Appetizer of the Year: Bruschetta!

What brought me back to the idea of this blog was a new friend and how amazed she was that I made from scratch cream cheese icing. Now many of you have only picked up frosting from the store and yes until about two years ago I was just like you and had no idea that frosting or icing could be made at home very easily and taste better than sex (well, some sex), but cream cheese icing is simpler than pie, so I realized that there are so many people out there missing out on really easy recipes that are just plum amazing.

I realized that there are more than a handful of people I know who are deathly afraid of the kitchen and more than likely use their oven only for storage, but when you have a few hundred bucks left after bills and rent and cute shoes, oh and student loans, to survive on you soon realize that 5-10 dollars a day for lunch and 8-20 for dinner adds up. I want to give people recipes they can use to make lunches with leftovers and how to save some dough and make amazing meals with the right ingredients.

And it's not just the money part, it's also that its nice to actually be able to make something. It's like arts and crafts time except you can eat it and make others happy. No one turns down a cookie. I don't care what diet I am on, I want that cookie damn it.

I'm no Martha Stewart or Julia Child. I am learning just like all of you, so lets start simple.

I am actually making this for tonight for the Oscars. So why not feature it:

Simple and Easy Bruschetta
What you need:
1 can of diced tomatoes drained*
half an onion diced
1 clove of garlic minced
1 loaf of french bread
mozzarella cheese (shredded is what I used)
1 clove of garlic

Slice the bread on an angle
Turn on oven to broil
toast bread on both sides (about 1-2 minutes per side-- WATCH the bread!)
rub the non-minced clove of garlic on one side of the bread
sprinkle a bit of cheese on each piece and toast until cheese is melted

mix the can of tomatoes, onion and garlic together
top the pieces of bread and serve

* I personally typically have several cans on diced tomatoes, tomate paste, and tomato sauce in my pantry. They are great to have around for chili, stews, your own tomato sauces for pasta and pizza and to use for things like this.


Tomorrow: Learning to cook for one or creating meals out of other meals