How to make bruschetta :
a quick and easy
Italian appetizer recipe.
There’s nothing difficult about how to make bruschetta.
It’s a quick and easy Italian finger food recipe that’s great for parties and picnics and is always on every restaurant menu as a popular appetizer.
Once you have the basic bread base, you can add virtually any topping you like - which makes it a great choice on a vegetarian dish, too.
We suggest some of our favourite toppings below the basic recipe - but one of the fun things about Italian food is that you can add whatever you want, using food you have in stock. Be adventurous!

How to make bruschetta - the basics.
Bruschetta (pronounced “Broo-s
kay-ta”) is the bread, oil and garlic combination : originating in central Italy but now popular as Italian finger food, starter or snack all over the country - and outside it.
The wonderful taste comes through the combination of very
fresh olive oil
- Italians will only use the current year’s harvest for bruschetta - with freshly picked garlic.
The topping most widely used in Italy is tomatoes (‘
Bruschetta al pomodoro’) but there are lots of variations on this - we suggest some of the most popular below.
Ingredients.
✮ I loaf of Italian bread; if none is available use a French baguette. Stale bread is ideal for this recipe.
✮ Extra virgin olive oil - the fresher, the better.
✮ 4 garlic cloves - again, as fresh as you can get.
✮ Sea or rock salt and freshly ground black pepper.
How to make it.
✮ Pre-heat the oven to 450ºF., (230ºC., gas mark 8).
✮ Slice the bread diagonally to get the maximum possible surface area. The pieces should be approximately one half inch inch thick (1.5 centimetres).
✮ Traditionally the garlic would be rubbed on each piece of bread to flavour it.
✮ However, if you don’t want to have the smell on your hands for days, we suggest finely chopping the garlic and in a small bowl, combining it with about 120 mls (0.25 cup) olive oil.
✮ Brush one side of the bread with the olive oil mix and place each slice on a baking sheet, olive oil side facing up.
✮ Place the baking tray on the top shelf of the pre-heated oven and leave for about five minutes. Watch it, because the bread will burn easily.
✮ Arrange the bread on a serving plate, olive oil side facing up.
✮ Now just add whichever topping takes your fancy!
How to make bruschetta topping :
the basic recipe.
✮ 8 firm tomatoes
✮ 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
✮ Fresh basil and oregano, chopped
✮ Dice the tomatoes and put into a bowl.
✮ Add the chopped basil, oregano, salt and pepper and mix together well with a spoon.
✮ Pile on top of your bruschetta slices.
And that's it - perfect Italian finger food in minutes!
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