Name: Grilled Bread with Roasted Garlic and Fresh Tomato Sauce
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: 2 medium tomatoes , seeded and chopped; 2 tablespoons minced fresh basil leaves; Salt and ground black pepper; 1 loaf country-style French bread (1/2 pound). cut on the diagonal into 12, 3/4-inch slices; 1/4 cup roasted garlic puree; 2 tablespoons olive oil

Why This Recipe Works

Many roasted garlic recipes recommend drizzling garlic with olive oil, wrapping it in aluminum foil, and tossing it in the oven but we found this method to be unreliable and it also sometimes gave the garlic a bitter taste. One reason garlic can be tricky to roast is that it is relatively dry. To add some moisture to the garlic in our roasted garlic recipe, we poached it in milk, producing a final product that was beautifully golden in color and perfectly tender.

Before You Begin

See related recipe for instructions on making Roasted Garlic Puree.

Instructions

Heat grill or broiler. Mix tomatoes, basil, and salt and pepper to taste in a small bowl; set aside.

Grill bread over a medium-hot fire or broil, turning once, until bread is toasted on both sides, 3 to 4 minutes. Spread a portion of garlic paste over each slice of toast; drizzle with olive oil. Top each toast with a portion of tomato sauce and serve immediately.

basil pesto variation

To make the pesto, process 1/2 cup Roasted Garlic Puree with 2 cups fresh basil leaves and 1/4 cup walnuts in a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Transfer mixture to a small bowl; stir in 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese and 1/2 cup olive oil. Top pesto-spread toast with slices of fresh tomato and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

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Appears In

Magazine

September / October 1993

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