Tomato and Basil Bruschetta and Creamy Farfalle

Bruschetta is one of the easiest and quickest ways to make a snack which is light on the calories and hard on the satisfying part. There are a million of ways to top French bread, but the classic bruschetta is an all time favourite.

Tomato and Basil Bruschetta

You will need:

½ French bread loaf
2 tbsp Olive oil
1 clove of Garlic
2 Plum tomatoes chopped
Salt and Pepper
½ cup Fresh Basil roughly chopped
Parmesan shavings (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 F. Cut garlic in half and set aside.

Slice the loaf into ½” thick slices. Place on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Place in the oven for 5-8 minutes till the bread turns crisp. Alternately you could toast the slices in an open pan on the stovetop.

Meanwhile, to the chopped tomatoes, add 1 tsp of Olive Oil, salt and pepper. Stir in the basil leaves.

While the slices are hot, rub them with the cut side of the garlic to infuse flavour into the bread. Top with the tomatoes and garnish with parmesan shavings. Slide a vegetable peeler against a slab of parmesan cheese and you get nice wide shavings.

Serve immediately.

Creamy Farfalle

Farfalle is one of my favourite pastas after Penne of course. I am always well stocked on both and is such a breather when I need to make a quick meal just for myself. When my hubby takes off for lunch on a weekday with his colleagues instead of coming home, I feel lazy to cook rice and daal for myself, that’s when pastas comes into the picture.

You will need:

1 Cup Farfalle (Bow-tie pasta)
½ Red Bell pepper thinly sliced
¼ Cup fresh peas
½ cup chopped fresh Basil
Salt and pepper
2 tbsps Cream
1 tbsp Olive oil
1 clove of Garlic thinly sliced

Bring water in a pot to a boil. Salt the water and add the farfelle, cook for 6 minutes, till done. Drain and keep aside.

Heat oil in a pan. Add the sliced garlic and bell pepper. Saute till done. Add the cream and peas. Simmer, till the peas are done. Stir in the farfalle and basil. Season with salt and pepper and serve.

Tomato and Basil Bruschetta is my entry to Game Night party over at Fun and Food.

I'm also sending in Santa Fe Wraps with Classic Mexican Salsa to the same event. The salsa can be made ahead of time and the wraps can be fixed in a snap.