Spinach & Cheese Bruschetta

Thank Goodness for the Food Network and my friend, Giada! I was watching yesterday, as I do every afternoon, and Giada made the most awesome bruschetta. Well, if you like spinach you’ll think it’s awesome, if not, you might be making a face right now. Trust me, this was very tasty and a very unique take on bruschetta. I used to be a picky eater and would be making a face too, but now I eat greens and really like them. I feel like a grown up. And since I’m a grown up, I can actually cook the yummy dishes that I see on the Food Network. My mama and daddy are so proud that I finally grew up and decided that vegetables are actually quite yummy! 

How could I not like greens, this bruschetta looks pretty tasty, right? This is a closer pic so you can see how yummy it really looks.

As I was saying, one of my bffs, Giada, was whipping up this interesting bruschetta and it looked pretty easy so I decided to give it a try. She just sautéed a little garlic in EVOO, threw in some spinach, put it on bread, topped with cheese and baked. Sounds pretty easy, right? Well, I’ll give you the official directions so you can make it too. I made this for two so I cut back the total amounts by more than half. You can change as you see fit, but here are the full, official directions.

Ingredients

Toasts:

• 1 (1-pound) loaf ciabatta bread, trimmed and cut into 14 (1/2-inch thick) slices (I used 4 slices of a whole grain french loaf that I already had. You can used whatever floats your boat)
• Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
• 1 garlic clove, halved

Topping:

• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 12 ounces (12 cups) baby spinach (I used about 4 cups for two people)
• Kosher salt
• 2 cups (4 ounces) shredded fontina cheese (I don’t happen to keep fontina cheese on hand, so I used parmesan and mozzarella. I just sprinkled on top until I thought it was enough)

Directions

For the toasts: Put an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. (P.S. – I didn’t use parchment paper either) 

Arrange the bread slices in a single layer on the baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Bake until light golden, about 10 minutes. Cool for 2 minutes. Rub the warm toasts with the cut side of the garlic. Set aside.

For the topping: In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and cook until the garlic is fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add 1/2 of the spinach and stir until it begins to wilt, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add the remaining spinach and cook until wilted, about 2 minutes. Season with salt, to taste. Using tongs, arrange the spinach on top of the toasts. Sprinkle with cheese and bake for 5 to 8 minutes until the cheese is melted and bubbling. Season with salt and cool for 2 minutes.

Transfer to platter and enjoy!