Restaurant Food at Home for Less: Bruschetta

After being inspired by a recent anniversary dinner at a fancy restaurant, I decided to try recreating one of my favorite appetizers – bruschetta.

Bruschetta is an appetizer that originated in Italy. It consists of a small piece of toasted or grilled bread that is rubbed with garlic and topped with olive oil, salt, pepper, or other seasonings. American bruschetta is also commonly topped with cheese, basil, and tomatoes.

The bruschetta I copied is a version of the common cheese/tomato appetizer. I had a lot to go from since the menu at the restaurant informed me that the bruschetta topping was made from goat cheese with a marinade of olives and balsamic vinegar. On the side were diced tomatoes with basil seasoning. The dish I came up with tasted almost exactly like the restaurant dish, and cost much less!

Ingredients:
Bread for grilling or toasting – French or Italian
Small portion of Goat cheese (I found goat cheese with basil mixed in already, or you can mix in your own)
Basil
6-7 Green olives
1 can Diced tomatoes
1 tsp. Balsamic vinegar
1 tsp. Olive Oil
1 clove Garlic (you can also use garlic salt)

Method:
Mince a handful of green olives (about 6-7) and place in a small bowl. You can use a food processor for a finer mince. Drizzle the olives with balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Mix well.
In another bowl, combine diced tomatoes (canned or fresh) with about 3 tsp. basil and mix.
Slice bread at an angle and place on a clean surface to prepare for seasoning.
Rub with a smashed clove of garlic, or sprinkle with garlic salt. Drizzle both sides with olive oil and sprinkle with a pinch of salt, pepper, and basil. For authentic bruschetta, grill the bread pieces on a grill. You can get a smiliar effect from using an electric kitchen grill as shown below. You can also broil for several minutes on each side until bread is golden brown, use a toaster oven, or a hot regular oven to toast the bread.
To serve:
Roll cheese into a ball and create a cylinder shape. Place cheese on appetizer plate. Spoon a thin layer of olive mixture onto the top of cheese cylinder. Place a small amount of tomato/basil mixture around the cheese and arrange toasted bread on the outside of the plate.
When ready to eat, spread cheese/olives onto toast and top with tomatoes. Enjoy!
Restaurant bruschetta: $14 (!)
My home-made similar bruschetta: $5
Total savings: $9

Thrifty Wardrobe Makeover

With today's economy and our growing concern for the environment, people are scrambling to find inexpensive and earth-friendly ways to revamp their old clothes, or get a new wardrobe for less money. Clothing reconstruction - or taking an old garment and giving it a new life as something new - fits both of these purposes. It saves money (if you use your own old clothes, it's virtually free!) and it prevents textile waste that could otherwise end up in our landfills. I decided to try my hand at some clothing reconstruction projects and can say from experience that even if you don't succeed, it is still a great learning experience and lots of fun!

I took a recent trek to the local thrift store with one thing in mind: how can I turn these used items into something new? One thing that helped my adventure was to view the pieces of clothing not as garments, but as fabric. I focused my search on finding large pieces of nice fabric – which meant finding the largest sizes possible – or colors that stuck out to me. I ended up getting about 7 sweaters, most of which were 100% wool, and about 6 large and colorful T-Shirts. The grand shopping total was less than $40. Think of all the fabric I got for $40! Incredible! So now I was left to wonder what I was going to do with all that stuff. For the first of my clothing reconstruction attempts, please read on. I will post more updates as I complete other projects. This is an ongoing process as I am constantly learning, experimenting, and getting new creative ideas.

One lumpy sweater (I was struck with the stripes and colors of this piece) took on a new life as…a skirt!

Here is the sweater before any reconstruction took place:

I removed the arms and cut off the top of the sweater. The bottom edge ribbing became the waistband with a little adjusting and alteration of the side seams.

I could have stopped here, but the skirt is a bit short, and lacks some personality. I decided to add a bottom band to the skirt for contrast and length. The sweater arms, when cut straight, became the bottom band of the skirt.
It still needs a lining, and I can do that with some simple knit – I could even use one of the old large T-shirts I found!

Thrift Store Sweater Skirt: $4 Comparable department store skirt: $50 Total savings: $46

Stay tuned for some more reconstructed clothing blog posts and ideas!

For more information and ideas on clothing reconstruction, check out Ohio State University Extension's Recycled Clothing fact sheet.