Pan de Sal Bruschetta

I had two pieces of pan de sal leftover from last weekend. Pan de Sal literally means salted bread. It's the Filipino version of dinner rolls, except that we traditionally eat it for breakfast. The dough is made with flour, sugar, eggs, yeast, lard and salt. After the dough has been worked and has risen, it is then rolled in breadcrumbs prior to baking. This bread is very similar to the English muffins but instead of shaping them into discs and rolling them in cornmeal, the pan de sal is shaped into oblongs and rolled in breadcrumbs.

Anyway, back to my story. I was hungry and the two sorry looking, almost stale pan de sals were crying out to be consumed. Instead of slathering the things with just peanut butter, I decided to make an impromptu bruschetta made from tomatoes found in my crisper, a few slices of emmental cheese and some basil leaves plucked from my garden.



Pan de Sal Bruschetta
2 Pan de Sal, sliced in half
1 Clove of garlic, smashed
2 Tomatoes, diced
2-3 Basil leaves, sliced in ribbons
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt and Pepper to taste
A few slices of emmental or mozzarella cheese

1. Toast pan de sal until slightly brown.
2. Rub pan de sal with garlic.
3. Top toasts with emmental cheese.
4. In a separate bowl, mix tomatoes, basil, olive oil, salt and pepper. Mix to combine. Pour about a tablespoon on each pan de sal.
5. Toast for a few minutes to melt the cheese and wilt the tomato mixture.

Voila! An Italian twist to a Pinoy dinner roll.