authentic Italian tomato bruschetta recipe

WAIT FOR THE TOMATOES

One of the most Italian things you can do is refuse to make a recipe until the ingredients are ready.

Bruschetta is a perfect example.

You can make it in winter.

Many people do.

But the real magic happens when tomatoes are fully in season, sweet from the sun, fragrant, and almost bursting open under their own weight.

At that point, bruschetta becomes less a recipe and more a celebration.

Italian bruschetta recipe

FOUR INGREDIENTS ARE ENOUGH

Traditional bruschetta asks for very little:

  • good bread;
  • ripe tomatoes;
  • garlic;
  • extra-virgin olive oil.

A few basil leaves if you have them.

Nothing else.

The fewer ingredients there are, the more important each one becomes.

THE SECRET ISN’T THE TOAST

Most people think the bread is the important part.

It isn’t.

The secret is giving the tomatoes time.

At least an hour.

A couple is even better.

As they rest with olive oil, garlic, salt, and basil, they release their juices and gradually become something richer than the sum of their parts.

Only then do they deserve the bread.

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THE SOUND OF SUMMER

I love cherry tomatoes for bruschetta.

Especially in summer.

Cutting them, seasoning them, and leaving them on the counter while the day slowly unfolds.

By dinner time the tomatoes are ready.

The bread is toasted.

The olive oil is waiting.

And suddenly one of the simplest foods in Italy becomes one of the most satisfying.

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tomato bruschetta recipe

Servings 4
Author Claudia Rinaldi

Ingredients

for the tomatoes

  • 3 cups cherry tomatoes or 2-3 medium heirloom tomatoes
  • 1-2 garlic cloves
  • 4-6 basil leaves
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt

for the bruschettas

  • 1 garlic clove
  • 6-10 slices casereccio bread
  • olive oil
  • salt

Instructions

tomatoes

  1. Finely chop tomatoes, place them in a bowl and season them with olive oil, salt, 1-2 peeled and smashed garlic cloves and coarsely chopped basil.

  2. Let sit, room temperature for a couple of hours, or refrigerate overnight if you are making these a lot ahead of time.

  3. Find and remove garlic cloves.

bruschetta

  1. Peel a garlic clove.

  2. Pierce it with a toothpick (so you don’t get smelly fingers).

  3. Slice Italian bread. For bruschetta you should use crusty Italian bread, the so called pane casareccio.

  4. Toast it on a grill pan or in the oven.

  5. Once toasted, rub the garlic clove on the whole surface of the bread, pour extra-virgin olive oil and sprinkle it with salt to your taste.

  6. Pour a spoonful or two of tomatoes over the bread and enjoy.

Recipe Notes

Sorry, it is not recommendable to make bruschetta (except for the tomatoes) ahead of time: you would lose a lot of flavor and crunchiness.

Enjoy your tomato bruschetta!

Claudia