Tomato, Tomahto

     Today I was staring at the copious amount of food in my kitchen, and wondering how on Earth I was going to be able to eat it all before it went bad. Right before Hubby got called away, we picked up groceries for an entire two weeks. For an ordinary family of three, this isn't a huge deal. But when the  member of the family who eats enough to feed a small African village leaves without notice, and the child in the family barely consumes enough food to keep a bird alive, the third family member (which is me), is left to deal with this dilemma alone.
    Now what's a girl to do. There is no way I'm going to be able to eat all this food. I'm thinking I might have to get creative. The first thing I figured I would attempt to tackle, were the tomatoes. After all, every time I walked into the kitchen, there they were staring me in the face. A giant Costco sized package of cocktail tomatoes, taunting me.
    So what better way to put a dent in a stock pile of tomatoes than Tomato Basil Bruschetta. So that's what I did. I made Bruschetta.

Tomato Basil Bruschetta:

Tomato Basil Bruschetta with Toasted Baguette

Ingredients:

8 cocktail tomatoes or 3 hot house tomatoes, (you can use any type of tomato you like, as long as the size ratio's match this recipe)
1/4 cup red onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
3-4 leaves fresh basil, chopped
1 Tbsp. olive oil (use the best quality olive oil you have on hand)
pinch of coarse salt
freshly grated pecorino or parmesan cheese to garnish, optional
french baguette, sliced 1/2" thick (day old baguette works well, since you will be frying it anyway)

Directions:

(1) Add all diced ingredients to a bowl.
(2) Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt.
(3) Stir to combine.
(4) When serving with baguette, pour about 1 Tbsp. of olive oil into the bottom of a preheated pan. Add a few pieces of sliced baguette to the pan, and fry until golden brown on both sides. Don't waste your fancy olive oil here, any generic brand of olive oil will do.
(5) Scoop Bruschetta onto the toasted baguette and sprinkle with a freshly grated cheese if desired.

Everything you need...

When chopping basil, stack all the leaves into a pile
and roll them into a little parcel. Slice your roll with a
sharp knife, as though you were slicing a loaf of bread.

*This Recipe will make enough for two generous servings. Nutritional value does not include toasted French Baguette.

Nutritional Value
(Per Serving)

Calories 66                       
Total Fat 3.9                             Carbohydrates 7g
Saturated Fat 0g                        Fiber 1.3g
Cholesterol 0mg                       Sugars 3.6g
Sodium 6.5mg                           Protein 1.3g