Simple, Great Tasting Party Food @ Home

I had quite an eventful weekend. On Saturday, I was on OneFM with DJ Yve Vonne at noon as a guest for being a gourmand and also for the passion of chocolates. It was indeed an experience! My 1st live on radio experience post will be coming, so stay tuned!

Don't know why but I have been trying some new recipes and baking recently. I came up with some party food the one can come up with in the shortest time and still taste great! And thus, I was inspired to do a "Slow Roast Tomato Bruschetta" using the ingredients I have at home.



First, the ingredients are really simple.

• Baguette
  
• 3 medium-sized tomatoes
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 1 tablespoon of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 tablespoon of Balsamic Vinegar
• 1/2 tablespoon of Mixed Herbs (or Basil)
• A dash of salt & pepper

The steps are even easier. The garlics have to be chopped finely and tomatoes are diced according to your preference. I like them to be in bigger chunks so I don't cut them up too small.

Then, toss the chopped garlic and diced tomatoes on a baking pan, drizzle a tablespoon of Extra Virgin Olive Oil over the tomatoes. For this, I used my prized "Ornellaia" Olio Extra Vergine Di Oliva which the olives are grown in the same estate as the famous Tenuta Dell' Ornellaia wines. It is obtained by pressing the olives from about 2000 trees, which many of them are over 100 years old. Didn't I tell you I'm a snob too when it comes to ingredients for my cooking?!! Haha...

One can truly see the difference as the olive oil has a very nice golden colour with some hints of green. On the nose, you can smell the ripe fruit and the grassiness of the oil. It's a spicy-bitter olive oil with sweet almond finish.

After the olive oil, I added a tablespoon of Balsamic vinegar into the mixture. For this, instead of the normal balsamic, I used the Condiment à base de vinaigre de Balsamique Arôme Truffe which I bought in Paris during my last trip. This is actually Balsamic with Truffles which would give my tomatoes an added flavour.

The last step would be mixing all the ingredients well together with the salt, pepper and mixed herbs. Preheat the oven at 180°C and then slowly roast the tomatoes and herbs at the same temperature for 35-40 minutes.


When the tomatoes are about to get ready, you can now toast the baguette which I've cut them into 2 cm thick slices and all buttered up. Put them into the oven toaster and toast it to a crispy finish.



Ta daa.... and the tomatoes are ready! Although it might seemed a bit dry on the outside, it's actually not. The results are better than what I've expected. The roasted tomatoes with herbs, olive oil and balsamic vinegar compliments each other very well. The toasted baguette topped with the tomatoes are just perfect for a party snack! Basically it's just 15 minutes preparation time and you just have to wait for it to slowly cook. This recipe can make 7 pieces of bruschetta.

And to go with the Bruschetta, I prepared a cocktail to match the taste of the slow roast tomatoes. I prefer something light, fresh and citrusy and thus I used the Absolut Citron as the base of my cocktail.

Absolutly Tango Jango

All you need is just - a shot of Absolut Citron, half a shot of lemon juice, 2 shots of orange juice and top up with 7up. And I decide to name this concoction of mine as Absolutly Tango Jango, hahah... whatever that means...

And my weekend has come to an end. Time to cook dinner now. Adios!