Easy Summer Recipes: Tomato Basil Bread with Bruschetta

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I don’t think there’s anything better than a house filled with the smell of freshly baked bread. It just takes me back to a warm safe zone where I’m comfortable and relaxed. Pair freshly baked bread with delicious dips and toppings and I’m pretty much set. Especially during the warm summer months.

I absolutely love to bake but one of my greatest fears for the longest time was using yeast in my baking. But one day I got up, put my big girl panties on, and started experimenting. And you know what? Baking with yeast wasn’t as hard as I thought. In fact it was kind of fun. Being able to form something with a handful of ingredients and watch it rise, fall, and rise again and then pull it out all golden brown and delicious is quite rewarding.

Now normally I’d head to the garden to grab some ripened tomatoes and fresh basil but my tomato plants are still green. So to make this recipe quick and easy I used delicious Hunt’s petite diced tomatoes. I love being able to stock up on tomatoes when I am not quite ready to pick my own. Luckily we still had plenty of fresh basil to grab! 

One of my favorite easy summer recipes includes individual bread loaves – or baguettes – sliced and paired with different bruschettas. It’s a great appetizer or can even be a meal replacement when you add a great soup or salad.

Regular old bread just didn’t seem to cut it for me this time around so I decided to experiment and create a bread that had the flavors of my favorite bruschetta baked right in. It sounded like a great flavor combo and one that my friends would love to enjoy at our next girls night in.

The fun part of baking bread from scratch is actually getting my hands dirty. I’m able to feel the dough and watch how it changes from a bunch of different ingredients to one solid, smooth ball. And this dough doesn’t need much work. Just a simple kneading before letting it proof to incorporate all of the ingredients, gives the dough some elasticity, and get enough flour mixed in.

After kneading the bread the fun part begins. Watching the magic of rising bread has always fascinated me. And I love how it fascinates my kids as well. I thought it’d be fun to share the different stages of bread making in a short video with photos I took of the process. Check out the video below to watch bread magic!

Hungry now? Check out the recipe below.

Making the bruschetta to go along with the bread was simple. I grabbed another can of Hunt’s diced tomatoes (not the petite kind… but those would have worked), another handful of basil, and some olive oil. I chopped up the basil and mixed everything together in a bowl. I then salted to taste and let the family enjoy. Easy peasy!

With the addition of the Hunt’s canned tomatoes I picked up at Walmart, I was able to create a delicious bread and bruschetta the whole family loves. Hunt’s uses a unique flashsteam peeling method. That means after they can each tomato for their diced, stewed, and whole varieties (within hours of picking it from the field), they then FlashSteam their tomatoes with only water—no lye.

Find more great recipes and information on Hunt’s tomatoes at www.hunts.com and www.readyseteat.com.

What’s your favorite summertime appetizer or side?