Pesto Tomato Toast | A Delicious & Easy Snack in Just 15 Minutes!
I made this toast recently when I had a hankering one afternoon for something a little sweet and a little savory. Using leftover cherry tomatoes and some freshly grown basil, I whipped up a little pesto and assembled this delicious spring-time toast in just 15 minutes.
If you’ve never made pesto before, don’t worry; it’s way easier than you think. What I’ve found with cooking, is that it’s about tweaking and modifying recipes to suit your palette; there’s never a need to be overly precious when it comes to following every step to a T. Maybe you want more garlic and less lemon. Or maybe you want to substitute pine nuts for pistachios.
My best advice? Experiment til your heart’s content!
Equipment
- Food processor
Ingredients
- Freshly baked bread of your choosing (from your grocery store or corner bakery)
- 1 tablespoon, butter
- 1 clove, garlic
- 1/4 cup and 1 tablespoon, extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup, pine nuts
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 1/3 cup, freshly grated Parmesan (opt for high-quality Italian variety from your local grocer or cheesemonger; it makes a huge difference!)
- 1 cup, fresh basil (reserve a few leaves; chop them up for garnish)
- 3 cups, cherry tomatoes
- Salt
- Pepper
- Balsamic glaze
Instructions
Pesto
- Toast the pine nuts in a frying pan on medium heat until they become fragrant
- Once finished toasting, add to the food processor, along with grated Parmesan, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, and basil
- Blend until smooth; taste and feel free to add more of any of the ingredients until you achieve a flavor profile you enjoy
Sautéed Tomatoes
- In the same frying pan, add the cherry tomatoes, with 1 tablespoon of olive oil
- Sauté until they achieve a charred appearance; add salt and pepper to taste
Toasted Bread
- Using the frying pan (totally ok if there are still tomato bits in it; they’ll add extra flavor), add a tablespoon of butter
- Lay the fresh bread on top and toast until golden brown
- Remove from heat and add a tablespoon of fresh peston on top
- Include the sauteed tomatoes
- Drizzle store-bought balsamic glaze
- Garnish with fresh basil
As they say in Portuguese, bom apetite!
xoxo
