Basic Bruschetta - serves 6 to 12
6 cloves garlic
12 slices good, thick crusted bread,1-1.5cm thick, 7.5-10cm wide
extra virgin olive oil
salt
freshly ground pepper
1. Preheat a grill or, even better, light a charcoal fire.
2. Mash the garlic, just enough to split and loosen the skin, which must
be removed.
3. Grill the bread to a golden brown on both sides.
4. As the bread comes off the grill and while it is still hot, rub one
side of each slice with the garlic.
5. Put the bread on a platter, garlicky side facing up, and pour a thin
stream of olive oil over each slice, enough to soak it lightly.
6. Sprinkle with salt and a few grindings of pepper. Serve while still
warm.
Tomato Bruschetta
As for above plus:
8 fresh, ripe plum tomatoes
8 to 12 fresh basil leaves OR a few pinches of oregano
1. Wash the tomatoes, split them in half lengthways and pick out all the seeds. Dice into 1cm cubes.
2. Wash the basil leaves, shake them thoroughly dry and tear them into small pieces. Omit this step if using oregano (obviously).
3. After rubbing the hot grilled bread with the garlic, top it with the diced tomato, sprinkle with basil or oregano, add salt and pepper and lightly drizzel each slice with olive oil. Serve while still warm.