Bruschetta with Black Olive Pesto, Ricotta and Basil

This is the final recipe in my Bruschetta series. Enjoy.

Bruschetta with Black Olive Pesto, Ricotta and Basil                           

Serves 8 to 10 as an appetizer.                          
Use only a high-quality whole-milk ricotta for this recipe
                           
Ingredients                           

1    medium garlic clove , minced or pressed through garlic press (about 1 teaspoon)
2    1/2    cup pitted kalamata olives
1/4    cup artichoke hearts
2    Tablespoons fresh grated Parmesan                       
2    Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil , plus extra for serving               
1    small shallot , minced (about 2 tablespoons)                       
1 1/2    teaspoons juice from 1 lemon                       
1 1/2    cups whole-milk ricotta cheese (see note)                       
    Table salt and ground black pepper           
4    tablespoons fresh basil leaves , finely shredded/divided                 

Instructions                           

Process garlic, olives, artichokes, grated Parmesan, olive oil, shallot, and lemon juice in food processor until uniform paste forms, about 10 seconds, scraping down bowl with rubber spatula once during processing. Combine ricotta with salt and pepper (to taste) and 2 tablespoons shredded basil in small bowl and spread to edges. Divide olive pesto among toasts and carefully spread over ricotta. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with reserved basil, and serve.    




I hope you have enjoyed this series of Brushetta recipes and perhaps even gotten inspired to try some other flavor combinations.  New tasty appetizers are always so useful for parties. I'd love to hear about your favorite.

Disappearing Artichoke Bruschetta

This was the biggest hit of all the different Bruschetta recipes I tested.   It literally disappeared. As an appetizer, latecomers didn't even have a chance to taste it! Better make extra. 

Bruschetta with Artichoke Hearts and Parmesan                            

Serves 8 to 10 as an appetizer.  
                          

Ingredients                          

14 ounces artichoke hearts , rinsed and patted dry with paper towels                      
2 teaspoons juice from 1 lemon                      
1 medium garlic clove , minced or pressed through garlic press (about 1 teaspoon)                      
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil , plus extra for serving                      
2 tablespoons fresh basil leaves , finely shredded                      
 Table salt and ground black pepper                      
2 ounces Parmesan cheese , 1 ounce finely grated (about 1/2 cup), 1 ounce shaved into strips with vegetable peeler                      
                      

Instructions                          

Pulse artichoke hearts, lemon juice, garlic, olive oil, basil, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in food processor until coarse puree forms, about six 1-second pulses, scraping down bowl with rubber spatula once during processing. Add grated Parmesan and pulse to combine, about two 1-second pulses. Divide artichoke mixture among toasts and spread to edges. Top with shaved Parmesan. Sprinkle with black pepper to taste, drizzle with olive oil, and serve.                      

Classic Bruschetta

The first in my series of Bruschetta recipes.

Bruschetta with Tomatoes and Basil             

Makes 8 large slices.             

This is the classic bruschetta, although you can substitute other herbs. Decrease the quantity of stronger herbs, such as thyme or oregano.    
                     
                    
 Ingredients                 

4          medium tomatoes , ripe, (about 1 2/3 pounds), cored and cut into 1/2-inch dice     
1/3       cup shredded fresh basil leaves         
1 1/2    tablespoons minced fresh mint leaves
2          tablespoons balsamic vinegar 
1          loaf country bread (approximately a 12-by-5-inch loaf), sliced crosswise into 1-inch thick pieces, ends removed         
3          large clove garlic , peeled       
7          tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil                                           
2          medium red onions (about 1 1/2 pounds), halved lengthwise and diced very fine                                       
1 1/2    tablespoons minced fresh mint leaves                                    
                                                           
                                                          
 Instructions                                                    

Heat 3 1/2 tablespoons of the oil in large skillet set over medium-high heat. Add onions and 2 cloves of garlic; sauté, stirring often, until softened, 7 to 8 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low. Continue to cook, stirring often, until onions are sweet and tender, 7 to 8 minutes longer. Stir in mint and vinegar and season to taste with salt and pepper. Set onion mixture aside. (Can be covered and refrigerated up to 1 week.)                                      

Mix tomatoes, basil, and salt and pepper to taste in medium bowl. Set aside.                                             

Heat broiler or light grill fire.                                     

Broil or grill bread until golden brown on both sides. Place toast slices on large platter, rub garlic over tops, then brush with oil.                                    

When the onion mix has cooled mix together with the tomato mix

Use slotted spoon to divide tomato mixture among toast slices. Serve immediately.

Really Good Bruschetta; Techniques

I was recently invited to an Italian themed party.  Well when I think Italian food, I think "There goes my diet"  But I don't want that to happen, and I can't not go to this party. So, since it was a pot luck, I signed up to bring "something w/veggies" (i.e. something I can eat even everything else is pasta) and started trying to find a truly Italian vegetable.  Well of course I thought of the tomato, but all alone that is kind of boring, and I've done the tomato, basil, mozzarella salad so many times I'm bored with it. So my next thought was Bruschetta. YUMMY! but still a little plain. So, I decided to "dress it up". I also needed to find out how to make it “transportable” for a party without having it go soggy or all the toppings falling off.  In my research I found the following information about the science of

Really Good Bruschetta!

There’s a whole lot more to bruschetta than chopped tomatoes and basil. I wanted smart flavor combinations that didn’t require a bib.

The Problem

The ingredients in modern bruschetta—toasted bread, tomatoes, and basil—may be an appealing combination, but in reality, the tomatoes usually lack flavor, excess liquid results in soggy bread, and precariously stacked toppings often end up on your shirt.

The Goal

I wanted my bruschetta to be full of flavor, easy to eat, and substantial enough to serve as either an appetizer or light entree.

The Solution

Aside from deciding on the ingredients, my biggest challenge was figuring out how to contain the toppings on my toasts so that they were easy to pick up and eat, even when drizzled with the standard vinaigrette.

I realized early on that to make the whole package structurally sound from crust to crown, I needed a “glue” to anchor the toppings to the bread. I discovered that the solution didn’t lie in a condiment, but in a technique.

By pulsing one of the topping ingredients in the food processor until it formed a rough paste, not only did I achieve the stable base I needed for the other toppings, but I provided contrasting textures. And to make sure it could offer optimum crunch with each bite, I toasted the bread and brushed it with fresh garlic butter right before topping it. I also discovered that while the individual toppings can be mixed up in advance, you want to assemble them right before you are ready to eat to avoid the toast going soggy.

 Check back again soon for a sampling of some of the recipes I made.

Wild Rice Pilaf

This recipe took a little more time than I usually spend for a dinner side but it made enough rice to last for several weeks so it was good well worth the extra work.

To a heavy bottom pot add:

2 cups broth
2 bay leaves
4-6 sprigs of thyme tide with kitchen twine

Bring to a boil and add:

1 cup wild rice

Reduce to simmer and cook 35-40 minutes.
If all the broth is absorbed before the rice is softened add another 1/2 cup and cook until soft

Meanwhile to a 12" skillet add:

3 T butter
1 onion chopped fine
1 carrot chopped fine
1 t kosher salt

Sauté for 3-5 minutes then add:

1 cup rice (I used short grain brown rice)
1 cup orzo
Cook until transparent another 3-5 minutes then add:

2 1/2 cups broth
2 bay leaves
4-6 sprigs thyme tied with twine

Simmer until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed
Discard herbs and combine wild rice and regular rice mixture. Set aside.

In your skillet melt:
1 tablespoon butter

Add:

2-3 large mushrooms chopped fine
3-5 garlic cloves (you can use roasted for a more mellow flavor)

Sauté until browned.

Stir mushrooms into rice pilaf.

In your steamer, cook 2 broccoli stems as described in the "Broccoli" post.

Add to your rice pilaf.

This is enough rice to serve a family of eight twice or a family of two for several weeks. Package according to your usage and refrigerate.

Broccoli

I really like broccoli. I eat it raw or steamed, mixed with other veggies, etc. But usually when using broccoli you only eat the flowerets. Nobody really wants to dip that unappetizing, tough stem into a veggie dip and eat it raw. So what do you do with it? Normally it will just go to waste, trash or compost. But it is still edible, just unappetizing in its current state. I found a great new way to use it.


You've seen those flavored rice packets? My local grocery sells one call cheddar and broccoli rice, and it has all of about, 1/8 of a teaspoon of actually broccoli along with a flavor packet of powdered cheese. I can do better than that. Here's how:

Take your broccoli stem and slice it about a 1/4 inch thick. Put these slices in your steamer with a little kosher salt & a few fresh herbs. Steam them until they get nice and soft.

While those are cooking start your rice. You will need:

1 1/2 cups long-grain brown rice or medium-grain brown rice, or short-grain brown rice
2 1/3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
Kosher salt
1tablespoons unsalted butter
1tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2teaspoons minced fresh thyme leaves
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons white wine vinegar

Combine these ingredients in a heavy bottomed pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer until rice has absorbed liquid and is soft, stir occasionally.

Now add your steamed broccoli stem and 1/2 cup shredded cheese, I used parmesan because it was what I had on hand but you can use whatever your favorite cheese is.

Yummy, my hubby is eating brown rice and actually liking it! And I found a way to keep perfectly good food from going to waste. Double score!

Mushrooms & sweet Potatoes

Last night I had a little extra time to get dinner and wanted to change things up a bit so the dinner plates don't look exactly the same every night. :-) Well, that kind of a mood is when my kitchen turns into a science lab and occasionally what comes out isn't half bad. So here are two brand-new, straight out of my head recipes that I served last night and what I learned from them.

Mushroom Sauce

Approx. 1/2 - 1 Tablespoon olive oil

1 leek, chopped small the white & light green parts

1 clove elephant ear garlic sliced thin (A vegetable peeler works GREAT for this)

8 oz. of mushrooms sliced

Add these ingredients and sauté until nicely browned. Then add

2T white wine vinegar

1/8 cup white wine

Continue cooking until most of the liquid is absorbed then add

1/4 cup cream

Kosher salt to taste

Cook stirring constantly for about 1-2 minutes. Serve over brown rice or potatoes immediately

*What I learned on this recipe:


Be careful how much oil you use. You need a little to keep things from sticking but if you use to much the mushrooms absorb it all and the dish turns out greasy. Also, be sure to use olive oil or a sparing amount of Natural butter. I tired another form of fat and it did not mix well with the other ingredients.

Spice Garlic Sweet Potatoes

3 cups sweet potatoes

3-4 cloves roasted garlic

1 teaspoon cilantro

1 teaspoon parsley

1/8-1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Kosher salt & Pepper to taste.

Mix all ingredients thoroughly. If desired add 1/8 cup cream

NOTE:  I started with cold sweet potatoes so I added all ingredients except cream & warmed them in my steamer. Then I mixed the cream in right before serving

*What I learned from this recipe:


Make sure you don't over do the spice. With only 2 cups of sweet potatoes this was to spice for one family member but just right for another, it depends on your tastes. Add more sweet potatoes if to spice & I added the cream to cut the heat a bit.