My hubby and I attended
a wedding this summer and had to entertain ourselves in between the wedding and
the reception. We went to Maggiano’s Little Italy for an appetizer and a
cocktail. We had the Bruschetta appetizer and it was out of this world delicious.
I knew that I wanted this appetizer in my repertoire. When I started planning
my Christmas Eve menu I immediately thought of this dish and decided it was the
perfect time to give it a go.
The
“Maggiano’s Inspired Bruschetta Recipe.”
I completed the recipe in this order: make bruschetta spread, slice
baguette, brush on the bruschetta spread and toast baguette, while baguette is
toasing create the tomato relish, and once the baguette is toasted load them up
with relish and set out for eating.
Preperation Time: 30 minutes – 1 hour (depending on how
quick you are)
Servings: One Whole French Baguette
What you need for the Bruschetta spread:
3 ounces (2/3 stick)
unsalted butter, softened
1 cup extra virgin olive
oil
1 Tbsp. parsley
½ Tbsp. crushed red
pepper
¼ cup garlic
(1 head), peeled and minced
½ anchovy
fillet, minced
½ Tbsp. fresh
lemon juice
½ Tbsp. salt
several grinds of
peppercorns
Make the Bruschetta spread:
In a mixing bowl, whip
butter until light.
Slowly begin to add
olive oil a little at a time, with the mixer on medium speed, until well
incorporated.
Add the remaining
ingredients, mix until incorporated. Reserve until needed.
Yield: 2 cups (you will use all of it if using a
whole French baguette)
What you need for the tomato relish topping:
2 cups of large plum or
beefsteak tomatoes, cut into 1/4-inch dice (cut tomatoes in half and squeeze
out seeds and juice before continuing)
1 cup of Balsamic
vinaigrette (I thought this was a little much this time and will be using less
in the future)
1/4 cup fresh basil,
rinsed, stems removed and chopped
1 Tbsp. roasted garlic
1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
(or to taste)
fresh ground pepper to
taste
1/4 cup shaved parmesan
Make the tomato relish and toast the
baguettes:
Preheat oven to 450
degrees.
Place baguette slices on
a baking sheet and coat each side with 1 Tbsp. of the spread and toast until
nicely browned but not burned. (about 10 minutes depending on oven)
Put all relish
ingredients into a bowl and mix.
Top each slice with
tomato relish and shaved Parmesan cheese.
EAT!
This recipe is pretty
easy to prepare once you get going and it tastes delicious. I don’t want to
tell you how many of these things I ate… It is shameful. I could have sat down
right in front of the platter and dined on this all night!
I hope you enjoy this
recipe as much as my family has, Bon Appetite!
