The Tomato Lady Eases the Way

As I drove into town on the way home from the airport on Tuesday, I noticed that The Tomato Lady's Stand on Main Street, right next to the Cove Deli, was up and running. To ease back into cooking after my long vacation, I took a walk over there yesterday to buy a few tomatoes, which I turned into bruschetta. I could live for a month on tomato bruschetta alone, but must admit that supplementing the meal with some grilled garlic and cheese sausages from the IGA was not a bad idea at all.

Tomato Bruschetta
Serves 4 as a light lunch or hearty dinner accompaniment

I used Maldon Smoked Sea Salt (a souvenir from London) to season my tomatoes, but any good quality sea salt or kosher salt will do the trick.

4 medium tomatoes, about 1 1/2 pounds, cut into small dice
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil leaves
1/2 teaspoon sea salt, or more to taste
Eight 3/4-inch-thick slices country bread (if your loaf is large, like the pane di casa from Citarella's that I used, cut each slice in half)
2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil
1 garlic clove, peeled

1. Heat a gas grill to medium-high.
2. Combine the tomatoes, basil, and salt in a large bowl.
3. Brush both sides of each slice of bread with some olive oil. Lightly grill the bread, turning once, until golden, 1 to 3 minutes.
4. Rub the grilled bread slices with the garlic clove. Spoon some of the tomato mixture over each slice of bread. Serve immediately.