Bruschetta

{{Infobox food

| name = Bruschetta

| image = 2014 Bruschetta The Larder Chiang Mai.jpg

| image_size = 250px

| caption = Bruschetta topped with a tomato salad, caramelized balsamic vinegar and Grana Padano cheese

| alternate_name =

| country = Italy

| region =

| creator =

| course = Antipasto

| type =

| served = Warm (bread only) or cold

| main_ingredient = Bread, garlic, olive oil

| variations = Tomatoes, vegetables, beans, cured meat, cheese

}}

Bruschetta ({{IPAc-en|b|r|u|ˈ|s|k|ɛ|t|ə|,_|-|ˈ|ʃ|ɛ|t|ə}}{{cite book |editor-last=Wells |editor-first=John |editor-link=John C. Wells |title=Longman Pronunciation Dictionary |publisher=Pearson Longman |edition=3rd |year=2008 |isbn=978-1-4058-8118-0|quote=bru ˈsket ə -ˈʃet ə —Italian [bɾu ˈsket ta]}} {{respell|broo|SKET|ə|,_-|SHET|ə}}, {{IPA|it|bɾuˈsketta|lang|It-Bruschetta.ogg}}) is an Italian appetizer (antipasto) consisting of grilled bread topped with garlic, olive oil, and salt. Most commonly it is served with toppings of tomatoes, vegetables, beans, cured meat or cheese. In Italy, bruschetta is often prepared using a {{lang|it|brustolina}} grill.

Etymology

The noun bruschetta ({{plural form}}: bruschette) comes from the Romanesco dialect verb bruscare, the equivalent of the Italian word abbrustolire, which means 'to toast', or 'to roast over coals'.{{cite book |title=An A to Z of Food and Drink |last=Ayto |first=John |year=2003 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford |isbn= 0192803514|page=44}}

Waverley Root noted in 1971 that bruschetto was the Roman term for the dish, with other Italians referring to it as schiena d'asino ({{literally|donkey's back}}).{{r|name="root"|page=91}}

In the United States, the word is sometimes used to refer to a prepared topping, sold in jars and usually tomato-based, instead of the bread, a sense which is unknown in Italian.{{cite news |title=The Toast Of Italy: Bruschetta South Florida Chefs Put Their Own Spin on Traditional Dish |author=Hartz-Seeley, Deborah S |date=August 21, 2008 |work=South Florida Sun-Sentinel |page=E7 |url=http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2008-08-21/features/0808190060_1_toasts-olive-oil-tomatoes|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180124135837/http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2008-08-21/features/0808190060_1_toasts-olive-oil-tomatoes|archive-date=2018-01-24|url-status=dead}}

History

Bruschetta was first documented in English by Elizabeth David in 1954.{{cite book

|entry=bruschetta

|title=Fowler's Concise Dictionary of Modern English Usage

|edition=3

|date=2016

|publisher=Oxford University Press

|isbn=978-0-19-966631-7

|editor-last=Butterfield

|editor-first=Jeremy

|page=95

}} David observed in Italian Food that "bruschetta are eaten with the newly made oil" in the olive oil-producing districts of Tuscany and Umbria.{{cite book

|chapter=Eggs, cheese dishes, pizze, etc.

|title=Italian Food

|date=1989

|publisher=Penguin Books

|isbn=978-0-140-27327-4

|last=David

|first=Elizabeth

|authorlink=Elizabeth David

|page=128

}}

Waverley Root and Marcella Hazan trace the origins of bruschetta to ancient Rome. According to Root, ancient Romans called bruschetta clustrum or crustulum. An inscription found in the Sabine city of Cures documents that clustrum was distributed to people together with mulsum on important holidays such as Saturnalia.{{cite book

|chapter=III. Lazio

|title=The Food of Italy

|date=1977

|publisher=Vintage Books

|isbn=0-394-72429-1

|last=Root

|first=Waverley

|authorlink=Waverley Root

}}{{rp|page=103}} Hazan states that bruschetta's origins are "probably nearly as old as that of olive oil itself". In ancient Rome, the first taste of olive oil was "likely an oil-soaked piece of bread that may or may not have been rubbed with garlic". In modern times, bruschetta was a staple of the trattoria that made up "for the frugality of the fare". Over time, the dish gained popularity and made its way into the cuisines of higher social classes.{{cite book

|chapter=Antipasti

|title=The Classic Italian Cookbook

|date=1976

|publisher=Alfred A. Knopf

|isbn=0-394-40510-2

|last=Hazan

|first=Marcella

|authorlink=Marcella Hazan

|page=49

}}

The International Culinary Center dates bruschetta to the Middle Ages, when toppings were served on bread instead of plates.{{cite book

|chapter=Antipasti

|title=The Fundamental Techniques of Classic Italian Cuisine

|date=2012

|publisher=Stewart, Tabori & Chang

|isbn=978-1-58479-990-0

|author=International Culinary Center

|authorlink=International Culinary Center

|page=40

}}

Types

In the Abruzzo region of Italy, a variation of bruschetta made with ventricina is served. Raw pork products and spices encased in pig bladder are aged and the paste spread on open slices of bread which are sometimes grilled.{{Cite web

|url=http://www.hannahfoods.net/mainproducts.html

|title=bruschetta

|work=Hannah International Foods

|year=2010

|access-date=2010-01-05

|url-status=dead

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100227184122/http://www.hannahfoods.net/mainproducts.html

|archive-date=2010-02-27

}} The dish was developed as a way of salvaging bread that was going stale.{{cite book|author-link=John F. Mariani|last=Mariani|first=John|year=1998|title=The Dictionary of Italian Food and Drink|publisher=Broadway Books|location=New York|page=45|ISBN=0767901290}}

According to the International Culinary Center, the term bruschetta is sometimes used interchangeably with crostini and the Tuscan dish fettunta. In Tuscany, fettunta is usually served without toppings, especially in November, to taste the first oil of the season.{{cite web|url=http://www.welcometuscany.it/special_interest/wine_food_olive_oil/tuscan-food-recipes-italian-culinary-tuscany/tuscan-appetizer/Fettunta%20Toasted%20bread%20with%20olive%20oil.htm|title=Fettunta Toasted bread with olive oil|access-date=21 March 2012|archive-date=9 May 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120509095010/http://www.welcometuscany.it/special_interest/wine_food_olive_oil/tuscan-food-recipes-italian-culinary-tuscany/tuscan-appetizer/Fettunta%20Toasted%20bread%20with%20olive%20oil.htm|url-status=dead}}

File:Bruschetta.jpg|Bruschetta with chopped tomatoes and basil

File:Bruschetta 02 schinken.jpg|Bruschetta with olive oil and prosciutto