Those who do like it tend to love its pungent aromas, creamy texture, and veins of blue mould. That cauldron of characteristics, in combination with the sweetness of honey, the odorific pleasures of raw garlic, the bite of freshly cracked black pepper, and the texture of a well-toasted slice of rustic bread make this easy-to-assemble apply a very heady experience.
Cooking Time: Less than 15 minutes
Yield: Serves 4 as an appetizer
INGREDIENTS:
4 slices rustic country-style or sourdough bread
2 garlic cloves
4 Tbsp walnut oil, hazelnut oil, or best available olive oil
8 ounces Saint Agur, or another creamy blue cheese
1⁄2 cup best available honey
(Coarsely) ground black pepper (either adjust your grinder to a coarser grind, or grind a few peppercorns in a mortar and pestle)
DIRECTIONS:
Toast your bread in a panini maker, over a grill, in a toaster, or toaster oven until it is very brown and crispy.
Immediately after toasting the bread, rub a garlic clove over the entire surface of one side. Each slice should use up about a quarter to a third of a clove. (Be careful: when the garlic meets the toast’s hot surface, it will create fumes that will sting your eyes.)
Generously drizzle oil overtop each slice. Then schmear each slice generously with cheese. Generously drizzle honey over top and finish with the pepper. Slice bruschetta and serve immediately.
Credits: Flavorbomb Cookbook (seen below), photographer (Suzi Q Varin).
Gastronaut, author, and eight-time Guinness World Record holder Bob Blumer is best known as the creator and host of Food Network’s award-winning shows Surreal Gourmet, Glutton for Punishment, and World’s Weirdest Restaurants. He has also written seven cookbooks in which he transforms ordinary ingredients into wow-inspiring dishes through simple cooking methods and whimsical presentations that have become his culinary trademark. His 7th book Flavorbomb: A Rogue Guide to Making Everything Taste Better is a collection of the tricks, tips, hacks and techniques he gleaned as he ate his way around the globe for the past 25 years. The Toronto Sun says “Blumer once again pushes boundaries, but in a way that encourages readers to let go their own culinary hesitations to create simple meals built on layers of flavor.”
Bob is a long-term ambassador for Second Harvest, Toronto, a perishable food bank. He is also the ambassador for Love Food/Hate Waste, a national Canadian zero-waste initiative. When he is not traveling for work or pleasure, the transplanted Canadian cycles daily in the canyons near his home in the Hollywood Hills, doing his best to stay in shape for his next big adventure.
