.
Quickest way is to stand the whole loaf up on end, with the sliced end up.
(Sometimes a loaf of bread is just a loaf of bread.)
Then carefully slide the bag down over it.
(Hey! You there in the back row ... stop giggling. What? No I don't think it looks like I'm ... Oh, uhh, yeah, I guess it sort of does. Oops.)
By now the excess juice should have drained from the tomatoes. Dump them out on a cutting board and, if they're diced too coarsely, run a knife through them. (What's too coarse? You don't want it like pickle relish, but not much bigger.)
Add the drained, diced tomatoes to the thawed pesto and mix well.
Now that the tomato is ready, pack it up for the trip to the party. (Again, feel free to skip this step if you're making it for yourself.)
Assembly
Put a few tablespoons of oil in a baking sheet and distribute it evenly.
Place the sliced bread in straight rows. No, not because it looks cool. (Though it does look cool.) You can usually pack the pan tighter that way.
Top each piece of bread with some of the tomato/basil mixture.
You could stop here and call it bruschetta. But this time, we're adding cheese.
Put the pan under the broiler for a minute or two -- keep a close eye on it -- until the cheese just starts turning brown. If you're lucky, and your broiler is very even, most of them will be finished at the same time.
Yep, that looks good.
That looks really good.
I'd like to tell you how good they tasted, but I didn't get one. I plated them up, turned around to wash the baking sheet, and they were gone. I didn't even get to take any pictures of them on the serving dish.
So ... I guess that's it.
1) Fine, I'll explain. The metal conducts heat and cold (which is the absence of heat, don't nitpick my physics) very effectively. And the thinness of the bowl presents a lot of surface area for its weight, meaning it transfers the heat (and cold) into (and out of) the air also very effectively.
Now please don't make me explain any more science. It makes me want to create visual aids. And I don't have time for that.
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47 comments:
My computer is being slow and won't load photos at the moment, which means I can't see the photo of the bag being slid over the bread (hee), dammit. But I'm guessing I would be the one in the back row giggling. Or in the front row. But still giggling.
HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!
My computer just stopped being slow.
I honestly had no idea what that was going to look like until I started writing this post. And yes, I suspected that was you I heard giggling in the back.
Mmmm, bubbly brown cheeeeese! I love me some cheese.
Who knew sleeved bread could be so giggle inducing! Good pictures, Drew! LOL
I've been a lurker for awhile, but I demand visual aids. :)
How do you think this would freeze? Would you cook first, then freeze? This sounds like one of those awesome comfort foods to pop in the toaster oven a chilly December day!
April, remember this guy? "Hanker fer a hunka cheese, yahoo!"
Farmgirl, I'd vacuum seal them before freezing. Any frost on it will turn the bread to mush. But having these handy to pop in the toaster oven sounds great. I'd also probably bake them a little before going under the broiler, to make the bread stiffer to stand up to the freezing and re-heating.
Sweet! For once I'm not the child! I took me a minute to get it. Wait...or maybe parts of my life are seriously lacking lately...
Dammit.
The bruschetta pizza looks tasty, too.
That looks so yummy! Now I'm totally in the mood for some bruchetta pizza, and I just ate breakfast! Gotta time my blog reading better, I guess.
And I didn't start giggling until you mentioned it. You corrupted me. I'm still giggling.
Hi, this is andrea from Italy. I've noticed that many people refers to bruschetta as bruchetta or similar...
Well, the Italian word is "Bruschetta" and we say it like "Brus-k-eetta".
Bye!
That's what I get for posting late night. I hate typos in my headlines. Grr! Thanks for the correction.
Sweet Bird, sorry to hear that.
Stephanie, always glad to provide a giggle.
I've never tried pesto in bruschetta, will try it next time, great blog by the way and a GSOH:-)
X M
Yum! Great idea for something quick on a Friday night when no one really wants to cook. Thanks for the idea!
Kim
Oh, please. Outlaw shredded mozzarella and any fake mozzarella now.
PLEASE
God smite them
Not sure how I missed this one, as it made me hungry just looking at it. And I had no idea what to do for dinner... thanks!
Why... I never resist.
Ok, this is italy speaking:
YOU ARE DOING IT WRONG!!!
Bruschetta:
The bread needs to be crunchy. CRUNCHY. Ok, U.S. likes soft bread? So do I. That's why I make steamed buns quite oftens. NOT bruschetta.
So 1st step you GRILL the bread. try to make one side more cooked than the other. You can use an oven or grill.
Right, now you can put the ingredients on top. Tomato+pesto is very good, I use is for pasta as well. BUT you are doing it WRONG! You have to use fresh tomatoes. Fresh! And possibly, tasty. This means: no chem fertilizers, locally produced. Have you ever tastes tomatoes picked when red and RIPE instead of green, as before their coast to coast trip to your kitchen?
Well you should.
Not that they are easy to find in Italy as well.
Anyway. You should put the ingredients on the most cooked side. The bottom side in contact with the pan will grill a bit more so the result is symmetric.
Yes you can grill them again as you did here, I like it, or just leave everything fresh, which I prefer when the ingredients are good. And please, ban fake mozzarella.
The deal with the oil: you are doing it WRONG! You have to grill FIRST put oil LATER. They have to be grilled, not fried. Ungrilled bread sucks up the oil. IF you put oil on the grilled bread you'll be able to taste the (good, extra virgin) olive oil much better. It'll be good.
Ok, that's a bit of an unorganized recipe but hey, in Italy we are not exactly the top on the organization department. In this I envy the U.S. But please, follow our directions about food! :)
But maybe HIS grandmother wasn't Italian. We're supposed to learn to cook like OUR grandmothers! ;)
(mine wasn't Italian either)
Wow, people are taking this one seriously.
Matin, thanks for the kind words.
Anony, it's not just Fridays when people don't want to cook.
Anony the second, I know it's not great mozzarella, but it's made from real milk. I'll take that. (Especially when I'm feeding a bunch of people at a party.
Meadowlark, glad to be of service.
Stefano ... wow, Stefano. Lighten up on the espresso, okay?
Okay, so let me start by agreeing with everything you said about bruschetta. But you noticed where this was on French bread, right? And you saw where I said this was a cross between bruschetta and French bread pizza? That means I wasn't going for "authentic."
So the olive oil was pomace, not extra virgin. It wasn't for the flavor, it was to keep the bread from sticking to the pan. Which it did.
Yup!Good pictures... Wanna taste it now:)
ot getting into the authenticity deiscussion, but looks quick & tasty, great to feed a crowd in my book!
You not only made us giggle but you also caused a heated debate on bruschetta vs pizza. Maybe you should just call it fusion bruschetta or fusion pizza then your options are wide open.
I think it is delicious, who cares where it originates from.
Try this for a pizza topping.
Grate a big about 4oogr cheddar
Add 2 Tbsp mayo
2 Tbsp tomato ketchup
Chopped thyme or oregano
Chop 250gr bacon and fry. When done, add hot WITH oil from the pan to the cheese. Mix and spoon onto French bread slices. Place under guests arrive.
I will definitely try your version.
Sorry, place under griller when guests arrive.....
Nina, I liked the idea of placing under the guests. :-)
You may not know this, but the ketchup we get here in the states has so much corn syrup in it, it's sweeter than ice cream. So I think I'll have to use tomato paste instead, but I'm going to try that.
That cheese.... It looks so good! I love it! So easy and looks so good!
That's definitely the kind of appetizer I'd make a beeline for at a party! :-)
Tarah, if you like the cheese, check out the mac & cheese I did the day before.
Kathy, these are sitting on the buffet next to the deviled eggs. You only have enough room on your plate for one of them. What do you do?
I make these, but I drizzle olive oil onto the cut slices of bread (makes them nice and crunchy) then spread pesto on and then add the cheese slices (we like feta cheese and grated cheddar) then decorate with an olive, sliced so it has more chance of staying put, then put into the oven for 10 mins. ALWAYS goes down well :)
I also make bigger ones for supper by slicing ciabata bread in half horizonally, drizzling olive oil and topping with homemade tomato sauce, cheese, olives and anchovie (for my partner) he really loves this. Obviously takes longer in the oven.
That sounds perfect for the upcoming football season!! I am always on the hunt for crowd friendly, yummy, easy treats!!
It sounds like there's going to be lots of little pizza-like things at tailgate parties this year. Cool.
I expect each of you that makes them to invite me over. I promise to root for (or against) whoever you want me to.
ok um...
use fresh tomatoes, onion, garlic, olive oil, basil, salt, pepper. and MARINADE that diced mixture overnight or AT LEAST 3 hours.
use day old french bread, sliced, and bake with some olive oil, salt, pepper on a pan at 300 for 30 minutes to properly toast it.
then you can spread it out, and put the bruchetta onto the bread, with cheese on top. melt that.
or you could use larger pieces of bread, then put a little roast beef, and lettuce on those and make sandwiches.
Looks delicious, and hey, I'd go for those on a buffet, too.
You know, there seems to be an issue of authenticity here when there shouldn't be. It wasn't titled "Authentic, straight from Italy Bruschetta."
And this is food we;re talking about. If people didn't take ideas and recipes and run with them, creating new things, we'd all be eating the same 4 or 5 things. (ok, maybe more, but you get the idea.)
Just because something isn't "authentic" to your home country, or made the way your grandma makes it, doesn't mean it's not good.
It's food, not the fate of the world, ok?
That's not bruschetta and not pizza lol!! IS an itaian that says you!!
but send me one at home and i will say what mean has got! ;o)
I will send you one bruschetta and one pizza, from italy ;o)
Marghy, if I could figure out how to send them I would take you up on that offer.
Your blog is so controversial! I love it! I am going to make this Bruschetta Pizza with canned tomatoes just to make people mad. :)
Yes, I have found my people!
Yum, looks good!
UK Foodie
www.ukfoodies.co.uk
This is really quick as it is. If you had an hour or so to spare, reducing the tomatoes by simmering them in a pan, rather than pouring off the juice, would make the flavour more intense.
Looks good, though.
Catt, you're absolutely right. But this was a quick dish for a party. Next time I'm doing it for myself I'll think about reducing it instead of just draining it.
Hi Drew,
I tried this one out, but it didn't come out very well at all; I found it quite bland and the bread just hard, so I will try out some of the other suggestions on the comments given here and I will let you know which one works for me.
Thanks for putting this up though, else I would have never started on bruschetta! =)
Cheers!
Josh, sorry to hear it didn't work the first time. I hope you find a combination you like.
Drew you are KILLING me here with all these wicked recipes!!! I think I'm reserving this one for the weekend when all the teenagers are inhabiting my basement......will report back!
Kristi, if you're feeding teenagers with this make sure you keep some aside for yourself. The first time I made it, by the time I was done cleaning the pan and went to the buffet table it was gone.
capers.
That is my addition. Oh and basil (fresh, preferably).
Not only is your recipe brill Drew, so are many of the suggestions in the comments. Oh I think I love this blog.
(and I too, would not have giggled had you not evoked Freud.)
Ooh, capers. Now that does sound interesting. Though I think I'll have to only put them on half, in case the girls don't like them.
I love you where have you been all my life!!! LOL Seriously, wonderful blog. I just got done baking up a loaf of my wild sourdough bread, hehe, and thought I would do a bit of geek research on the net. I found your site, and the rest was history. THANK YOU! Ten minutes well spent, now back to the oven. Want some? =) ~Jessie
I do not like bottled pesto. I found a substitute online at Juliet Mae Spices. They have an Italian Herb blend that really works. I use it to make spaghetti sauce and put it on pizza.
Most herb blends I've checked are pretty high in salt and sometimes MSG. I'm not afraid of salt, but I like to add it myself. I've had some blends that were more salt than herbs, which makes it really hard to add more of the herb flavor without overdoing the salt.
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