Ode to Basil

This is the beautiful basil plant in my apartment that inspired me to make bruschetta. I gave it to my roommate when I moved away for the summer and we are all a little surprised that it survived. You may note that in the bottom right corner that our little basil plant is in a splint due to a number of accidents like falling off the windowsill. Reason #532 why basil is awesome- it has a strong will to live.Fresh basil makes everything taste better. It has a clean, earthy smell that is almost sweet and it's flavor is full and rich. When people see a basil plant in your kitchen they assume that you are a savvy and exotic cook and that you are therefore desirable as a friend/ wife, if you care about that kind of thing. As I have sworn off dating, I keep the basil in the kitchen because it looks nice Everyone should own a basil plant, go out and buy one right now.

Bruschetta with Tomato and Basil Recipe

Ingredients

• 6 or 7 ripe tomatoes ( I use roma because they are cheap)
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
• 6-8 fresh basil leaves, chopped.
• Salt to taste
• Some type of bread, a baguette would probably be best, but all I had were English muffins and those worked.

1 Prepare the tomatoes first. Bring a medium pot of water to boil, once water has begun to boil remove from burner and immediately submerge whole tomatoes. Let sit for one minute. Cut tomato skins off with knife, skins should peel off fairly easily, but will be hot. Cut tomatoes in half and scoop out seeds, and juice from inside. Dice remaining tomato flesh.

2.  Put garlic, 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, vinegar in a bowl and mix. Add the chopped basil. Add salt to taste. Add tomatoes and toss thoroughly, put in refrigerator while preparing bread.

3. The fast and easy way to prepare bread is to just stick it in the toaster. If you have more time, top sliced baguette or french bread with a little olive oil or butter and a dash of Parmesan cheese and garlic salt. Stick in the oven on broil and pull out when the tops are brown and crispy (1-2 minutes). Top warm, crispy bread with a plentiful amount of bruschetta and enjoy!
 

Today's Story is a quote: "Color my life with the chaos of trouble" - Belle and Sebastian