Olive bruschetta is a simple bread topping made from chopped olives, spices, and sometimes other vegetables. Those who need a fast side dish, or just want a tasty pre-dinner snack, can usually whip up some olive bruschetta in very little time. The main ingredients are usually just olives, basil or tarragon, garlic, and minced onions. This mixture is usually tossed together with cheese and olive oil and then spread onto baguette slices. The bruschetta can then be baked in the oven for several minutes to melt the cheese, make the bread crispy, and warm the topping.
The first step to making an olive bruschetta usually involves choosing the olives. There are a wide variety of olives available in stores — from salty, green Spanish olives to smoky black olives. Purple and red kalamata olives are also options. Most olive bruschetta recipes call for more than one kind of olive, though the cook may choose any kinds he or she likes. For instance, a mixture of black and green olives would provide a salty-yet-mellow flavor. Combining kalamata olives with green olives would produce a very salty, tangy bruschetta mix.
Next, the cook has to decide what other kinds of vegetables and spices he or she is going to add to the bruschetta. Red onions, grape tomatoes, carrots, bell peppers, and celery are all viable vegetable options. These recipes also usually include minced garlic, basil, and sometimes parsley or tarragon. Fresh herbs are usually preferred over dried because they usually have a brighter flavor that stands up more easily to the saltiness of the olives. Cooks may choose just a few of these ingredients, or experiment with varying ratios of all of them.
All of the ingredients must be chopped up into small pieces, and the finished mixture should look a bit like colorful confetti. The cook may then add a dash of balsamic vinegar, if desired. The next main ingredient to go into olive bruschetta is olive oil. The oil should be light in flavor and color because the olives have a strong taste. Olive oil simply helps all of the flavors marry easily.
The cook should then add cheese. Mozzarella, especially fresh varieties, is traditional, but feta and goat cheese are also delicious. All of these ingredients may be allowed to marinate together until the bread is done warming, or be spread on top of the bread and baked along with it. Either way, the baguette should be sliced into thick slices and toasted in the oven until golden brown.
