Bruschette al pomodoro

Bruschette al pomodoro are grilled slices of bread topped with a simple, fragrant tomato and basil salad. In Italy they are often served as an antipasto, but they are also very suitable as a nibbles-style snack or as a light lunch.

Serves: 4
Preparation: approx. 15 minutes
Cooking: approx. 10 minutes
Total time: approx. 25 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 ciabatta (approx. 300–400 g)
• 6 ripe beef tomatoes
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1/2 small red onion (finely chopped)
• approx. 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil + extra for brushing
• (Optional) 1–2 teaspoons good balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 bunch basil (approx. 15 g)
• sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper

Preparation

• Preheat the oven to 200 °C (conventional heat).
• Line a baking tray with baking paper.
• Wash the tomatoes and pat them dry.
• Wash the basil and gently shake or pat the leaves dry.
• Peel the garlic cloves.
• Peel the half red onion.

Method

1. Halve the tomatoes and remove the seeds
   Halve the tomatoes and use a teaspoon to remove the seeds and most of the liquid from the inside.
2. Dice the tomatoes
   Cut the firm flesh into small cubes and put them in a bowl.
3. Finely chop the red onion and add it
   Finely chop the red onion and add it to the tomatoes.
4. Slice the basil and add it
   Pick the basil leaves, stack them and roll them up loosely. Slice the roll into thin strips (chiffonade) and add to the bowl.
5. Add olive oil
   Add approx. 4 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil to the tomatoes.
6. Season the tomato mixture
   Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
7. Add balsamic vinegar if desired
   If you like, add 1–2 teaspoons of balsamic vinegar for a subtle sweet-and-sour note.
8. Mix and let the tomato mixture rest
   Gently mix everything together and let the mixture stand at room temperature for 10 minutes so the flavours can develop.
9. Slice the ciabatta
   Slice the ciabatta into nice, thin slices (approx. 1–1.5 cm thick).
10. Brush the bread and sprinkle with salt
    Place the slices on the baking tray and lightly brush them with olive oil. Sprinkle with a little sea salt.
11. Toast the slices in the oven
    Bake the slices in the preheated oven for approx. 8–10 minutes until golden brown and crisp. If you like, you can place them briefly under the grill for the last few minutes for extra colour.
12. Rub the bread with garlic
    Remove the warm slices from the oven. Halve 1 garlic clove and quickly rub the cut side over the surface of each slice of bread.
13. Add the second garlic clove if desired
    Optionally use the second clove, finely chopped, in the tomato mixture if you want a pronounced garlic flavour; otherwise omit it.
14. Top the bruschette just before serving
    Just before serving, spoon the tomato mixture onto the warm ciabatta slices rubbed with garlic.
15. Spoon on as little liquid as possible
    Try not to spoon on too much liquid, so the bread stays as crisp as possible.
16. Serve the bruschette immediately
    Serve the bruschette immediately; do not leave them standing for long, otherwise the bread will soften.
17. Drizzle with extra olive oil if desired
    For extra aroma, you can drizzle a very thin trickle of extra-virgin olive oil over the topped bruschette just before serving. Use your best-quality, fruity olive oil.