Tomato bruschetta
It’s been forever since I last cooked something for the Cooking Italy group which is all about the wonderful book “The Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking” by Marcella Hazan. You know how things like that go; in between cooking for the Daring Cooks, the Daring Bakers and various other cooking groups and challenges… it almost seems impossible to keep things up!
The problem is that I like them all, but reality is that I simply cannot do them all. Not all the time anyways… On top of that I had decided to lose weight (whatever happened to that…lol) and figured I could do without rich and creamy pasta sauces for a while. Well, I can tell you that it sure helps to not eat rich and creamy but it doesn’t help if you then end up baking chocolate cakes or other sweet and wonderful goodies! O well, as long as we’re healthy right? 
I bumped (yes, bumped… It’s a very large book….lol) into Marcella’s book last week and then figured it was about time I got back into cooking with the group. I totally love her recipes and the two I will share with you today are two prime examples how simple cooking can be soooo rewarding.
The first one is a delicious tomato bruschetta which is just simple and gorgeous all on it’s own. Works perfect as an appetizer, a snack or a light lunch. We had this together with the pasta as there is not a lot of greens in the pasta and I figured that instead of doing a salad I make a nice bruschetta. The bruschetta was on the Cooking Italy schedule even before I started with the group, but I hadn’t made it and I love all bruschetta’s.. so a natural choice!
It amazes me every single time how much flavor you get by simply rubbing a clove of garlic over a toasted piece of bread! The recipe said to spread the garlic over the bread but I tend to find that a bit too overpowering so I rubbed half a clove of garlic over the fresly toasted bread, sprinkled it with olive oil and put the tomatoes on top. Key in this recipe is to use good tomatoes. You do not want the watery type. That will just kill the taste of the bruschetta. So nice tomatoes, whatever variety you have in your area and remove the seeds for the most part and chop them in small pieces, mix with fresh basil and put on top of your warm toasted bread. Add some salt and pepper and you’re done!
And delicious it is!
By the time we got to the pasta it was dark, so not the best light to shoot a pasta dish. The pasta was incredible; there is hardly any ingredients in there and it is still very good and very tasty! You should give it a try!
SAUSAGE AND CREAM SAUCE (serves 4)
225 gr sweet sausage
1,5 tbsp chopped onion
25 gr of butter
1 tbsp of vegetable oil
freshly ground black pepper, salt and freshly grated parmezan for the table
150 ml whipping cream
450 gr of pasta (this sauce benefits from using a pasta shape that traps the sauce well, such as conchiglie or fusili
1. Skin the sausage and crumble it as fine as possible
2. Put the chopped onion, butter and vegetable oil in a small saucepan. Turn the heat to medium and cook until the onion becomes colored a pale gold, Add the crumbled sausage and cook for 10 minutes. Add a few grindings of pepper, all the cream, turn the heat to medium high and cook until the cream has thickened, stirring once or twice. Taste and correct for salt.
3. Toss the sauce with cooked, drained pasta and serve at once with grated parmesan on the side.
Pasta with cream and sausage
{ 27 comments… read them below or add one }
simone this looks divine. now i just want to come over for dinner!
Bruschetta is really the simplest thing anyone can make…and the tastiest! And I like the pasta dish as well…I must admit to never trying sausage with cream but it looks so good!
These look so wonderfully delicious. Can’t wait to make those.
Okay – that pasta might have to be dinner tomorrow!
Hi Simone, So glad you bumped into that book. The “rubbing” of the garlic is right way to do it. Sometimes bruscetta is made with way too much garlic and poor tomatoes fall away. Your tomatoes look so red and beautiful. I’m amazed that the sausage dish was so good. (it’s not the easiest dish to make look good is it?) The group asked about you just this week.
ah! love simple meals.. that’s I love pasta.. it’s so satisfying yet so easy to put together..
Btw.. why are you trying to lose weight??!
Yay, Cooking Italy is back! Beautiful bruschetta! It looks like we’ll have an early spring here in Montreal – I hope it means good tomatoes by the basket!
That bruschetta looks so fresh! I would love some
Bruschetta with fresh garden tomatoes is an amazing thing! That pasta looks delicious too!
Your bruschetta looks beautiful – like you I only recently made it for the group too, and now I’m making it all the time! I’m yet to try the pasta & sausage, but you’ve made it look wonderful.
We love bruschetta! with summer peeking in, we will have it every other day with the lovely tomatoes. The pasta is making me think dinner now.
Tomatoes are about the only food I’ve been moderately successful at growing, and my favorite way to eat them is turning them into a simple and delicious tomato bruschetta. I agree that rubbing a clove of garlic over the toast is the perfect compliment to the ripe, juicy tomatoes. Looks wonderful and is making me long for summer!
Bruschetta is my favorite! Ever had it with white beans instead of tomatoes? Or olives misti? Those seem to be popular on menus in Italy as far as antipasti go. I tend to revert to the tomatoes though. They’re so easy and you’re right – just deliciously simple!
No doubt simple is best! Creamy and dreamy! YUMMMM…. then reading your next post – cooking school… what a riot. What kind of a machine is that? Is it similar to a Thermomix? Do you have a Thermomix… how would you compare that machine to a Thermomix?
Valerie
Never tried using sausages for pasta! But it actually looks very good. And bruschetta is my all time favourite, easy to prepare meal. I would be happy by your table!
I love using good quality sausages in my pasta,…it makes all of the difference!
This pasta dish sings to me, Simone!
MMMMMMMM,….lovely food!
I love bruschetta, urs looks beautiful and delicous!
Simone….I love the recipes and the cooking, but when can I book for photography lessons???? You are a pro!!!
Oh, what I would give for a ripe tomato right about now…! I drooling over that bruschetta!
I love bruschetta. In the summer, when we have good tomatoes, we sometimes have that with a salad for dinner. …look at that pasta! Simple, good flavors, perfect. I don’t know how you manage to get good photos of pasta. Amazing!
This looks fabulous and so beautiful! I am thinking this is a must try using our favorite pasta made with Kamut Khorasan Wheat! Thanks for sharing this recipe and gorgeous picture!
Oh no, Simone, both the bruschetta and the pasta look fabulous and you have me dreaming of our years in Italy! Yum! We used to get gorgeous bruschette like this as an appetizer in one of our favorite restaurant in Milan and yours have brought it all back. Beautiful!
I love the sausage with cream pasta! The problem is I can never find the right sausage in Athens, at least not around where I live.
Great recipes and beautiful photos!
Your bruschetta looks appetizing and the pasta made my tummy rumbly.
I love bruschetta. It is a real staple at our home. My Italian girlfriend, Luciana introduced me to it about 20 years ago and I could not believe how such simple ingredients could create such a sensational taste explosion. I have been in love with it since. However, unlike you, I cannot get enough garlic. I have to be careful when I make it for guests not to overdue it. I find it is best the day I make it. I don’t add the salt or the garlic until just before serving – and yes, I add garlic right into mine with the tomatoes. Great photos!
I love Bruschetta! very nice blog!
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