Bruschetta with roasted peppers and mozzarella

There is something infallible about butter toasts. No matter how sad and gloomy things get, buttered toasts always have the potential to give life an instant uplift. Once you bite into the crusty surface and taste the warm, salty, and buttery interior, you momentarily forget everything. Toasts work like magic. What’s even more magical is that it is impossible not to love someone who makes you toasts. My mom made me toasts everyday for as long as I lived with her. I always loved all her toasts. Even when they sat in aluminum tiffin boxes for four hours before lunch period on rainy school days. I loved her and her toasts on those days too. Now my husband makes me toasts, everyday, since the day we got married! Sometimes he packs me sandwiches and he butter toasts the sandwich breads too. He knows me too well. 🙂 So sometimes, on mornings that are not too lazy, I make my mom and husband toasts, fancy toasts, bruschettas. 

 The thing I love most about bruschettas is that they are super versatile. You can turn them into any meal of the day. Sometimes I top the bruschettas with poached eggs to serve them for brunch. They make really hearty breakfasts too. Add some salad greens and smoked salmon and you have a wholesome dinner. 

Bruschetta with roasted peppers and mozzarella recipe

Level: Easy     Preparation time: 5 mins     Cooking time: 15 mins     Serves: 5-6

Ingredients:

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced (about 2 teaspoons)
3 plum tomatoes
1 red bell pepper
1 jalapeno
1 small onion
1/2 cup pinto/cannellini beans, pre-cooked
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 cup spring onion, chopped
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
few dashes of tabasco
2 tbsp chopped cilantro/coriander leaves
Salt to taste
1 baguette  or similar French/Italian bread
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup mozzarella, grated

Instructions:

Broil all the veggies at the highest temperature possible for 5 minutes on each side.
Once they have cooled, chop them evenly.
Mix everything except the last three ingredients in a bowl. Check for seasonings. 
Using a bread knife slice the baguette diagonally into 12-14 half-inch thick slices.
Toast them until lightly browned on both sides, for about 2 minutes.
Then cut a clove of garlic in half and rub over one side of the toast.
Brush with olive oil and arrange on a serving tray.
Top each slice with a couple of tbsp of the bell pepper and tomato mix, sprinkle some mozzarella and serve immediately. 

Here is a great video on poached eggs if you wanted to turn this bruschetta into a full fledged brunch item!