This Easy Garlic Bread Bruschetta Recipe combines two amazing Italian appetizers! Toasty garlic bread topped with a flavorful balsamic tomato salad.
An Easy Bruschetta Recipe
This quick and easy appetizer is full of fresh ingredients and savory flavors. All you have to do is toast your bread, smother it with garlic, and add your hearty toppings! I love serving this garlic bread bruschetta with a classic Italian pasta dish.
This recipe is perfect for summer because tomatoes are in season. It’s a great healthy snack to make with your garden harvest. You can also pick up ripe and juicy tomatoes at your local grocery store or farmer’s market.
What is Bruschetta?
Bruschetta is one of the classics when it comes to Italian cuisine. It’s basically a flavorful tomato basil salad that’s served on top of freshly toasted bread. This version adds garlic into the mix for even more explosive flavor! It’s easy to make and it’s addicting.
Recipe Ingredients
For the Toasted Garlic Bread
- Italian Bread: Slice your bread into 1/2 inch thick slices.
- Olive Oil
- Garlic: Cut one clove of garlic in half.
For the Salad
- Grape Tomatoes: You can also use Roma tomatoes if you’d like.
- Parmesan Cheese
- Basil Ribbons: To make these, stack several basil leaves on top of one another, roll them up tightly, and slice the basil into thin ribbons.
- Minced Garlic
- Salt & Pepper
- Olive Oil
- Balsamic Vinegar
How to Make Bruschetta
- Heat Oven: Preheat your oven to 400˚F.
- Brush Bread with Oil: Using a pastry brush, brush each slice of bread with olive oil; transfer slices to a baking sheet, oiled-side down.
- Toast: Toast your bread in the preheated oven for 8 to 10 minutes, keeping an eye on the bread so it doesn’t burn.
- Add Garlic: Remove your toast from the oven and rub the cut side of the garlic cloves over each slice of toasted bread. Set aside.
- Make Salad: Transfer the prepared tomatoes to a mixing bowl. Add cheese, basil and garlic, stirring to combine.
- Season: Season the salad with salt and pepper to taste.
- Add Oil & Vinegar: Add the olive oil and balsamic vinegar, mixing until thoroughly combined. Taste and adjust accordingly.
- Assemble & Serve: Divide up the salad over the toasted bread slices. Serve on a platter and enjoy!
Tips for the Best Bruschetta
- Use Fresh Ingredients: The fresher your ingredients are, the tastier your bruschetta will be.
- Season to Taste: Before you add your tomato basil salad to your toast, taste it and make sure you’re satisfied with the amount of seasoning. Just try not to eat it all from the bowl! 😉
- Start on Salad while Toasting Bread: As long as you’re keeping an eye on your bread while it’s toasting, you can start making your salad. This way, the salad will be ready to go when the bread is still nice and warm.
Serving Suggestions
Bruschetta is a delicious way to kick off any meal! Here are some of my favorite things to serve it with:
- Pasta: This appetizer goes great with just about every pasta dish you can think of. Try serving it with my super easy Skillet Lasagna!
- Chicken Breasts: Bruschetta tastes amazing with baked or grilled chicken breasts. You can also omit the garlic bread and serve your bruschetta salad over my Juicy Skillet Balsamic Chicken Breasts.
- Salad: For a hearty Italian dish that matches the freshness of this bruschetta, make my Italian Antipasto Pasta Salad!
Can Bruschetta Be Made in Advance?
- This appetizer recipe is amazing for meal prepping. You can make your salad up to a day ahead of time and store it, covered, in the refrigerator.
- Letting your salad soak will only make it more flavorful! Then, when you’re ready to serve your bruschetta, all you have to do is toast your bread.
How Long Does Bruschetta Keep?
- For the best results, I recommend serving your garlic bread bruschetta right away. But if you do have leftovers, you can definitely store them in the fridge.
- Keep them in a covered container and enjoy within a couple days.
Easy Garlic Bread Bruschetta Recipe
Equipment
- Oven
Ingredients
For the Toasted Garlic Bread
- 8 slices Italian bread, 1/2-inch thick
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 clove garlic, cut in half
For the Salad
- 2 cups fresh grape or cherry tomatoes, diced, (or 3 to 4 Roma tomatoes, diced)
- 1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
- 1/4 cup basil ribbons, (stack several basil leaves one on top of the other, roll them up tightly, and then slice into thin ribbons)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- balsamic glaze, optional, for topping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400˚F.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or foil.
- Using a pastry brush, brush each slice of bread with olive oil; transfer slices to prepared baking sheet, oiled-side down.
- Toast bread in the preheated oven for 8 to 10 minutes. Keep an eye on the bread so it doesn’t burn.
- Remove from oven; rub the cut side of the garlic cloves over each slice of toasted bread. Set aside.
- Transfer diced tomatoes to a mixing bowl.
- To the tomatoes, add cheese, basil, and garlic; stir.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Add oil and balsamic vinegar; mix until thoroughly combined.
- Taste salad and adjust accordingly.
- Divide up the salad over the toasted bread slices, add just a drizzle of balsamic glaze over the top, and serve!
14 Comments
Beth
Jul 27, 2020 at 9:45 pmOh my goodness this looks so incredible and delicious! I can’t wait to try this!
Katerina Petrovska
Jul 28, 2020 at 5:46 pmThank YOU! I hope you enjoy it! 🙂
Allyson Zea
Jul 28, 2020 at 12:48 amOHHHH I LOVED THIS! Thank you!
Katerina Petrovska
Jul 28, 2020 at 5:46 pmI am very glad you enjoyed it! THANK YOU! 🙂
Dorothy Reinhold
Jul 28, 2020 at 1:01 amI have a bunch of fresh tomatoes and basil from the garden. This will be perfect!
Katerina Petrovska
Jul 28, 2020 at 5:45 pmI hope you enjoy it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Toni
Jul 28, 2020 at 1:15 pmThis is such an amazing appetizer! Everyone at my house loved it!
Katerina Petrovska
Jul 28, 2020 at 5:45 pmThat’s great! I am very glad you and your family enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Sara Welch
Jul 28, 2020 at 7:15 pmThis was such a unique and decadent dish! Even my picky eaters gobbled this up! Delicious!
Katerina Petrovska
Jul 29, 2020 at 5:44 pmThat’s great! I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Cathy
Jul 28, 2020 at 9:55 pmLove the garlic bread base!
Katerina Petrovska
Jul 29, 2020 at 5:43 pmThank you, Cathy! 🙂
sanda
Aug 17, 2020 at 4:21 pmhow to you make balsamic glaze?
Katerina
Aug 17, 2020 at 5:06 pmI usually buy mine – you can get it on Amazon (affiliate link) –> https://amzn.to/3kOTECp.
But, you can also make your own by combining 2 cups balsamic vinegar with 1/2 cup brown sugar in a saucepan set over medium heat; whisk and stir constantly until sugar has dissolved. Bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer for about 15 minutes, or until glaze is reduced by half. When it’s done, the glaze should coat the back of a spoon.
Let the mixture cool. If you have leftovers, pour into a jar with a lid, and store glaze in refrigerator.