This Heirloom Tomato Bruschetta is made with vibrant and colorful heirloom tomatoes, marinated in a simple mixture of extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar, garlic, and basil, all on crunchy toasted baguette slices.
It’s a simple, fresh appetizer that’s easy to prep ahead.
I’ve been making this bruschetta for over 15 years. It was one of the first recipes I experimented with after graduating from college. The first time I made bruschetta, I parboiled the tomatoes, which after a delicious process of trial and error, turned out to be completely unnecessary. The tomatoes taste just as good with their skins as without.
The baguette is brushed with olive oil and toasted under the broiler until golden brown. This combination of the warm and crunchy olive oil brushed bread and the cool and refreshing tomatoes along with a hint of garlic and some basil makes this a stand out dish.
🛒 Ingredients
Below are the ingredients needed to make Heirloom Tomato Bruschetta.
- Heirloom Tomatoes: Choose tomatoes that are bright in color, preferably two different colors, such as a bright yellow and a bright red tomato. You eat with your eyes, and the bright colors draw you in.
- Garlic: Slice the garlic down the middle lengthwise and remove the center stem, which can have a very strong flavor. Choose a small piece of garlic and mince the pieces as small as possible. Raw garlic has a very strong flavor, so less is more in this case.
- Basil: Use a small handful of fresh basil, minced, about 1 tablespoon. Dried basil is not a good substitute in this recipe.
- Olive Oil: The olive oil plays a big role in this recipe. Choose an extra virgin olive oil, one that you like the taste of, or a milder tasting olive oil if you want the tomatoes to shine more.
- Balsamic Vinegar: Any balsamic vinegar will work.
- Baguette: Anything works here, even a day old baguette is great since it will get brushed with olive oil and toasted in the oven until crispy.
- Salt: Add a pinch of salt to taste or top each one with flaky sea salt.
See the recipe card below for full information on ingredients and quantities.
📝 How to Make Heirloom Tomato Bruschetta
Below are the step-by-step instructions and photos for how to make Heirloom Tomato Bruschetta.
Note: The recipe card with instructions, ingredient list, and quantities is included further below these step-by-step photos.
Step 1. Make the Tomatoes and Marinade: Dice the tomatoes, removing any tough stem pieces or excess seeds, and place in a shallow dish. Drizzle with the olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Add the minced garlic, minced basil, and a pinch of salt to taste. Stir to combine. Place in the fridge to marinate for 30 minutes, or up to several hours.
Step 2. Make the Baguette Slices: Preheat the oven to broil. Slice the baguette at an angle. Brush each slice with extra virgin olive oil. Broil for 2-5 minutes or until the edges become a beautiful golden brown color.
Step 3. Assemble: Right before serving, top each slice of baguette with the tomato topping.
✏️ Notes on Heirloom Tomato Bruschetta:
- Choosing Tomatoes
- Color: The great thing about choosing an heirloom tomato is the variety of colors, sometimes even within the same tomato. Choose two tomatoes with different colors if possible, such as yellow and red.
- Type: Depending on the tomato, you’ll have more or fewer seeds. Roma tomatoes have fewer seeds. Heirloom tomatoes also sometimes have very few seeds. Don’t go overboard with this, but remove any of the larger globs of seeds before adding the diced tomatoes to the bowl. Using just the meaty flesh makes for a nice chunky bruschetta. Heirloom tomatoes are also great in this Roasted Tomato and Garlic Soup with Barley.
- Make Ahead: You can make the bruschetta topping up to a day ahead of time, but for the freshest taste, serve the same day. The tomato topping can be made several hours in advance.
- Serving: Once the tomatoes are placed on the baguette slices, serve the bruschetta right away for the added effect of the warm bread and the cool topping, and to prevent the bread from becoming soggy.
💖 For More Dishes You May Love:
If you've tried this Heirloom Tomato Bruschetta Recipe or any other recipe on my site, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. I'd love to hear from you!
Heirloom Tomato Bruschetta
Ingredients
- 1 large heirloom tomato, diced
- 1 clove garlic, minced center stem removed
- 1 handful of fresh basil, minced about 1 tablespoon minced
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil plus extra for brushing the bread
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 baguette, sliced at an angle into half inch pieces
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to broil.
- Place tomatoes in a bowl and add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar. Add the minced garlic, and basil and a pinch of salt to taste
- Brush each slice of the baguette with olive oil.
- Place on a baking sheet and put in the oven for 3-5 minutes until they are a nice golden toasted color. Watch carefully to ensure they don’t burn.
- Add a medium spoonful of the bruschetta topping to each slice. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Choosing Tomatoes
- Color: The great thing about choosing an heirloom tomato is the variety of colors, sometimes even within the same tomato. Choose two tomatoes with different colors if possible, such as yellow and red.
- Type: Depending on the tomato, you’ll have more or fewer seeds. Roma tomatoes have fewer seeds. Heirloom tomatoes also sometimes have very few seeds. Don’t go overboard with this, but remove any of the larger globs of seeds before adding the diced tomatoes to the bowl. Using just the meaty flesh makes for a nice chunky bruschetta.
- Garlic: Slice the garlic down the middle lengthwise and remove the center stem, which can have a very strong flavor. Choose a small piece of garlic and mince the pieces as small as possible. Raw garlic has a very strong flavor, so less is more in this case.
- Make Ahead: You can make the bruschetta topping up to a day ahead of time, but for the freshest taste, serve the same day. The tomato topping can be made several hours in advance.
- Serving: Once the tomatoes are placed on the baguette slices, serve the bruschetta right away for the added effect of the warm bread and the cool topping, and to prevent the bread from becoming soggy.
Leave a Reply