Bruschetta?

We had planned to eat bruschetta on Monday since early on Sunday morning when Ann surprised me by pulling a bowl of bread dough from the oven where it had been fermenting overnight. We planned to go to the movies on Sunday afternoon and as it worked out, after eating junk food at the late afternoon movie, we weren't going to need any dinner and so we postponed the bread until Monday.

Another Awesome Loaf from Ann

We were all set for bruschetta on Monday, with plenty of ripe tomatoes and bunches of basil from the garden. I was all ready to grill the bread after it baked. I was salivating for bruschetta.

I should have known. I really should, after all these years with Ann, I really should have known it was coming. "I don't want bruschetta," she threw out about mid-afternoon and apropos of exactly nothing while we were binging on The Wire, "I want pasta." And to put the exclamation point on that statement, she went and dredged out a box of rotini from wherever she keeps her stash. At that point, it was futile to argue that I wanted gloriously toasted bread with tomatoes and basil on top. No, at that point, it was just best to shut up and get on with the pasta.

Pasta with Tomatoes, Garlic, and Basil

There is no better way to eat pasta than in the summer when you gently heat slivered garlic in extra virgin olive oil, toss in raw diced tomatoes, and a handful of basil just to warm everything through. And then you unceremoniously dump the tomatoes on top of a bowl of hot pasta and dig in. There is nothing at all wrong with this delicious seasonal pasta...except that it is not bruschetta!