Miss Bee’s Bruchetta

Our first tomatoes are coming in and tonight we made the first round of my Bruchetta or Italian Flat Bread (as the hubby calls it). I made sure to take pictures and they all just sat there and drooled while I took forever to make themJ. 

And, as promised, I have typed up the recipe for you and taken lots of mouth watering pictures (not my best...had to hurry as I had some starving and impatient kiddos/hubby waiting) to illustrate it. Enjoy!

Miss Bee’s Bruchetta

Ingredients:

loaf of Artisan bread like Garlic Parmesan or Rosemary Oregano

fresh ripe tomatoes

fresh picked sweet basil, oregano, and rosemary

            or Italian seasoning if you don’t have the last two, but the fresh Basil is a must!

chunk of the best wet mozzarella you can find

kosher salt

black pepper – fresh ground is best

extra virgin olive oil

Fresh ingredients are best and make a huge difference, but dried will work in a pinch.

Set oven to broil and allow to get hot while making.



1. Slice the loaf of bread into ½” slices and lay on a cookie tray.

2. Brush olive oil over each slice.

3. Sprinkle salt and pepper over each slice.

4. Put in oven and toast lightly.

5. Remove from oven.

6. Peel and lay fresh tomatoes on each slice (I cheat and scald mine for a minute in boiling water then plunge  in ice water, so the peels just slip off).

7. Roll up stacked basil leaves and slice with a knife then chop finely, or you can just lay the leaves on top of the tomatoes whole.

How to roll basil leaves and slice, then dice.

8. Sprinkle rosemary and oregano over each slice or the Italian seasoning.

9. Lay one or two slices of fresh mozzarella cheese over piece.

10. Put back in oven and let cheese melt slightly, then remove.

11. Eat until you feel like you couldn’t possibly eat another bite – and I don’t advocate that oftenJ.

This is such a super easy recipe, but does take a little time just to slice every thing up. If I can make these, anyone can. So, go make you some bruchetta and chow down!

Summer Goodness





Summer Bounty 2009

 I love spring and summer! It's not because it's a time of accomplishing a ton in the redo department. It's because I no longer fight that stuck in a cave feeling I have all winter. In spring, everything seems bursting with life and in the summer the gardens in full swing and the food is out of this world

(not because I cooked it!).

My garden is swamping me now with yellow squash and zucchini. I've got a mountain piling up on the kitchen island that I have got to find time to slice up and freeze. I usually put up just enough to make it through to next summer.

Summer Bounty 2010

Giant zucchini and crooked-neck yellow squash!
Summer 2010 




My garden isn't big. It's a circle about 25 ft. in diameter, but MAN....can it pump out some veggies! The tomatoes are my favorite part and there are a ton of big green ones out there right now. I can't wait for them to start coming in.

My little helper getting the garden ready to plant this past spring.




This is what it looks like now! Overflowing!



Ignore the uncut grass. Hubby has tried to get it cut for three days and all it does is rain right after he starts:(

Almost ready! Good for some fried green tomatoes. YUM!

My little surprise. These apparently grew from the compost I put in that had last year's ornamental pumpkins remains!:)

It's really rather funny that I love gardening. Growing up, it was nothing short of pure torture when my mom would send me to the garden. Guess she planted more than just seeds by making me spend summers shucking corn, hulling peas, snapping green beans and pulling weeds:)

My herb garden this year.

 I also planted an herb garden this year. I always grow basil, but this year I added rosemary, dill, two types of lavender, Stella de Oro lilies, moss rose, and citronella plants for those pesky little mosquitoes. I have yet to figure out why God chose to bless this earth with their presence!

Sweet Basil - my favorite!

My family loves when the basil and tomatoes come in because I fix these fantastic little brushetta flat breads. I'm not a great cook, but this is one of my best recipes. I'll share it as soon as the tomatoes come in and I can post the pictures to go with it.

One of the other things that we love every summer is our little hummingbirds that come back year after year and all the other little critters we get to watch from the breakfast table.

Our little hummingbird friend.



Showoff!

Summertime is just the best, especially if you're a kid. Here's to lazy days off from school, sleeping late, playing in sprinklers, swimming, flip-flops, no layers of clothing, fresh food, beautiful gardens, and all God's prescious creatures!