How To Make Bruschetta Toast (With Tomato Basil)

What is Bruschetta?

Would you like to learn how to make bruschetta toast? Are you wondering what bruschetta is? This article will teach you what it is and how to make bruschetta toast!

Bruschetta is toasted Italian bread, rubbed with garlic, and topped with olive oil and salt. Bruschetta’s other toppings include cheese, tomato, basil, vegetables, beans, and cured meat. In Italy, it is often prepared using a brustolina grill. You can serve it as a snack or an appetizer. 

bruschetta toasts

When is Bruschetta Served?

Italians consider bruschetta an essential food, especially during summer. You can serve bruschetta bread as a hot, warm, or cold snack or appetizer. If you like it hot, add the toppings immediately after the bread comes off the grill.  

It is one of the most delightful dishes in the Italian repertoire. Many people like it for its simple deliciousness, and high-quality but affordable ingredients. You can serve bruschetta with a variety of wines.

10 Of the Best Wines to Pair with Basil and Tomato Bruschetta

Whenever you plan to serve homemade bruschetta, you should select the best wine to go with it. The wine you choose will depend on the kind of bruschetta you are doing. The following information on wines and bruschetta will help you choose the best wine.

Chianti Classico Rubilio, 2017 Gagliole

This is a fresh wine that is perfect with tomato bruschetta. It is made from Sangiovese grapes and a touch of Merlot. You will always be attracted to its fruity, floral aroma and smooth, harmonious flavors.

Veneto Pinot Grigio, 2018 Villa Sandi

This type of wine is perfect for serving with grilled vegetable bruschetta toast. It has seductive scents of fruit, hay, and flowers. 

Falanghina Del Sannio Taburno, 2018 Fontanavecchia

Falanghina is an elegant white wine that goes well with bruschetta that is made with rustic bread and topped with wedges of the yellow piennolo cherry tomatoes.

Vermentino Di Gallura Sup. Maia, 2016 Maìa, 2016 Siddùra

Vermentino is a well-structured wine that pairs well with the taste of bread and olive oil. This wine goes very well with bruschetta that is made with bottarga.

Sicilia Grillo Superiore Gazzerotta, 2017 Pellegrino

This wine originates from an old vineyard in the Mazara del Vallo area. It has a Sicilian character flavor that is intense, savory, pleasantly citrusy. You can add drops of lemon juice to it, and serve with a classic bruschetta.

Colli Orientali Del Friuli Ribolla Gialla, 2017 Torre Rosazza

This Ribolla wine has a fantastic combination of high-quality and low-price. Its taste is savory and fresh. You can serve it with the classic white bruschetta and if you want, some fresh basil leaves.

Orvieto Classico Superiore Campo Del Guardiano, 2017 Palazzone

This is a good white wine made from local Procanico, Grechetto, Verdello, Drupeggio, or Malvasia grapes. You pair it with the classic white bruschetta, or with melted cheeses, or slices of marinated swordfish.

Franciacorta Rosè, ’61 Berlucchi

Franciacorta Rosè ’61 Berlucchi is a mixture of pinot noir and chardonnay. It has a nice balance of acidity and sweetness. You can serve it with bruschetta of your choice. 

Riviera Del Garda Classico Chiaretto Stilrose, 2018 Santa Margherita

This wine is famous for its delicate blush and cool rose, strawberry, and citrus notes. It is a fantastic apéritif. You can serve it with bruschetta that has minced tomatoes, or shrimp, or marinated salmon.

Rosso Di Valtellina Olé, 2017 Dirupi

A smooth and easy wine made from mountain Nebbiolo grapes. You can pair it easily with many Italian delicacies, including the bruschetta of your choice.

Wine bottles in row

Bruschetta vs. Crostini- What is the Difference?

Bruschetta and Crostini are both made from bread. They are additions to Italian antipasto. These two can help you explore a good number of seasonal vegetables and flavors. The only significant difference between bruschetta and crostini is the bread type and the toppings you use in their preparation.

Both bruschetta toast and crostini are Italian words. You may notice that bruschetta is singular and crostini is plural; that gives us a clue how you can serve them. Bread for bruschetta should be grilled or broiled to some degree. Whether it’s soaking up juice or rubbing with a halved garlic clove, there is truly nothing better. 

Crostinis are generally made with white bread, such as a simple Italian loaf or a baguette, sliced evenly and toasted to crisp it up, not to darken it unduly. In Italian, “crostina” means crusty, and “crostini” means toasts.

Homemade Italian Bruschetta

The Significant Importance of Italian Bruschetta

Bruschetta has a long and quite noble history. Regardless of whether it dates back to the Etruscans or the Ancient Romans, as some purport, one thing we are sure of is that for centuries it has fed laborers and farmers with days’ old bread. 

Bruschetta bread serves as a hearty snack or meal for hard manual labor. It is also an excellent way to salvage bread that has gone stale. This is why having an easy bruschetta recipe is the best thing that can happen to you.

Finally, the beauty of bruschetta bread is all about its simplicity. There is no way to make a good bruschetta from bad ingredients. It is all about how good the bread and olive oil is, although all the ingredients need to be good for a good bruschetta.

A Basil Tomato Bruschetta Recipe

Bruschetta with Tomato and Basil

Prep time: 15 mins

Cook time: 20 mins

Total time: 35 mins

Servings: 6 to 10 servings

Note: You can use any flavorful, ripe tomato for this simple bruschetta recipe. In case you decide to use cherry tomatoes, just cut them into quarters, don’t bother blanching or peeling them.

To thinly slice basil leaves, stack the leaves on top of each other and roll up like a cigar. Then make thin slices from one end of the basil cigar to the other.

Ingredients

  • 6 to 7 ripe tomatoes (about 1 1/2 pounds)
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced (about 2 teaspoons)
  • 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
  • 6 to 8 fresh basil leaves, thinly sliced or chopped
  • 3/4 teaspoon sea salt, more or less to taste
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, more or less to taste
  • 1 baguette, French bread, or similar Italian bread
  • 1/4 cup olive oil

Method

  1. Blanch and peel the tomatoes.
  • Bring 2 quarts (1.89 liters) of water to a boil. As the water is heating, make shallow cuts in a cross pattern at the tip ends of the tomatoes (this will make the tomatoes easier to peel).
  • When the water comes to a boil, remove the pot from the heat. Place your cut tomatoes in hot water and blanch for 1 minute.
  • Remove the tomatoes using a slotted spoon and let them cool off. Then gently peel off the tomato skins. Cut out the stem base with a paring knife.
  • Cut the tomatoes into halves or quarters and squeeze out most juices and seeds.
  1. Preheat the oven to 450 °F (230 °C) with a rack in the top slot of the oven.
  1. Chop the tomatoes finely and put them in a medium-sized bow Toss them with garlic, olive oil, vinegar, basil, salt, and pepper.
  1. Mix minced garlic, 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, and balsamic vinegar Stir in the thinly sliced basil and add salt and freshly ground black pepper. You should note that tomatoes love salt; you may need to add more than you expect.
  1. Toast the baguette slices.
  • Slice the baguette on the diagonal using a bread knife, making half-inch thick slices. Brush one side of each piece with olive oil (a pastry brush helps here) and place olive oil side down on a baking sheet or roasting pan.
  • Use the top rack of your oven to toast the baguette slices. They toast best on the top shelf, so you may need to work in batches to toast them all.
  • When the oven heats to 450 °F (230 °C), place the slices in the oven on the top rack and toast for 5 to 6 minutes until lightly browned around the edges.
  • You can toast the bread slices without coating them first in olive oil if you want. Toast them until lightly browned on both sides. Then cut a clove of garlic in half and rub over one side of the toast. Then brush with olive oil.
  1. Serve toasted bread with tomato mixture.
  • Arrange the toasted bread on a platter, olive oil side facing up, to help keep the bread from getting soggy from the tomatoes.
  • During serving, you have several options; you can serve plain toasts and let people top for themselves, or top each toasted bread slice with some tomato bruschetta mixtures.

Bruschetta has its nutritional value. The following table summarizes the nutritional value of bruschetta per 100g serving.

                                              Nutritional Facts

Amount per portion: 70 calories

Portion size100g
Total fat 5g6%
Saturated fat 0.5g2%
Sodium 170 mg7%
Total carbohydrate 5g2%
Dietary fiber 1g4%
Protein 1g2%
Potassium 219 mg5%

The Magical Italian Bread

Bruschetta is magical Italian bread. You should not look at its appearance alone. To some, it may seem like just a slice of garnished bread. To many people, it is one of the most delicious and enjoyable dishes in Italian cuisine. You will realize that many people like it because it is a very simple meal. It is of very high quality, and it requires readily available ingredients.

The kind of bruschetta you come across in Italy depends on where you are. Every city has its way of serving this tomato appetizer– which often comes before the first pasta or soup course. In Piedmont, it is covered with garlic, oil, and a slice of tomato. Here, it is typically enjoyed during the grape harvest season. In Calabria, pepper and oregano are an accompaniment to bruschetta.

Many parts of Tuscany serve bruschetta along with cuts of meat like prosciutto Crudo, chicken livers, fresh sausage, or lard, which goes very well with warm toasted bread. Guinness-worthy Italian variants of bruschetta include versions served with zucchini, eggplant, mushrooms, bell peppers, and cheese, which can either be sprinkled or spread onto the bread.

It is important to note that Italians are proud of this simple but irresistible dish. Due to that, every year, an enormous version is created for the Guinness Book of World Records.