Homemade bruschetta

One of my favorite appetizers of all time is bruschetta. I am so picky with bruschetta, and was so hesitant to make it in case it didn't turn out right.  This weekend I went home and my mom and I went to a flea market.  The flea market had herb plants on sale for a dollar.  I thought what a better time to get some herbs, and start a little herb garden.  I got a fresh basil plant, and the first thing I thought was BRUSCHETTA.

That afternoon we were going over to my brothers house, and he was cooking in the grill.  While I am picky about bruschetta it is nothing compared to how picky my brother is.  He went to Italy in high school and had the real deal.  I decided to make bruschetta and take it to his house and see how it went.

I have to say I was pretty pleased with the outcome of this.  It took a lot of tasting and trying to get it perfect.  The recipe I used was not very good, and was missing a lot of key ingredients so I just added and kept tasting.  I was very pleased when my brother stated it was delicious, and he wanted to keep the leftovers.

Cook time- 30 minutes
Things I would do differently- I would definitely add salt the first time (we added salt after we ate a serving)
Serving size-  2 pieces of bread per person.  As an appetizer this would serve about 6 people.
Recipe adapted from- Simply Recipes

Ingredients

• 7 plum (roma) tomatoes
• 3 garlic cloves minced
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon of balsamic vinegar
• 15-20 basil leaves (mine were relatively small so if your leaves are bigger I would start with 8-10 and if you need more add some more leaves)
• 2 small onions chopped
• 1 teaspoons of salt
• 1 loaf of french bread
• Olive oil for brushing bread

Directions

1. Pre-heat oven to 450 degrees
2.  Boil a pot of water.  Once boiling remove from heat and add your tomatoes.  You do this to loosen the skin to make the tomatoes easier to peel.

1. After 2 minutes remove your tomatoes and use  a small knife to remove the skins of the tomatoes. 
2. Cut your tomatoes into halves  and remove the seeds, stem and juice from their centers.  Chop your tomatoes into small pieces.
3.  In a small bowl add your garlic, tablespoon of olive oil, vinegar, basil, onion, and salt mix well.
4. Pour your mixture over cut tomatoes and mix so all tomatoes are covered.
5. Cut your bread into slices and brush one side with olive oil
6. Place the bread on a cookie tray (olive oil side down)
7. Cook for about 6 minutes until bread is lightly toasted

Final Product