Does it matter?
I love to make bruschetta. Or perhaps I love to make crostini. Maybe both.
Maybe what I really like are apertivos, or perhaps tapas. Hors d'oeuvre, or antipasto?
Call it what you like, little foods are great to make and can really become a meal in itself when paired with a good glass of wine.
The ideas below are simply tastes I have experimented with that appeal to me and my friends. Try your own combinations, you just never know.
I always start with bread. I like to get the long, thin French baguette loaves from Safeway. They are pretty fresh, and just the right thickness to make nice little round breads to heap stuff on.
So, I cut the baguette into slices, about ½ to ¼ inch thick, and lay these on a baking sheet. Drizzle olive oil on them, and stick them in the broiler to lightly toast.
After the light toasting, I pull them out, flip them over (toasted side down), and add more oil if necessary (the oil should be showing through from the other side; if not, oil again). This is when I salt them as well: good, coarse salt and a dash of pepper.
The most basic, traditional recipe is to put on a slice of tomato, a hunk of cheese (I like parmesan), then back under the broiler to melt the cheese. Top with a fresh basil leaf.
We have eaten this around the world and it is always great.
Just use your imagination to make variations to that:
Add a good balsamic vinegar to the bread, or on top of the tomato.
Use different cheeses, or make a two or three cheese variety.
Add a thin slice of ham, bacon or prosciutto.
One caveat: the better the ingredients, the better the taste. I have used "fresh" basil paste in a tube when camping, and it is good... but not like fresh plucked leaves. A high quality balsamic vinegar is a real treat (I get mine when we are wine tasting) and good hunks of aged cheese are better than packaged slices of cheese-like food product.
Caveat number two: a good glass of wine.
Other Ideas:
Well, after making the traditional recipe, and traveling a little more, I have branched out and just try throwing things together. Here are a few ideas to get you started. Just remember, pretty much anything you like will do, as long as you keep it simple and fresh.
After making the little toasts as described above, I have topped them with:
Walnut halves, covered with a dollop of honey, and Rogue Creamery Blue Cheese melted over the top.
Pine nuts, cheese melted on top (to hold them on the bread) and fresh rosemary or basil stuck into the melted cheese.
Smoked salmon with cheese.
Carmalized onion. (That's it - I will cook down several onions, and just have it available in the refrigerator.)
Leftover tri-tip, topped with a single marinated mushroom slice.
Roasted garlic cloves and blue cheese.
So, now it is your turn. You experiment, find what you like, and use the comment button below. Together we can discover endless possibilities.