W arrived bearing a lovely red wine. He had originally looked for a Portuguese wine called Sexy, but when the liquor store didn’t have it, he asked them what their sexiest wine in stock was and brought that. The 2009 Flor d’Englora Roure from Spain was indeed perfect, and although I sometimes find red wine a bit heavy, this blend of grapes (63% red granache, 32% carignan, 2% merlot, 2% syrah, 1% ull de llebre) delivered exactly what W had asked for.

All this talk of sexy wine was rather distracting and I burned some of the baguette I was toasting for the bruschetta! Luckily that was quickly rectified as I had plenty left so just cut more, rebrushed on some olive oil, and stuck fresh pieces in the oven.

We hung out into the very early hours of the morning, and everything went over well. W was the perfect eater- big appetite, loved everything, and gives an honest critique of each dish. On top of all that, I like his company, so as long as he’s willing to let me experiment on him, he’ll be welcome any time. I’m already thinking about what to cook next.

More of the recipes will follow in future posts, but in honour of the sexy wine, I’m putting up the bruschetta recipe first. It’s inspired by a version from Elise’s fabulous Simply Recipes. I generally cook through visual and tasting cues, so I’ve done my best to put in amounts here, but they’re all approximate. Mix it up as you deem fit. And do get the wine.

4 cloves garlic, minced (adjust amount to your taste- 2-3 cloves will be sufficient for most!!)

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

balsamic vinegar to taste (I love balsamic vinegar and probably used about a tablespoon)

8 fresh basil leaves, torn (also love love love basil, so use less if desired)

salt and pepper to taste

6-8 slices French baguette, cut diagonally

additional extra virgin olive oil to coat the baguette

2 cloves of garlic, cut in half, to rub on the baguette, optional

Cut x-shaped slits in the bottom of each tomato. Bring a pot of water to boil, and put the tomatoes in for 1-2 minutes, until the skins start to peel back. Take the tomatoes out with a slotted spoon and remove the skins (start peeling from the x shaped slits at the bottom for easiest removal). If the tomatoes are too hot to handle, run them briefly under cool water, or rub the tips of your fingers on an ice cube periodically (a tip from Elise). Remove the seeds by cutting the tomatoes in half and squeezing each half so the seeds come out. Cut out the tough stem part of each tomato.

Chop up the tomatoes and add to a bowl with the minced garlic, extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar and torn basil leaves. Season with salt and pepper.

Rub the baguette slices with the cut side of the garlic cloves and coat with oil, either by brushing it on, or dipping them into a small bowl of it. Toast them in the toaster oven (marker/ timer 5) or regular oven at 450F for 5-6 minutes or until slices are golden brown. If using the toaster oven, place them olive oil side up, and if in the regular oven, place them olive oil side down on a baking sheet.

Lay the baguette slices, olive oil side up, on a serving plate, and scoop the tomato mixture on top. Enjoy with sexy wine and good company.

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