Lazy Man's Tuscany Bread

In late 2009, I happened to catch an episode of "David Rocco's Dolce Vita" in which he made what was called the lazy man's lasagna.  Intrigued, I wrote down a note to myself to get the recipe online in order to try it out for myself.  The recipe wasn't exactly "lazy" to me, I actually spent more time making the bechamel sauce than I did the rest of the lasagna!  Then again, I never made lasagna before and so everything took longer than it probably should have. Still, compared to other lasagna recipes I've come across, David Rocco's lazy man was indeed a lazy way to do it.  However, this isn't about lasagna (that can be for a future post!).  It's about another "lazy man" recipe that I decided to improvise this afternoon in a fit of hunger: Tuscany Bread.

Pizzeria Uno offers the Tuscany Bread as an appetizer, and the recipe itself is fairly simple.  Cut a loaf of garlic bread lengthwise, spread garlic butter and pesto sauce, top with spinach, diced tomatoes, and muenster cheese, and let it toast for a few minutes.  So how could I lazy-man it up?  Easy!  Get rid of half the ingredients in order to do it all in half the time!  Here's all the ingredients I used, easily found in the kitchen:

A small loaf of garlic bread

A handful of fresh spinach

A handful of cheese (any works, I used mozzarella)

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

I actually had tomatoes in the refrigerator, along with some pesto sauce.  But pesto sauce has a lot more oil than I'd prefer, and so using olive oil directly allows me to proportion it just as I'd like.  In addition, I don't like chopping tomatoes, ha!


Anyway, to get this lazy man's Tuscany Bread started, simply cut the loaf lengthwise into three pieces.  This will give you two pieces of bread that are equal length and height, and a baby stub that you can eat while preparing, or turn into a baby Tuscany Bread.  Spread some extra virgin olive oil on top of the two larger pieces.  Use the baby stub to blot the bread, as well as have it get some olive oil of its own.

Then, layer the spinach onto the loaves, either with or without the stems.  It's easier to layer without the stems, or you can simply later the stems first, with the spinach on atop of it.  This is followed by the sprinkling of cheese.  You'll have extra of both, which again, can go on the little stub.  Put it in a toaster oven, directly on the center rack.

Let it toast at 425 degrees for five minutes, or until the cheese melts.  I prefer when the cheese is just about to brown, but your mileage may vary.  When it's done, it'll look like this delicious cheesy goodness.

You can let it cool for a couple minutes whilst writing a blog about it, or immediately bite into the bread and let the roof of your mouth burn in a satisfying heat.  Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to eat my lazy man creation and finish watching The Notebook (shut up).  Have a Happy Sunday!

- Sonic