FRIDAY FARE: Healthy Italian appetizers...

One of my favorite things to order at an Italian restaurant is Bruschetta. Crusty slices of freshly made Italian bread, topped with tomatoes, basil, garlic, and olive oil. Mmmmm! Bruschetta is a recipe that dates to the 15th century, and comes from Central Italy. It usually stars as the appetizer in a meal. It's always seemed pretty healthy to me, but if you make it yourself, you can make sure it's healthy, right? So, today I've got two different healthy recipes for you to try: One is a Bruschetta recipe, and the other is a Crostini recipe - very similar...



Tomatoe Bruschetta
(This is exactly how I like Bruschetta, but I've never tried it with Pine Nuts - hmmmm. This is a single serving, so multiply the ingredients by how many people you are serving.)

Ingredients:

1 baguette (10 slices per serving)
1 tomato
1 clove garlic
5 fresh basil leaves chopped
1/4 C toasted pine nuts
sea salt to taste
pepper to taste
fresh grated parmesan cheese to taste
1/4 C balsamic vinegar
1/4 C extra virgin olive oil

To make:

Dice tomatoes, chop garlic and basil and place in bowl. Add other ingredients and combine. I always sprinkle the sea salt and add the vinegar before I add anything else because I like the tomatoes to marinate for a minute in that combination, but that is totally not necessary. Slice your baguette into 1/3 inch slices and drizzle olive oil over their tops. Toast your bread until it's golden in color. I broil mine in the oven for just a minute or two. Top your bread with the delectable tomato combination and enjoy!


I found this recipe, and picture, on the blog: Twohealthysisters.blogspot.com. It sounded so good! I've linked the title of the recipe to their blog, so that you can visit. I'm sure you can find many good recipes there! The only two things I would change - I'd add some garlic to the olive oil that you drizzle on the bread before you toast it. And, instead of parmesan, I LOVE Feta cheese - it's tastier, and very strong - you only need a little bit to make a big impact.




FRESH HERB-TOMATO CROSTINI
(This one sounds great, but it does lack one of my favorite ingredients: fresh basil)

Ingredients

1/4 cup olive oil
2 garlic cloves, pressed
1 (8.5-oz.) French bread baguette, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 large tomato, finely chopped
3/4 cup finely chopped green onions
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint
1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Stir together olive oil and garlic; brush on 1 side of each bread slice. Place bread slices, garlic sides up, on a baking sheet. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly toasted.
2. Whisk together lemon juice and next 3 ingredients in a large bowl. Add tomato and next 3 ingredients; gently toss to coat.
3. Top each bread slice with tomato mixture (about 2 rounded teaspoonfuls each). Sprinkle with cheese.

(This recipe was submitted to Southern Living magazine by Anita Embry, Vincent, Alabama, in MAY 2009. Click on the name of the recipe to visit the "My Recipes" website I found it at.)

A few suggestions: make your Bruschetta or Crostini with FRESH ingredients - chop fresh veggies, mince fresh garlic, chop fresh basil, etc. I love the cherry tomatoes at Costco - they are sweet, and pretty. It would be fun to use these in either recipe. Just slice them, so they stay that nice round shape.

ENJOY!! And let me know if you try the recipes - I'd love to hear if you like them.

-Kara