Because I live in an Italian family, I enjoy many Italian foods such as pizza, spaghetti and meatballs, and things like bruschetta. This is one of my Mom's favorite brushetta recipes that she makes often, and it is a great snack or appetizer at a party or social gathering.

This type of bruschetta is extremely easy to make, and you can sprinkle some parmesan cheese over it for added flavor! It takes about 10-15 minutes to toast the Bruschetta and an additional 10-15 minutes to prepare the tomatoes and scallions. You don't need any special skill to make these, just know how to cut bread and veggies!

In addition to being absolutely delicious, this dish is also very healthy, considering that it contains bread, tomatoe, and chives which are all good for you! This appetizer is approximately 100 calories per slice of bruschetta! Also, the tomatoes contain vitamins A and C, and there is lycopene and they are all good for your body!

I was inspired to make this because.....

- I needed some appetizer for my Dad's birthday party
- I had all of the ingredients in my fridge.
- I love Italian food!

You should make this because.....

- It takes little time to prepare
- It is a great appetizer
- It is delicious!

Step 1: Ingredients

Ingredients

- 5-6 plum tomatoes
- about 10 scallions
- 6 cloves of garlic
- Olive oil
- Salt
- Pepper
- One loaf of French bread

Utensils/ Appliances

- A knife
- An oven
- A bowl
- A spoon (to stir)

Step 2: Slice and Toast the Bread

First, preheat your oven to 350°F.

Take your loaf of bread and begin slicing it about one slice every centimeter and place the slices on a tray (or two!). You probably aren't going to want them to be much thicker because they would most likely be too crunchy!

Now that your bread is on the trays, place them in the oven at 350°F until they are lightly toasted. You are going to have to work swiftly for the next couple of steps because the bread will be toasting.

Step 3: Making the Bruschetta Topping

This is the part of the bruschetta that gives it that Italian flare, the topping! It basically consists of tomatoes, garlic, scallions, olive oil, salt, and pepper.

Cut the tomatoes into small pieces and put them into the bowl. Cut the scallions into a whole bunch of tiny pieces and place them in the bowl as well. For the garlic, I found that laying the knife sideways along the clove and banging your fist on the flat side of the knife squashes the garlic and makes it ideal for slicing. Do that to all of your cloves and chop them into little pieces. Add the pieces to your bowl.

Now, add some pepper, and some salt to the bowl. Pour olive oil in so it covers the top. Now, mix the bowl well with the spoon. It is important that you mix well because we don't want one bruschetta to have a ton of garlic or a ton of tomato so try hard to make it as even as possible.

Step 4: Finishing the Appetizer

Take your bread out of the oven and begin scooping the topping onto the bread. Try to make all of the slices have an even amount of topping.

Optional: Now is when you can sprinkle some parmesan cheese over the bruschetta if you want to.

Finally, you are finished!

Step 5: Enjoy!

Convince your friends that you are an Italian chef and show off your bruschetta! Let this be the perfect appetizer at any party and don't get stuck with boring unhealthy appetizers! Eat up, As we Italians say, Mangia!