Bruschetta old & new..

Did you know that Bruschetta goes far back to the days of cucina povere (poor people's kitchen) in Italy. It was a way of making use of day old bread. Today bruschetta is served in many resturants but not considered 'cucina povere'..served in many as a gourmet dish.

But I know many think of bruschetta as having a tomato and basil topping..but the toppings can be different and varied.
Here is my recipe for bruschetta made with tofu and zucchini flowers:

Bruschetta with Tofu and Zucchini Flowers

*15 minutes to prepare
*7 minutes cooking time
*300 calories per portion
*Easy

For 4 people
*1 loaf of crusty Italian bread or a baguette with sesame seeds on top (8 slices)
*10 ounces of fresh tofu- firm
*10 zucchini flowers
*1 clove garlic
*the grated peel of 1 lemon
*4 ounces arugula
*1 tsp thyme
*1 tblsp fresh basil chopped
*2 tblsps soy sauce
*1 tblsp Balsamic vinegar
*3 tblsps extra virgin olive oil for marinade
*2 tsps extra virgin olive oil to sautee zucchini flowers
*dash of pepper

Make a marinade by mixing together 3 tblsps olive oil, 1 tblsp balsamic vinegar, and 2 tblsps soy sauce.
Place in marinade the garlic clove, chaopped basil and chopped thyme, grated lemon peel, tofu cut into cubes, let marinade for 1 hour.

Cut 8 slices from bread and place in oven (350 degrees) to toast for 5 minutes per side. Open the zucchini flowers, remove the pistols inside and the stem. Wash the flowers very gently. Saute in 2 tsps of olive oil in a saute pan. Saute for 3 minutes.

Remove garlic from marinade. Wash and dry arugula. Distribute arugula on 8 slices of bread, then top with tofu mix and lastly top with zucchini flowers. Dress with the liquid from the marinade and a pinch of salt and pepper. Serve

TO see more about the adventures at The Basic Art of Italian Cooking kitchen in Italy and our making of a Sacher Torte go to http://www.marialiberati.com/blog2

For more great recipes get your copy of the best selling book The Basic Art of Italian Cooking at http://www.marialiberati.com

Let Summer Recharge Your Life..

Is it just me -or did anyone notice that we are already halfway through the year! So it is time to face facts- those New Year's resolutions that you made way back in January (when the year was so new and fresh) and forgot about-what happened to them, where did they go??

You know the age old resolutions-losing weight, getting organized, exercising more..

Fortunately -Summer is the time of year that allows us to -sort of- regroup- and put together a summer resolution! But make this a fun resolution and one that is easy to stick to. Take advantage of the carefree, lazy hazy days of summer and do something that will recharge you for the rest of the year. (Eating alfresco may be just a memory come November-so do it now!!)

So, since I am guilty too (I must admit) of conveniently forgetting my new year;s resolutions- join me in coming up with some fun summer resolutions to recharge the rest of your summer and keep that charge going for the rest of the year.

There are ten resolutions I have come up with and each week I will share a few with you. My first podcast on July 16th will also be "Top ten summer resolutions or how to recharge your summer!!

My first summer resolution is to eat alfresco whenever possible. So many of us don't take advantage of the beautiful summer weather at lunchtime or on the evening and eating outside. If you don't have your own patio or terrace or backyard- go to a park or lake or somewhere that you can go outdoors and enjoy a casual meal. And really sit and enjoy your meal and the surroundings and nature at its best-even if your in the city-you can see the beauty of the sky above. Remember a casual meal will do-keeping in with the casualness and lazy feeling that summer provides us. Of course not everyone can eat outdoors everyday, but try it even if it's once a week or a few times in the summer. So our first summertime resolution is:

1-Casual meal alfresco (if you need any recipes for your alfresco meal- go to my website-http://www.marilaiberati.com Bruschetta is a great summertime meal we enjoy on our terrazzo in Italy in the summer-so casual but elegant.)

If you don't have an out door terrazzo, envision one. When I am at my home in the mountains of Italy this is my view (the photo at the top of this blog) and even when I am not there I envision the marvelous mountains and the scenery of the village and hearing the our town church bells ringing!

Ciao for now!

Maria

http://www.marialiberati.com/