Healthy Appetizers: Bruschetta

IMG_6274I love making fresh bruschetta as a delightful appetizer during the summer months when fresh tomatoes and basil are coming off the vines. This is traditional bruschetta with a marinating twist. We served this while having a neighborhood BBQ party at our home on Sunday and everyone loved it! Enjoy!

4-5 tomatoes, roma is preferred
2-3 Tablespoons fresh basil
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2-3 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1/2 red or yellow onion, chopped (red onion is best!)
2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, crushed
salt & pepper to taste
Serve alone or on bread of your choice – We love serving it on baguettes that have been lightly pre-toasted in the oven with olive oil brushed on them. You could also use flatbread or french bread.

In a mixing bowl, combine all of the ingredients above and allow to marinate for several hours, preferably overnight. If using baguettes, thinly slice baguette bread and brush with olive oil. Toast in the oven at 425 degrees for 5 minutes or so. Remove bread from oven when it is slightly firm to touch. Scoop a spoonful of the marinated bruschetta on each slice of bread. Return to oven and allow to broil for another 5-8 minutes, until warm. Top with additional parmesan, if desired. Enjoy!

About Lindsay

Lindsay Edmonds is first a lover of Jesus, wife, mother of four, homemaker, and writer. She loves inspiring women around the world toward simple, natural, and intentional living for the glory of God.

9 Responses to Healthy Appetizers: Bruschetta

  1. Cliff Cohee January 9, 2013 at 6:06 am #

    i love appetizers because they are one of the tastiest part of a meal aside from the dessert.”

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  2. Heather@WoolandFlax August 23, 2009 at 4:59 pm #

    Mmmm…I love making bruschetta! That picture made me hungry! :-)

  3. erin August 23, 2009 at 9:50 am #

    Bruschetta is such a tasty appetizer! When I make it, I usually put the tomato mixture/bruschetta on the baguette after buttering it up with fresh garlic butter and then sprinkle feta cheese on top before popping it into the oven. The flavours really work well together.

  4. Ginger August 18, 2009 at 6:27 pm #

    This looks great :) I can hardly wait to try it. Thank-you for posting it :)

  5. Shannon Hazleton August 18, 2009 at 1:48 pm #

    Mmmmm! I’d like to hear more about your neighborhood BBQ party – do you know your neighbors well? Did you have a lot of people in your home, or just invite your immediate (next door) neighbors? How did it go? I’ve been wanting to get to know some of our neighbors – they all seem very different from us. I’m not quite sure where to start!

    • Lindsay August 19, 2009 at 7:52 am #

      Shannon, our desire is to reach out and build relationships with our neighbors for the gospel. We have gotten to know several of them along the way and through giving out loaves of sweet breads and cookies at various holidays. We try to welcome new neighbors to the neighborhood with a gift basket of goodies. This time we invited several of them over for a time of fellowship. We had 4 of our neighbors come this time. It is never as many as I expect, but each step is making progress to build relationships. We live in a condo development so there are a lot of single or divorced people, so we invited individuals from all over the complex. Yes, they are definitely very different from us, but it is so good to get outside of our comfort zone and try to get to know them. They are very needy as well! One of my neighbors told us about a great loss in her life and this has led to further follow up. My mom and I brought her a bouquet of flowers and a book on grief this week at the Lord’s prompting and we will wait to see how He might use it in her life. We are called to be faithful and sometimes it is not always easy. We don’t always get the best response, but we have to continue to persevere. Last Christmas, I planned a Ladies tea for the neighbor ladies and no one showed up. I was discouraged at first, but the Lord did a good work in my heart encouraging me that it is all for the kingdom. Each step, each invitation, is acting upon his call for us to make our homes an embassy for His kingdom.
      I would encourage you to start by opening your home in hospitality. Just invite people to your home and allow the Lord to lead you. Invite another Christian couple or family as well, as that will help keep you encouraged if all else fails, but also to help lead in conversation and support. Check out Practicing Hospitality and When God is the Life of the Party for good encouraging reads and lots of creative ideas on this topic.

  6. Michelle August 18, 2009 at 8:27 am #

    I made bruschetta chicken last week – we grilled the chicken, topped it with tomatoes and basil from the garden and feta cheese for the last few minutes of cooking – yum!

  7. Anna August 18, 2009 at 7:45 am #

    I’m getting tons of ripe roma tomatoes from my garden and I have always wanted to make a caprese salad. Do you have a good recipe? I would like one that involves mixed greens like when ordered at a nice restaurant. If you have any ideas, can you post a recipe?

    • Jen August 18, 2009 at 10:30 pm #

      We have been getting tons of heirloom cherry tomatoes in our CSA box for the past two weeks, and I have been making caprese salads frequently. I halve the tomatoes (for roma, I would quarter), cube fresh mozzarella cheese to the same size of tomatoes, then chop fresh basil to sprinkle on top. I drizzle olive oil and balsamic vinegar over the top. It is DELICIOUS!!!

      You could easily mix the tomatoes, mozzarella and basil, then serve the mixture over greens and drizzle the oil and vinegar over the whole thing. You really don’t need a recipe for this salad, but I bet you could find exact recipes at allrecipes.com or google it.

      There is no food more summer like to me than a fresh caprese salad. Enjoy!