Bruschetta Bread....

....this was quite simply the best we have made it....and not to mention one of the closest calls to make the Dollar Menu....but alas here we are....me back on the deck blabbering in the evening sun awaiting the corn bread muffins to accompany the chili con carne & chili con cashews that I shall be serving my guests......yes, they were both Dollar Menu items as well!  woohoo frugalness!!!

.....the bruschetta bread is really somewhat of a fun meal to make with that special someone as it really is a two man job....or at least it is in this house....the other half is in charge of making it taste so darn great....which is why really all the credit goes to him, but alas this is Donna Reed's Dollar Menu....so here I am!

....toppings chopped and mixed well in a bowl: 2 yellow tomatoes, 8 brown mushrooms (the smaller the pieces the better), 2 red tomatoes (I am partial to "off the vine" varietal), 5 fresh basil leaves (thank you Marin Farmers Market for the biggest bunches ever for only 2 bucks!), 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar, 1 onion (we used white, but we discussed the option of using purple next time for even more color!), 1/5 brick of mozzarella (the brick was a little bigger than the palm of my hand....threw out the wrapper so at this point in time, no idea what size it actually was), 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (cold press of course), 1 tsp Italian seasoning, and last but not least 2 tsp seasoned salt......mix and be merry.....

....the bread:  finally perfected.....I started with a seeded sourdough loaf that was purchased at....you guessed it the Marin Farmers Market from Panorama.....they make THE BEST bread....in my opinion....and sliced it up......in the past I have just put the topping right on the bread, then I watched Julie and Julia (I will continue to refer to this movie often....so just deal with it!) and noticed that the bread was fried in a frying pan....oh my crunch time.....but this has never quite worked for me as I saw it in the movies.....imagine that....and I ended up adding so much oil that it might have as well been deep fried.....and it was never evenly browned....I blame the stove....so I decided to brush extra virgin olive oil on each side of each piece of bread, then place under the broiler for about 14 minutes, of course turning over half way.....it was a miracle and the bread was perfect....,...then I spooned on the delicious topping and placed back under the broiler just until the cheese melted....it was simply sublime and served with a simple salad.....romaine lettuce, ranch dressing, and a sprinkle of grated parm......

....this dinner was quick, delicious, and most importantly less than a dollar a serving....but let me tell you those last few pennies sure felt the pinch.....

bye for now...