Cheese n Bread Tartlets

Cheeeeeeese….what is it about this wonderful creation of God (or some Italian?) that can make anybody  gleeful with verbal spurts of ooohhs and aaahs..hot or cold,mozzarella or parmesan, fondue or  cheesecake, it doesn’t really matter as it tastes divine in any form. I had the privilege of visiting a Cheese Factory in Edinburgh (where my li’l sis stays) and although there was nothing factoryish about the visit ..all we could see were some women behind a huge glass pane dunking cheese roundels in some kind of a wax seal..but the variety of cheese on sale was astounding..I picked up  some Whiskey cheese and managed to transport it back home without it getting spoilt…Since I don’t want to waste such a treasured commodity on everyday sandwich use, I try and use it in different ways so that hubby and I can talk about the cheese afterwards :)) This is a super easy and very impressive starter to make..I call it Bread Tartlets for the little bread tarts of  cheese,olive,figs and tomatoes..you can make up your own combination..maybe pineapple or raisins or dates..anything sweet to complement that tartness of the cheese…. 

Ingredients (makes 8 , less if bread size is smaller)

4 brown bread slices

1 tomato , cut into chunks

4 olives, cut into halves

2-3 dried figs, cut into quarters

Cheddar cheese, cut into small chunks

Olive oil

Dried herbs

1.      Trim the edges of the bread slices and flatten each slice with a rolling pin (belan). Roll 3-4 times over the slice till it is flattened

2.      Using your muffin mould or any other round cutter , cut out two circles from the bread slice. If your bread slice is small, you might be able to get only one circle

3.      Grease the muffin mould with olive oil and place the cut bread circle in the mould lightly.

4.      Fill the bread with 2 tomato chunks, one olive half, one fig piece and cheese chunks

5.      Sprinkle some dried herbs and few olive oil drops

6.      Bake in a pre-heated oven at 200 deg C for 10 minutes or till the bread turns crisp and golden brown. Place the muffin moulds in the center rack of the oven.

7.      When slightly cold, remove from the mould and serve quickly, otherwise the tartlets will not be crisp.

You will have left over bread from the edges ..either dry it and make breadcrumbs or do what I do…feed the little sparrows :))

And these are what that tartlets look like before entering the oven..