Bruschetta 2 Ways (both are easy and affordable)

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As promised, here are the first of the appetizers we served on our Holiday Party last week. Bruschetta (Brew-Ske-Ta ) is quite a popular party dish these days, maybe because it's so easy to make and it allows the cook to create so much with the concept. Think about it, toasted slices of bread topped with whatever... That's bruschetta, in a nutshell ( I hope I didn't offend any gourmets out there by simplifying it this way. But then again, I don't believe there are any gourmets reading this anyway....:) )

So here they are:

The base is always the same, just bread (day old id fine), sliced and lightly toasted in the oven (350 for 10 minutes will do it). I used regular old French baguette because it was cold and rainy and that's what the closest supermarket had that day. But a nice crusty bread would be even better.

Peas & Mint Bruschetta

Those two guys (the pea and the mint) seem to really like each other ( think peas and mint soup), so this is another way of using this combination.

You'll need:

Peas ( frozen is fine)

Fresh mint, roughly chopped

Olive Oil

Salt & Pepper

Just mash the peas with a fork * , add the mint and combine. Stir in olive oil until you see it's enough to give it a light moist texture to it. Season with salt and pepper to taste. This can be done in advance, just keep it in the fridge. In fact, you'll notice more the mint if you leave it to rest overnight.

* You can also use a food processor to mash the peas, specially if you are planning on making large quantities. On that case, I suggest pulsing it quickly a few times to avoid processing it. I like it with a few whole pieces of peas, it lends some texture.

Blue Cheese, Honey and Fig Bruschetta:

If you never tried the combination of blue cheese and honey I urge you to do so. It is heaven!

You'll need:

Your choice of Blue Cheese

Honey

Dried figs, quartered or roughly chopped **

Start with a slice of cheese, drizzle some honey and top with a piece of fig. How easy is that?

** For this particular party, I used dried figs that I quartered and top the bruschetta with it. But you could use fresh figs too, it would be delicious. Or even use a fig jam on the bottom of the toast, and then topping it with the cheese. On that case I would taste it first before adding the honey, as the fig jam is pretty sweet already.

I also topped a few of them with chopped candied walnuts.