Tomato, Basil, Mozzarella Bruschetta

I wanted to make something special with the baguette I had baked. I had thought of using it for sandwiches for school. But I shaped it thin so sandwiches were out. Slender French bread works best to make bruschetta. Bruschetta is a favorite snack in my house. I used to make it with store bought bread before I started baking bread. I also realized I did not have a recipe in this space for bruschetta. So I made tomato, basil, mozzarella bruschetta and I am so glad I did. It was all gone very quickly.

The mozzarella I used is from Whole Foods, notice the veg rennet label on the very bottom. It goes sour very quickly but is pretty good when eaten fresh. If you hesitated because of the rennet source this is the mozzarella for you.

Ensure the crust of the bread you use is very thin. The crust of my baguette was perfect - crunchy but so thin it crumbled in your mouth. I had planned to try artichoke bruschetta as well but my daughter was not too keen so I decided to stick to the tried and tested.

You will need
1 baguette
3 tomatoes
7-9 basil leaves (I got mine from the garden)
 mozzarella cheese, sliced
1 tsp. olive oil + a little to drizzle over the bread
salt and black pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 F. Cut the tomatoes in half and remove the seeds and juice. Dice the tomatoes. Place the basil leaves one over the other and roll them. Cut the roll to form thin strips or chiffonade. In a bowl combine the tomatoes, basil, olive oil, salt and pepper. Keep aside.

Slice the baguette into 1/2 inch slices. Drizzle with a little olive oil and arrange on a baking tray. Place mozzarella cheese over the top.

Bake for 5 minutes or until the cheese just starts to melt. Do not allow the cheese to melt and separate.

Transfer to a plate and top with the tomato mixture.

Enjoy!