Tomato Bruschetta is one of those gems that proves you can make incredible food in minutes with a few simple, great quality ingredients. This Bruschetta recipe is a classic Italian one – no unnecessary extras, just the essentials. Perfect as is! Fabulous quick dinner for hot summer nights.
Bruschetta
Bruschetta is one of those foods that’s impossible to eat elegantly. When you gorge on a crunchy piece of bread that’s piled high with tomato, dripping with juices and olive oil……well, in my world, the best I can hope for is that I don’t end up with a tomato-mud-slide down the front of my top.
That there’s juices on my chin goes without saying!
And I’m totally ok with that. All my favourite foods require napkins and plenty of finger licking. Buffalo Wings, Cheese & Garlic Crack Bread, Pastrami Sandwiches, Brisket Sliders.
You get the picture!
How to make the best bruschetta!
Bruschetta is simple to make, but there’s a few fundamentals that you can’t skimp on if you want a seriously tasty one. Get these right and you can’t go wrong!
Juicy, ripe tomatoes at room temperature, not fridge cold
Good quality extra virgin olive oil
A good, crusty bread that can hold up to the juicy topping. Sourdough and ciabatta are my picks. Skip the basic sandwich bread – it will literally disintegrate from the juices. Thin baguettes work ok if you toast well (because they have a smaller surface area). Great starter option!
**CHEFFY TIP** Rub the hot toast with garlic. This is a little trick that gives bruschetta an edge that makes it even better than just mixing garlic through the tomato mixture. It’s the reason why the bruschetta at your favourite bistro is so good – now you can replicate it yourself at home!
How to make bruschetta
Toast olive oil brushed bread in the oven if making a large batch. But if you’re just making this for yourself, just use your toaster!
Deseed tomato (optional) – Halve the tomato then scoop out the watery seeds using a teaspoons. Deseeding is optional, not mandatory! It removes the watery centre which dilutes the flavour. To be honest, I never bother deseeding when I’m making this just for myself!
Chop tomato into small pieces.
Toss with chopped basil, olive oil, salt and pepper – that’s all you need for a classic Italian version. More on variations below!
Set aside for 5 to 10 minutes to get it real juicy and for the flavours to come together – it’ll be fine for up to 30 minutes but after that, it gets a bit too mushy for my liking.
Toast bread – Meanwhile, brush each side of the bread with olive oil and toast in the oven until golden. Or, for a quicker version, just use your toaster.
Rub with garlic – Whichever method you use to toast your bread, don’t skip rubbing the bread lightly with the cut face of a garlic clove for authentic bruschetta flavour!
Pile on the tomato basil topping and devour!
TIP: Use the juicy seeds you scoop out for anything tomato based that you make – just toss it in while simmering. Think: Bolognese, Lasagne(or Veg Lasagne), Cannelloni, Baked Ziti, tomato based soups like Lentil Soup, Taco Soup, or this fabulous Healthy Vegetable Soup!
Variations
The recipe I’m sharing today is a classic Italian Tomato Bruschetta which, if made with good quality ingredients, is so lip smackingly delicious as is that you wouldn’t even think about adding anything else.
However! If you so choose, or perhaps your tomatoes aren’t quite as ripe as you wish, here are some add in options:
2 tsp+ of red wine vinegar (or white wine vinegar or lemon juice)
Minced garlic mixed in the filling
Other herbs (thyme, oregano, chives come to mind)
Chopped olives or other antipasto things (artichokes, capsicum/peppers etc)
You can also spread the bread with things like avocado, ricotta or anything similar (cream cheese, labne, soft feta) before piling on the bruschetta. It’s effective as a sort of glue for the topping so you can pile even more on! 😂. – Nagi x
Remember. It’s impossible to eat Bruschetta elegantly. Don’t even try.
Watch how to make it
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Real Tomato and Basil Bruschetta
Ingredients
Bread
- 4 slices crusty bread like sourdough or ciabatta , sliced 1.5cm/ 3/5″ thick (Note 1)
- extra virgin olive oil , for brushing
- 1 garlic clove , halved (unpeeled)
Tomato and Basil Topping
- 4 tomatoes (medium) , ripe and juicy, at room temperature
- 1/4 cup basil leaves , roughly chopped
- 1 1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (best quality you can afford)
- 1/4 tsp salt , kosher / cooking salt
- Black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat grill/broiler on high (or grill side of BBQ or griddle skillet).
Tomato Topping
- Deseed (optional, note 2) – Cut tomatoes in half. Use a measuring teaspoon to scoop out watery seeds (reserve for other use, see post for suggestions) then dice into 1cm / 2/5" pieces.
- Toss – Place tomato and remaining Topping ingredients in a bowl and gently toss to combine. Set aside for 5 to 10 minutes for the flavours to meld and the tomatoes to become juicy and soften slightly.
Bread
- Brush each side of bread with oil then grill/broil until golden and crusty – about 3 minutes on each side. (Or just use your toaster then brush with oil)
- Rub one side of the surface of the bread lightly with the garlic.
Assemble
- Pile topping onto bread with some of the juices. Drizzle with more extra virgin olive oil and serve immediately.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
He was by my bed the whole time when I was bed-ridden with Man Flu for the past few days… Never barked once when I slept through breakfast / treat / bone / dinnertime! He’s a good boy. 😇
print recipe how?.
Hi Dean, in the recipe box, there is a print function ☺️
Hi Nagi,
So sorry to hear you were under the weather. I hope Dozer’s watchful eyes (and warm, furriness) gave you comfort and made you feel better. He’s such a good boy! Hope you are back on your feet soon.
This Bruschetta looks wonderful. I have to say that every recipe of yours that I’ve tried has been delicious. I tried your Juicy Roast Turkey with the dry brining, something I’ve never done before, and WOW!! So delicious! I will never roast turkey the old way again! I do wish I would have filmed my husband and I trying to turn our 25+ pound stuffed turkey – I think we could have won many Funniest Video contests.
Thanks so much Bev! I can just imagine your hubby with the turkey – would have been great to watch 😂
We’ve been reduced to sad, tasteless winter tomatoes from stores until next year, unfortunately. Our tomato season is very brief also, about 6 weeks on average. I’ve read that scientific advances may soon deliver better tasting tomatoes year round, and shall certainly rejoice if that happens in a few years! That would be a dream come true.
Hope you’ve recovered completely by now.
PS: I won’t even care if they are Frankentomatoes, as long as they tasted like real tomatoes-in-season and would be available all year”
Bugger! Ah well, here’s hoping for better tomatoes next season! 🍅
He’s such a good boy! and…perfect for our hot conditions. Good Dozer and ….hope you are feeling much better too. PS: 3 carpet pythons on my deck last week 🙂
I love your recipes and Dozer. I feel like I know
You. Please keep blogging I love your writing
What are you doing to Dozer?? This is YUMI summer dish, can’t wait for my tomatoes to come up, they are in flowers so had to wait few more weeks. Love those kind of messy dishes they are truly DELISH!! Thank you.am behind with posts but all is good have been busy with XMAS SHOPPING AND EVERYTHING ELSE THAT GOES WITH THAT. HAVE GOOD WEEKEND.
I LOVE bruschetta!! And Dozer is so adorable, we really don’t deserve dogs <3
I have a question about your baked mac and cheese– Would I be able to make it ahead of time and then bake it the next day? And if so, is there anything you would recommend (eg. putting the breadcrumbs on early or right before baking?)
Thanks!
Funny you should mention the tomatoes need to be room temp. We just had dinner the other night at a “high end” modern Italian place and they served the bruschetta with ice cold tomatoes. kinda meh
There’s nothing fun about the Man Flu, glad you’re on the mend. Good thing you had the Dozer to look after you. It’s amazing how intuitive dogs can be. Bruschetta is a fantastic starter, munchy or main (with a little prosciutto) and your recipe is spot on. It’s so important to rub that garlic on the warm toast.
You made something simple just that: simple! We are lucky compared to those the Dreamliner takes over 20 hours to reach . . . C’mon Nagi – we all know he is a ‘good boy’ . . . you taught him to be one . . . hope you damn better: lousy time for the Northern Beaches. .
Hi Nagi, hope you are feeling much better now. Dozer is such a wonderful dog. You are both so lucky to have each other! The bruschetta sounds wonderful but I’ll have to wait until next summer to have good fresh tomatoes to try it.
I had that feeling you were sick N cuz no post on Monday. You also said you weren’t feeling good on Friday…you were tired. I hope your feeling better now!
That’s the proof that Dozer really loves you staying right by your bedside when you were sick! 😇
Don’t worry about your blog!
.😷😢 = 💉🍵💊😓
💐🍀Get Better Soon
Love your blog. Can always count on a good recipe for whatever dish you are addressing. Thank you.
One request: I like subtlety in my Pinterest feed. Would appreciate the choice of having just the pic I choose rather than a large label and/or larger pic for that purpose.
Thank you for many wonderful recipes. And entertaining Life of Dozer.
Wanda
Wanda Hinshaw I copy and paste Nagi’s recipes and when copying the picture I choose I downsize it. I love the way Nagi writes up her recipes as she covers all bases for Australia and overseas not only in amounts, but also equivalent substitutes. With Christmas coming up this one will definitely be on our table. Hope EVERYONE has a wonderful Christmas and a Fantastic New Year. Sorry, Nagi to hear you’ve been sick. We’re back home again from our travels and wanting to get back into making more of your wonderful creations. Dozer really is a LOVING – LOYAL boy.
Awww Nagi, hope you’re feeling better. Yes pets know when you’re ill and they worry.
On a lighter note I cooked the chicken stroganoff and I loved it and so did my daughter. I made enough to have the next day 😜 Good stuff!
Happy Thursday and do have a restful day! Hugs …🌺
I’m reading this on the train on the way to work. I’ve had a decent breakfast but my mouth is watering at this. I’m about to log in to my grocery order and add sourdough bread to it lol.
Bless Dozer, beautiful boy. I love seeing his updates as much as your recipes. Hope you’re feeling better soon!
Aww…they know when you’re sick.
Hope you feel better!
Will try he brushetta ASAP!
Hi Nagi! Oh No, the flu in the summer!! Best thing for you is to give in and stay in bed. Dozer knows you don’t feel good, it’s amazing how in-tuned animals are to our feelings! Bruschetta are one of my favorite appetizers no matter what they are topped with, the bread makes them more substantial which is key when one is also having a few drinks!
We’ll talk soon.
Hope you are feeling better Nagi…..aren’t our pets an integral part of our families, and worth more then any diamond or piece of gold ever could.
Thanks for the new brushetta recipe….will be trying it out when company comes over the holidays.
Stay well Nagi.
Yum! So simple and delicious. The slightly stale bread works a treat.
Slight correction with the line which says “tomato, basil, salt, pepper and extra version olive”…… Should be “extra virgin”. Although “extra version” might start a new trend 😀
Oops! 😂 Thanks for picking that up John! N x
I haven’t made bruschetta in so long! Thanks for reminding me how delicious it is 🙂 I’ll have to make it again soon.
Ooh YES!!! Actually you just prompted ME to make them!! 🙂