Tomato, Olive and Caper CrostiniPrint Recipe

There is almost nothing better than sharing good food & wine amongst friends and whilst I was living in Chicago I made some great friends. The Flatmans (Kim, Shane and Hugo) were one family we spent a lot of time with. We had a lot of dinners together including a couple of great dinner parties at their apartment. The food was always fabulous and the wine, well that’s another story – let’s just say that we were very privileged.

Shane whipped these up one night when he was taking control of the kitchen. They were so good and we ate so many that we could hardly get through the rest of his dinner which was as equally sensational.

Of course I immediately asked for the recipe and surprisingly it was relatively simple. A few choice ingredients, together with olives and capers that really add a salty kick to the basic tomato flavour.

We may not have the company of the Flatmans anymore but at least we can enjoy their crostini – a small consolation for leaving dear friends.

1 baguette cut into ½ inch thick pieces
5 tablespoons of olive oil
10 canned or very ripe fresh tomatoes
12 stoned black olives, coarsely chopped
1 ½ tablespoons of salted capers, washed and dried
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 cloves of garlic, peeled

Arrange slices of bread on a baking tray.

Put 3 tablespoons of olive oil into a large frying pan. If you are using canned tomatoes they will need to be drained and coarsely chopped. If you are using fresh tomatoes they will need to be blanched in boiling water for 1 minute, peeled, seeded and chopped.

Add the tomatoes to the oil and cook over a medium to high heat for 10 minutes, stirring regularly. Add the olives and capers and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Heat the grill and toast the bread lightly on both sides. Rub the hot toast with the garlic and arrange on a serving platter. Sprinkle with the remaining oil and spoon a little of the tomato, olive and caper mixture on each slice of baguette. Serve immediately.

Source: Kim and Shane Flatman – our sorely missed friends.

© 2010 – 2011, Michelle. All rights reserved.