This Easy Bruschetta Recipe is my go-to summer appetizer, made with fresh tomatoes, basil and onion then served over toasted baguette slices.
You can even drizzle some homemade Balsamic Glaze over the top for an extra special treat.
Summer is the BEST time to enjoy this easy Bruschetta recipe because it’s filled with produce that’s at it’s peak freshness in the summer months.
That being said, in the world we live in, you can enjoy fresh tomato Bruschetta any time of the year. Thanks to farmers and worldwide shipping!
What Is Bruschetta?
If you haven’t heard of bruschetta before, (pronounced: “brusketta”) it’s basically an Italian-style salsa that’s traditionally served over toasted baguette or rustic bread.
Bruschetta is also fantastic when served on top of grilled meats, like chicken and salmon. It’s filled with freshly diced tomatoes, garlic, diced onion and fresh basil, then tossed with olive oil, balsamic vinegar and seasoned with salt and pepper.
Bruschetta is great for a quick and easy appetizer, light lunch or snack on a warm summer day.
Simple Bruschetta Ingredients
Here’s the list of ingredients needed to make a simple bruschetta appetizer at home. As always, you can find the full list of ingredients in the recipe box below.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil – using a good quality oil can make all the difference
- Minced Garlic – fresh works best, but jarred garlic is also great
- Fresh Tomatoes – beef steak tomatoes, Roma or on the vine tomatoes will work!
- Purple Onion – you can omit the onions if you’re not a fan
- Fresh Basil Ribbons – thinly sliced basil
- Balsamic Vinegar
- Salt & Pepper
- Crusty bread – a french baguette or rustic bread of some sort
How To Make Bruschetta
This recipe for bruschetta could not be any simpler! It’s a fantastic dish to make as an appetizer for a party because it’s easy to make ahead of time.
- Make Garlic-infused Olive Oil – Start by heating your extra virgin olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Toss in your minced garlic and immediately remove the pan from the heat. Pour the garlic-infused olive oil into a large bowl and let it cool.
- Make Toasted Bread – While the olive oil cools, slice your bread into thin pieces and spritz with olive oil and sprinkle with garlic powder. Toast under your broiler until nice and golden, then flip and repeat on the other side.
- Combine Ingredients – Meanwhile add the remaining bruschetta ingredients in the bowl with the garlic infused oil and toss to combine.
- Serve – Serve the fresh tomato bruschetta over the top of the toasted bread.
What Type of Tomatoes Go in Bruschetta?
Ideally, you’ll want to grab some fresh beef steak tomatoes. This type of tomato is known for it’s robust flavor.
However, you can also use on the vine tomatoes or Roma tomatoes.
Roma tomatoes are a little less flavorful, but have far fewer seeds, making your bruschetta less watery.
The Best Bruschetta Bread?
You may be wondering what the best bread to use for Bruschetta is?
I personally love to use a French baguette that is thinly sliced, but any sort of rustic, crusty bread would work. You could even use crackers if you’re not a fan of bread.
Can You Make Bruschetta In Advance?
YES! You can definitely make this easy tomato salad up to a day in advance and keep it covered and stored in the fridge until ready to serve.
The flavors will blend even more and it’ll be fantastic. Before serving just slice up and toast your bread and you’re all set!
The Best Ways To Serve
When it comes to bruschetta it’s one of those simple and easy appetizers that everyone will want to dig in to. There are a couple ways to serve it…
- Serve bruschetta in a bowl with a spoon and the toasted bread slices all around. This way everyone can serve themselves.
- Top each slice of bread with the bruschetta and place on a platter. More of a grab and go appetizer.
- Skip the bread and try on top of grilled chicken for an easy low-carb dinner or lunch option!
Tips and Tricks For Easy Bruschetta Recipe
- If you have time, remove the seeds from the tomatoes (or strain them). This will make your bruschetta less soupy and more salsa-like.
- Try topping with a sweet balsamic glaze for a truly delicious treat.
- Bruschetta is best when served room temperature or chilled. Especially when placed on top of the warm bread… yum!
- Use an olive oil spray to quickly coat the baguette slices, then sprinkle with garlic powder for an extra pop of flavor in each bite.
How Long Does Fresh Bruschetta Keep?
While you can easily make this fresh bruschetta ahead of time, it’s best to eat fresh or within at least 2 to 3 days.
PRO TIP: If your bruschetta is watery or soupy after sitting, you can freshen it up by straining out the liquid with a fine mesh strainer and tossing in a little more garlic-infused olive oil.
Toast the bread right before serving, as leftover toasted bread can be stale and not as enjoyable.
More Tomato Recipes To Try:
Overloaded with fresh tomatoes and looking for more recipes to make? I’ve got you covered with these simple and fresh tomato recipes…
- Homemade Pico de Gallo
- Cucumber Tomato Salad
- Tomato Cucumber and Avocado Salad
- Chicken Caprese Skillet
- Eggplant, Tomato and Mozzarella Stacks
Easy Bruschetta Recipe
Ingredients
- 16 oz baguette, cut into ½ inch slices
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 large beef steak tomatoes, diced *see notes
- ¼ cup purple onion, diced
- ¼ cup basil, thinly sliced into ribbons
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
Instructions
- Turn your oven broiler to high. Line a baking sheet with foil and place the sliced baguette pieces on. Spritz the baguette slices with olive oil cooking spray (or brush with olive oil), then sprinkle with garlic powder.
- Toast bread for a minute or two, until nice and golden. Remove from oven, flip bread over and repeat the steps above.
- Meanwhile add the 3 tbsp of olive oil to a small skillet over medium heat. Once warm, add in the garlic and stir briefly before removing from heat. Don't burn the garlic! Place the garlic infused oil in a large bowl to let cool.
- Once the oil is cooled, add in the diced tomatoes, onion, basil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper. Gently stir to combine. Serve on top of the toasted baguette slices.
Notes
Nutrition
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Denise J Ragozzino
Where I come from we say Bru-shetta
Anne Dillon
Can you serve this appetizer cold?
kim schwalenberg
My husband puts feta cheese in his and it is great…
Shawn
Sounds wonderful!
Sarah
I forgot to buy fresh basil. I do have basil leaves in a spice jar on hand. Could I substitute? How much would you recommend
Shawn
Fresh basil is a pretty important ingredient in this recipe, so if you can, I would go get some. If not, you should start with 2 tbsp of dried basil and see how it tastes. In most cases, if a recipe calls for a fresh herb, you can replace with 1/2 the amount of that same herb in a dried form. Hope that helps!
Liz
I used diced canned tomatoes and this recipe came out amazing! We couldn’t stop eating it! Great!!!
Shawn
Great idea to save on prep time! Thanks for sharing Liz!
Sal
So easy and the best tasting! Love this recipe! ❤️