New Year's Tenderloin Bruschetta

I'm calling this recipe New Year's Tenderloin Bruschetta (a) because I made it as a New Year's Eve accompaniment to a veritable bacchanal of premium caviar and Russian vodka shots, and (b) because I made my recipe, Marinated Tenderloin of Beef with Sauce Béarnaise for Christmas and had a fair amount of leftover tenderloin that I vowed wasn't going to go to waste.

I was pretty confused with the fairly recent rise of Bruschetta as a frequent trendy appetizer on many restaurant menus these days.  The idea of putting stuff on a piece of bread - or a cracker, or piece of toast - as something to eat has been around for centuries and in almost every wheat-eating, bread-making culture.  And, as it turns out, so has Bruschetta.  We just never heard the name in the U.S. until a few years ago, and menu marketing gurus loved the term.

Bruschetta - pronounced "broo-sketta" - comes from the Italian word "bruscare," which means "to roast over coals." Bruschetta is traditionally made with wide slices of rustic Italian or sourdough bread, brushed with with garlic, drizzled with olive oil, salted and toasted.  The classic Bruschetta, or Bruschetta Classico, is topped with diced tomatoes and fresh basil, mixed with olive oil and a little salt.  My recipe is an embellishment of that. 

Incidentally, if you don't use olive oil and garlic to toast the bread, you don't have Bruschetta.  You have Crostini.  Italians love to complicate the names of their food.  Where else could you have over a hundred different names for pasta simply based on its shape?

Now a few precursor editorial comments on this recipe:

• First, you probably don't have any leftover tenderloin.  That's okay.  Just buy a nice, thick beef filet steak, slice it into eight thin slices, and saute them in hot olive oil for about a minute on each side.

• Secondly, I had the good fortune to have been sent some Bruschetta seasonings as a Christmas gift, and that is the ingredient I used to mix into my mayonnaise base.  You won't have that either, but I think Mrs. Dash Tomato, Basil & Garlic Seasoning will be a close approximation.  Or use about a 1/2 teaspoon each of powdered garlic, salt, basil, paprika and oregano.  Add some finely minced green olives if you're feeling really industrious.  Really, you can season your mayonnaise base anyway you like it.

• Thirdly, I was also given in my Christmas stocking a bottle of Blood Orange Balsamic Vinegar that is so good, I could drink it right our of the bottle.  In fact, I did. But I doubt you'll have any of that on hand, or even be able to find it in the typical grocery store.  That's okay.  A good premium balsamic vinegar will work just as well.

• Finally, I didn't use the traditional large loaf of Italian bread.  I wanted a smaller, more "hors d'oeuvre"- sized Bruschetta (if that description makes any culinary sense at all), and therefore bought and used a traditional baguette of French Bread from the bakery shop at my local grocer.   Any crusty artisan bread will work.

Ingredients
1 French baguette or any crusty, freshly made bread, cut into 8 one-inch thick slices
8 beef tenderloin slices, 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick
3 tbsp mayonnaise
1 tbsp seasonings, such as Mrs. Dash Tomato, Basil & Garlic, or equal parts powdered garlic, salt, dried basil, paprika and dried oregano
1 tbsp finely minced green olives - optional (about 2-3 olives)
1 medium tomato, diced into small cubes
6-8 fresh basil leaves, sliced as chiffonade
1 tbsp olive oil for toasting the bread
1/2 tsp finely minced garlic
2 tbsp olive oil for sauteing the tenderloin
drizzles of balsamic vinegar (high quality, with or without additional flavorings)
salt & pepper to taste

The Recipe
To chiffonade fresh basil, stack the leaves on top of one another and roll them up like a cigarette.  Then cut into thin strips perpendicular to the roll.

Put the olive oil and minced garlic in a skillet over medium heat. Wait a bit so the olive warms and the garlic becomes aromatic, but be careful not to get the oil so hot that the garlic starts to brown. Put the slices of bread into the hot oil for a few moments until browned, then flip them over and repeat.  Remove them to paper towels.

Mix the mayonnaise with the seasonings and minced green olives if you choose to use them.

Mix the diced tomatoes and chiffonade of basil with one tablespoon of olive oil, a pinch of salt and 3-4 grinds of freshly cracked black pepper.

Saute the beef tenderloin in a skillet with the olive oil until medium rear, or just heat it through if the tenderloin is a leftover.  If you're sauteing fresh tenderloin slices, be sure to salt and pepper them before placing into the skillet.

Spread the mayo mixture evenly over each slice of bread.  Add the tenderloin slice, then top with the diced tomatoes and basil.

Drizzle the balsamic vinegar lightly over each Bruschetta and serve.

Happy New Year!