CUPS OF BRUSCHETTA

“Dining partners, regardless of gender, social standing, or the years they've lived, should be chosen for their ability to eat - and drink! - with the right mixture of abandon and restraint. They should enjoy food, and look upon its preparation and its degustation as one of the human arts.”
― M.F.K. Fisher, Serve It Forth

 

This is such a fun, yummy starter to try to put together! Basically you bake little cups of bread which eventually hold the bruschetta you've plunked together. And if you don't feel like bothering with the cups just scoop the tomato mixture up and plop onto slices of toasted baguette and serve!

 

What you’ll need:

4 – 6 small tomatoes (chopped into a little chunks) (these will fill about 9 cups)

9 – 10 slices of brown bread
½ cup olive oil
½ cup cheese (grated)
2 tablespoons garlic paste
1 tablespoon oregano
Handful of fresh basil leaves (chopped)
Salt and pepper to taste

 

How to:

1. Much like the Eggs In a Cup recipe I’ve put up – oil up your chopping board and a rolling pin. Lay out slices of bread (you can leave the crusts on – I do), cut bread into quarters and roll the slices of bread thin.

 

2. Olive oil the insides of a muffin tray and line with thinned bread. Dab some more olive oil on top. Bake the bread for 10 -15 minutes till golden and a little crunchy.

 

Note: This is one of those steps that looks easy but when you actually get to lining the muffin tray you might find that the bread tears or overlaps in places. Don’t worry about it being messy and you can use stray bits of bread to patch any holes that you see.

 

3. While your muffin cups are baking, in a large bowl, combine the tomatoes, 3 – 4 tablespoons olive oil, salt, cheese, garlic, oregano and any other seasoning you want to include.

 

Note: I have a kitchen sink Italian mix that I got as a gift which has a mix of parsley, thyme, oregano and chilli which I used. Put in whatever you like – even the quantities I’ve mentioned are only indicative. Taste the mixture and see if you’d like to put more of anything.

4. Top up your bread cups with your tomato mix and bake for 10 -12 minutes till the cheese melts and the top is golden. Sprinkle the chopped basil and serve immediately.