Tag: Party
Bruschetta Pomodoro
I remember the first time we made Bruschetta Pomodoro in our tiny kitchen in our first apartment years and years ago, we thought we were SO fancy!
Now looking back, it wasn’t so much that it was fancy, but it was fresh, aesthetically pleasing and oh-so-good!
Bruschetta Pomodoro loosely translates to “grilled bread with tomatoes” in Italian. Again, I’ll defer to my friends from Italy to correct me one way or another
Basic Bruschetta generally consists of grilled bread rubbed with fresh garlic and topped with fresh tomatoes, olive oil and basil
I’ve gone the extra yard (or two) and added in a few of my favorite flavors to elevate this hors dourve
Salty, briny kalamata olives and flavorful marinated artichoke hearts seem to fit the bill
Gather together 2 pounds of good quality, ripe tomatoes, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 1/2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon each of kosher salt, black pepper, crushed red pepper flakes, 1/4 cup kalamata olives and a 6 ounce jar of marinated artichoke hearts
In a mixing bowl, pour in the vinegar, olive oil and spices and whisk well
Core the tomatoes, remove the seeds, dice the flesh and add to the mixing bowl
Finely chop the olives and artichokes and toss in with the tomato mixture
Add in a chiffonade of fresh basil and chill for at least an hour
Show me how to chiffonade basil
Toast or grill baguette slices that have been drizzled with olive oil & sprinkled with kosher salt at 400 degrees F for 5-6 minutes
Rub one side of each toasted baguette with a raw garlic clove. This imparts the garlic flavor but isn’t as strong as actually adding raw garlic to the bruschetta mixture
Serve the Bruschetta Pomodoro alongside the toasted baguette for your guests to help themselves or plate up for an elegant display
Either way, you’ll agree it’s a tasty way to start a meal!
Enjoy!
Simply Sundays! ~ Bruschetta Pomodoro
Ingredients
2 pounds of good quality, ripe tomatoes
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 cup kalamata olives
6 ounce jar of marinated artichoke hearts
fresh basil
1 baguette, thinly sliced
1 fresh garlic clove
Directions
In a mixing bowl, pour in the vinegar, olive oil and spices and whisk well; core the tomatoes, remove the seeds, dice the flesh and add to the mixing bowl; finely chop the olives and artichokes and toss in with the tomato mixture; add in a chiffonade of fresh basil and chill for at least an hour
Toast or grill baguette slices that have been drizzled with olive oil & sprinkled with kosher salt at 400 degrees F for 5-6 minutes; rub one side of each toasted baguette with a raw garlic clove
Serve the Bruschetta Pomodoro alongside the toasted baguette or plate up for an elegant display
Tools used to make this recipe
Anchor Hocking 8 Cup Measuring Cup Glass Batter Bowl with Spout
© Simply Sundays 2016
All rights reserved
Bacon Cheddar Dip
This dip is the perfect party food. You can make it ahead of time, put the ingredients in the slow cooker and wallah! 3 hours later, your guests will be serving themselves
Let’s start with the cheesy part… you’ll need two 8 oz blocks of room temp cream cheese, 1/2 cup plain greek yogurt, 1/2 cup mayo and two 8 oz packages of shredded cheese
I’m not a fan of packaged, shredded cheese, but in this application I think it’s fine
I chose a sharp cheddar and a cheddar-montery jack blend, but you can use whatever cheese you like. A combo of cheddar and mozzerella would work well too! Mmmm
Put the cream cheese, yogurt and mayo in a mixer until combined thoroughly
Add in the shredded cheese and mix again to incorporate
You’ll need two whole scallions and one large jalapeno
Slice up the scallions, separating the whites from the greens
You’ll use the white section of the scallions during the cooking process and the green for garnish at the end
Cut your jalapeno in half, scrape the seeds out with a spoon and dice the pepper into small pieces
If your crowd can handle the spice of the jalapeno, leave in some or all of the seeds
Just beware… you never know how spicy this will make the dip!
We did say bacon, right?
Cook a pound of bacon until crisp, drain on paper towels and crumble into small pieces
I’ll have to be honest here… I was only going to cook up 1/2 pound of bacon and my family looked at me like I was nuts
So a whole pound it is. This is for a party, right??
Stir the diced jalapeno, scallion whites & 1/2 of the crumbled bacon into the cheese mixture and scoop into your slow cooker
I used a slow cooker liner to make clean up after the party super easy
Cover and turn the slow cooker to low for 3 hours
I peeked in on it at about halfway through just to be nosy and to give it all a stir. Mmmm
At 3 hours, give it another good stir and top with the reserved green scallions and the rest of the crumbled bacon
Serve right in the slow cooker on a warm setting or spoon out into a serving bowl
Either way, it won’t be around for long!
We served with tortilla chips but crackers would work just as well
Enjoy!
Simply Sundays! ~ Bacon Cheddar Dip
Ingredients
Two 8 oz blocks of room temp cream cheese
1/2 cup plain greek yogurt
1/2 cup mayo
Two 8 oz packages of shredded cheese
2 whole scallions (green onions), sliced
1 large jalapeno, seeded & minced
1 pound of crisp bacon, crumbled
Directions
Mix the cream cheese, yogurt and mayo until thoroughly combined; add in the shredded cheese and mix again to incorporate
Slice 2 scallions, separating the white bottoms from the green tops
Cut a large jalapeno in half and scrape out the seeds; dice the pepper into small pieces
Cook a pound of bacon until crisp, drain on paper towels and crumble; divide in half
Stir the diced jalapeno, scallion whites & 1/2 of the crumbled bacon into the cheese mixture and scoop into your slow cooker
Cover and heat on low for three hours; stirring to combine about halfway through
Top with remaining bacon and reserved green scallion tops
Serve with tortilla chips or crackers
Tools used to make this recipe
Crock-Pot 6-Quart Oval Manual Slow Cooker, Stainless Steel
Simply Bamboo Valencia Bamboo Cutting Board
KitchenAid Gourmet Scraper Spatula
© Simply Sundays 2017
All rights reserved