You would expect the food at a party for Top Chef host Padma Lakshmi to be pretty amazing, and her recent 45th birthday party at New York City’s ABC Kitchen was no disappointment. Hosted by online stationery boutique
Tiny Prints, the dining room was decorated with “Celebrate Padma” cocktail napkins, gift bags were filled with personalized stationery, and guests were seated with poppy-strewn place cards by the chic & modern stationery company. The menu, curated by curated by Padma and chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten included pizza topped with spinach, goat cheese, and herbs, line caught tuna sashimi marinated with ginger and mint, house made ricotta ravioli, and this simple and seasonal crostini.
Serves 4
Ingredients
4 ripe heirloom tomatoes
4 large slices good sourdough bread
Extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 fresh basil leaves
Procedure
Cut the tomatoes in half from top to bottom, remove the cores, then cut crosswise into ¼- inch thick slices.
Set an oven rack 4 inches from the broiler heat source. Preheat the broiler.
Arrange the bread in a single layer on a broiler pan. Generously drizzle oil on both sides of the bread. Broil, turning once,
until golden, about 2 minutes.
Immediately arrange the tomato slices, overlapping slightly on the toast. Season with salt and pepper and tear the basil leaves over the top. Drizzle with a little more oil and serve immediately.
Reprinted from
Home Cooking with Jean-Georges: My Favorite Simple Recipes
Copyright © 2011. Published by Clarkson Potter, a division of Random House, Inc