Not being able to consume wheat or gluten, my family woefully gave up bruschetta a long time ago. The terrible freezer-burned cardboard-disguised-as-gluten-free-bread that we found in the grocery store and the mild tasting soy or rice cheeses we were using to replace dairy just could not live up to the expectations the real thing had created. With a couple years behind me now in this journey, I have since located a really nice potato bread, in the freezer of the gluten-free section, and also a bread-maker recipe for potato bread that turns out wonderfully light and natural, without a lot of mixing and beating and other things like work that I won’t do to make food, no matter how good it might taste. So, with this new found bread in hand, this week we rediscovered the bruschetta we have been craving – and made it into a meal, not an appetizer!
The secret is in creating an herbed butter or oil for the outside of the bread – and using said potatoe bread for the base. I covered both sides in the garlic infused dairy free non-hydrogenated butter, and then toasted it in the oven at 350, turning once until crispy and brown on each side. Meanwhile, I used a large bunch of basil leaves (1 cup or more packed) and some olive oil. (Seriously, if you are measuring when you cook, you are not having enough fun!) I put the two in the food processor, and whizzed until the leaves were all chopped and the texture was creamy. I then took about 1/2 cup of whole almonds and whizzed them in the blender until crushed up. I removed them to the bowl with the olive oil and basil, then added three vine ripened tomatoes, finely diced, one half of a large red onion, finely diced and enough fresh pressed garlic to kill your social life for a week. To this I added more olive oil, some sea salt, and some fresh cracked black pepper. I topped it with crumbled goat’s feta and my own touch – caramelized mushrooms and onions. The result? A combination of heat and cool, smooth and crunchy, zingy and buttery that melts in the mouth. Very similar to the photo below, of bruschetta from La Bocca Urban Pizzaria and Wine Bar. (We did not stop long enough to take photos! But next time it will be a must!)
My son confessed it was ‘okay’ between mouthfuls, but refused to stop eating long enough to give any more insight. It’s hard to believe something so delish could be healthy, but it contains raw veggies and fruit, full of enzymes, antioxidants, phytochemicals, and vitamins, carbs from the bread, healthy, unheated olive oil, protein from the nuts and cheese, and mushrooms (a stand-alone food group if you ask my dad): a complete meal, tastier and far healthier than pizza!
To take it to the next level in nutrition, I could use raw crackers, or better, large mushrooms sliced, either grilled or raw, as a healthy bread alternative. I’m thinking puffball or shitake. Does anyone know where to get puffball in Toronto? It is that time of year… Or I could make zucchini boats, with some hot pepper added to give it some zing. Definitely something to play with!
Bruschetta anyone?
