Caramelized Mixed Bell Pepper Bruschetta

These crunchy, sweet and tart open bruschetta are delicious anytime as a snack or casual hors d'oeuvre along with some cocktails.

If you cannot find Italian ham, feel free to use a Spanish Serrano ham or similar.  The key is it needs to have a smokey flavour and above all ... be cut extremely thin, almost see-through.  I just love the way the sweetness of the peppers work with the sharpness in the Parmesan, along with the smokey flavour that lingers on the palette.

Garlic or less garlic is the question?  Smearing hot toasted bread with fresh garlic carries a HUGE punch of flavour.  If you are not too keen on garlic, then go easy on the smear.  Believe me, the lightest of garlic rub allows you to taste its distinctive flavour.

This is one of my all-time go-to favourites!

Enjoy
~ Michelle ~

Caramelized Mixed Bell Pepper Bruschetta

Serves 2 - 4

2 Tbsp good olive oil
1 red bell pepper, seeded and sliced
1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and sliced
1 red onion, sliced
1 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp fresh basil, finely slithered
Salt & pepper to taste
1 baguette
2 cloves garlic peeled and halved
8 slices smoked Italian ham
Parmesan, shaved
Dill for garnish

Heat olive oil in a saute pan on a medium heat.  Add peppers and onion, and cook until soft.  This should take about 8 - 10 minutes.  Sprinkle peppers with sugar and cook for a further 2 minutes to caramelize.  Stir in basil and season generously with salt & pepper.

Slice baguette into 1 inch thick slices on the diagonal and brush lightly with some olive oil.  Place evenly on a baking tray and bake in a 180'c oven for 5 minutes until  lightly browned.  Remove from the oven and whilst still hot, rub one side of the toasted bread with garlic.

Now to dress ... top each slice of bread with a piece of ham, warm pepper mix and a generous amount of shaved Parmesan.  Drizzle the top with a little olive oil and sprinkle with a little fresh dill.  Serve immediately.




  

Butternut, Chicken & Tarragon Tart

A tart, quiche call it what you like, is seriously the easiest thing to whip up midweek for dinner. The additional bonus is ... you get to use fridge leftovers!

Seriously, yes I am sorry to bring you ANOTHER quiche recipe, although I have labelled this one a tart - which is a red herring, hoping you wouldn't notice.  Officially classified as a quiche, the 3 : 1 formula applies - that is 3 eggs to 1 cup dairy or in this case a little more dairy to make it luxe.

I always use a store-bought roasted chicken, as I don't see the point in doing it yourself midweek when the stores do a fantastic rotisserie effort for you.  You can use any leftover veg in your fridge, just think about the flavours.  Some veg are more bland than others and need a little pop of something - in this case Piri Piri as we call it in South Africa - AKA HOT CHILLI POWDER to everyone else.  

Butternut, Chicken & Tarragon Tart

Serves 4 - 6

Crust:

• 1 cup cake flour
• 1 cup Parmesan, grated
• 1/2 cup butter melted
• 1/2 tsp mustard powder
• 1/2 tsp pepper

Filling:

• 100 butternut, small dice
• 200g goat's cheese feta
• 200g chicken, store-bought cooked and diced
• 3 eggs
• 200g cream cheese
• 1 tsp English mustard powder
• 1/2 cup milk
• 3/4 cup cream
• 1 tsp dried French Tarragon
• Pinch Piri piri / Chilli powder

Heat oven to 160'C.

Add crust ingredients into a food processor and whizz for 30 seconds until pea-like crumbs are formed.  Grease a pie dish before adding the crumble.  Using the back of a spoon, press crumble in the base and up the sides firmly.  Bake as is for 10 minutes and allow to cool before adding any filling.

Microwave diced butternut for 2 minutes to get cooking process started.  Crumble feta onto cooled base, adding chicken thereafter and finally butternut.

To make custard simply mix eggs, cream cheese, mustard, milk, cream, tarragon and piri piri.  Pour over the filling in the base and bake 42 min until golden brown.  Allow to cool to room temp before serving.

Home-made Fresh Basil Pesto

A jar of home-made #basil pesto in the fridge goes a long way. This is my friend Carol's awesome recipe and my top 5-favourite ways to use it:

• Mixed with butter and dolloped on top of a steak.
• Tossed in some steaming hot Linguine with Parmesan shavings. 
• Mixed with cream cheese to make a sandwich spread instead replacing butter. 
• Spread on a garlic crostini with parma ham and sundried tomato.
• Placed in the centre of a brie cheese before coating and lightly frying.  

Fresh Green Basil Pesto

100g fresh Basil leaves, washed
1/2 cup olive oil
30g tbsp pine nuts
2 cloves garlic, minced
60g Parmesan / percorino cheese, grated
Some freshly squeezed lemon
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Whizz the basil leaves, oil, pine nuts and garlic in a blender until smooth.
Gradually add cheese and a teaspoon or two of the lemon juice, salt and pepper

Taste and adjust the lemon, salt & pepper seasoning

Bruschetta with Sweet Peppers, Italian Ham and Parmesan

I am having a wonderful day playing in the kitchen testing (and tweaking) a few recipes I found in Paris last week to share with you. Feeling a little hungry though, so time to make one of Shaun and my favourite snacks.  It is so easy and also great as an appetiser when entertaining.  Here we go ...

Good olive oil
1 red bell pepper, seeded & sliced
1 yellow bell pepper, seeded & sliced
1 red onion, sliced
1 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp fresh basil, cut into slithers
Salt & pepper to taste
1 baguette
2 garlic cloves for rubbing
8 slices Italian ham
Parmesan, shaved
Dill for garnish

Heat 2 tbsp oil on a medium heat in a saute pan.
Add peppers, onion and cook until soft - about 10 minutes.
Sprinkle with sugar and cook for a further 2 min.
Stir in basil and season with salt & pepper.
Slice baguette 1 inch thick on the diagonal and brush lightly with a little olive oil.
Place on a baking sheet and bake in the oven for about 5 min at 180'C until lightly browned.
Whilst still hot rub one side with the garlic cloves.
Top each slice with ham, WARM pepper mix and a generous amount of shaved Parmesan.
Drizzle with a little olive oil, sprinkle some dill and serve immediately.

This is oh-so-delicious.  Try it and let me know how if you like it!