Grilled Tomato Bread with Proscuitto

May 30, 2010

I know, I know, you tomato-haters are completely over
the recipes I’ve been posting lately. I swear, I know better, but I can’t help myself.

It’s just that I totally got my freak on at the Farmer’s Market a week ago, and we’ve been drowning in the little red suckers ever since. It’s like a crimson, seedy orgy over here, I’m telling you.

I could make a big batch of marinara sauce, throw it in the freezer, and put you loathers of all things tomato out of your misery. But it’s been Hella Hot over here, and turning on the stove is about as appealing as a trip to the proctologist, so you’re just going to have to endure one more post about the love apple. I’ll make it quick, okay?

This yummy little morsel makes a perfect appetizer or light lunch. A quick turn on the grill renders the tomatoes tender and melty, and paired with crunchy bread, creamy ricotta and sharp, salty Proscuitto, you have a winner of a dish. Add a cool glass of Pinot Grigio and I doubt that you’ll mind the steamy weather one bit.


Grilled Tomato Bread with Proscuitto
recipe courtesy of Bobby Flay
serves 4

1 pint cherry tomatoes
Olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
12 slices French bread, sliced 1/2-inch slices
1/2 cup ricotta cheese
12 paper thin slices Proscuitto di Parma
2 lemons, cut in half
* I also added fresh basil, because tomatoes without basil is a crime*

Heat grill to high. Toss tomatoes in oil and season with salt and pepper. Place on the grill in a grilling basket and grill until charred and softened, turning a few times, about 10 minutes. Remove to a bowl. Crush the garlic with a little salt to form a paste and add to the bowl with a few tablespoons of olive oil.

Brush bread with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper, and place on the grill. Grill the bread until lightly golden brown on both sides, about 20 seconds per side.

Combine the ricotta with a little olive oil in a small bowl and season with salt and pepper. Mound some of the tomato mixture on the bread. Lay proscuitto on top. Dollop with some ricotta mixture and garnish with lemon juice squeezed over the top.

{ 46 comments… read them below or add one }

Phoo-D May 30, 2010 at 3:33 pm

Gorgeous! Love the dish and the photo. We are grilling up bread and burrata here today too. You could post a tomato recipe every week and I'd never get tired of it. =)

Reply

Maria May 30, 2010 at 3:41 pm

Oh, how I have missed you…I love tomatoes, proscuitto and CHEESE!

And you are right, with a little Pinot Grigio, who cares if the temperatures rival those in hell!

Reply

Sherri May 30, 2010 at 4:15 pm

This looks sooooo good! Have a great long weekend, btw.

Reply

BigLittleWolf May 30, 2010 at 4:41 pm

Also a tomato lover. L-O-V-E-R. Mmmm. Use your imagination.

Now about that sign… where can I get me one of those?

Reply

WackyMummy May 30, 2010 at 5:06 pm

This totally made my mouth water… and I don't even know what prosciutto is!

Reply

Lynn May 30, 2010 at 5:17 pm

OK. My hubby left for a 2 year military stint, and I'm too much of a chicken to dig out the charcoal grill. I've gotta get me an indoor electric one so I can at least make a semblance of these. They look delicious. I don't think I can wait until he comes back to try them out!

Reply

theycallmejane May 30, 2010 at 5:54 pm

My son and I could live on tomatoes and we love, love, love this time of year! You come up with the most amazing stuff. I wanna live at your house. Well, at least in your kitchen!

Reply

Cheryl May 30, 2010 at 6:48 pm

That first graphic? With the "you say tomato"? PRICELESS. Couldn't have said it better myself. Please, I beg you with all that is holy, STOP WITH THE TOMATOES ALREADY!

Reply

Aging Mommy May 30, 2010 at 7:12 pm

I love french bread, prosciutto and cheese, it is a great combination and I would even take the tomatoes as it does sound wonderful. Oh and the glass of pinot, only if this is lunch then someone will have to take care of my daughter afterwards as wine at lunch time and parenting is not something I can manage to do :-)

Reply

K(Banterings of a Basketcase) May 30, 2010 at 8:08 pm

mmm. I just had tomatoe with mozerella and basil on crispy french bread. with beer. I sprinkled garlic and salt on the tomatoe mix. mmmm. and I spell tomatoe with an e- so there. LOL

Reply

michelle May 30, 2010 at 8:32 pm

YUM

Reply

Kelly May 30, 2010 at 8:59 pm

You had me at eff you. Actually, I love tomatoes like no one's business. Who needs fancy meat and grills? Just eat 'em like grapes and they'll be gone soon enough. :)

Reply

Cathy May 30, 2010 at 11:14 pm

Yum! Who ARE these people that hate tomatoes? Shame on them!

Reply

Linda Pressman May 30, 2010 at 11:52 pm

Okay so my daughter and I, the amateur farmers, are growing our own tomatoes (we cheated a little with one actual plant instead of just our seedlings) and so I only have one small tomato at a time. It's not much, but it is fresh grown!

Reply

The Curious Cat May 31, 2010 at 1:30 am

yum yum yum yum yum…I love the love apple…so so much! I don't mind hearing about it at all! Perfect summer food! This recipe is simple and sounds lush! xxx

Reply

Christine May 31, 2010 at 4:31 am

I've only just discovered a secret enjoyment of tomatoes. I love ANY tomatoe type sauce, but to actually the ripe, fresh kind. Pfffttt. Used to hate them. Somewhere my tastbuds change, and though I'm not super adventurous yet, this recipe looks like one I could sink my teeth into!

Reply

Stacia May 31, 2010 at 6:00 am

I'm reading your post over breakfast with my kiddos and just spit my Cheerios all over the table. My daughter asks me what is so funny, and I sputter and spit because I can't tell her it's the expletive that did it!

Reply

A Feast for the Eyes May 31, 2010 at 7:10 am

Tomato haters don't know what they're missing out on. Love 'em. Love 'em just this way. Anything with Prosciutto gets my attention. Keep the recipes comin'. I've been scarce reading my favorite blogs, but I'm trying to catch up. I have a load of tomatoes calling my name for the weekend, and I have no shame about it.

Reply

Bryan May 31, 2010 at 10:38 am

Looks good! I love absolutely LOVE Prosciutto! I mean LOVE it! these look perfect.

Reply

Wendi May 31, 2010 at 11:06 am

Did you save one of those lovely little sammies for me?

Reply

Barbara May 31, 2010 at 11:08 am

Since I was a child, my favorite sandwich has been one with crunchy, toasted sour dough bread and fresh tomatoes. (always with an herb mayonaise) Next time I'll add some proscuitto and fresh mozzarella. (I just can't get in the ricotta mood with that sandwich!)

Reply

From the Kitchen May 31, 2010 at 12:14 pm

When tomatoes are in season, I eat them at every meal. Nothing better than an "everything" bagel topped with a little mayo and thick slices of tomato. I think your delicious morsel would do nicely for lunch or an appetizer–even a light dinner!!

And, sometimes, I just eat them like an apple.

Best,
Bonnie

Reply

C. Troubadour May 31, 2010 at 1:27 pm

I am a tomato convert after getting them from the farmer's market. Cannot beat the flavor. And yes, tomatoes without basil IS a crime.

Our market's tomatoes won't be in for a few weeks still (too cold out here), but I'm looking forward to it …

Reply

girlichef May 31, 2010 at 3:00 pm

My favorite end of spring-start of summer flavors all together in one delicious sammie. NUM NUM. ;)

Reply

Jen May 31, 2010 at 5:01 pm

droooool!

Reply

Erin May 31, 2010 at 7:32 pm

I just spent the last 20 minutes catching up on your recent posts. Funny, touching, personal, and delicious! Keep it up. And all the tomato recipes are really makign me crave a fresh sliced tomato!

Reply

Chiara "Kika" Assi June 1, 2010 at 2:06 am

There's someone in the world who doesn't like tomatoes? Inconceivable!!!
These little snacks pair up pretty much everything I love in life, including the pinot grigio. Yum…

Reply

grace June 1, 2010 at 3:07 am

i, for one, will never tire of tomatoes–keep the good stuff coming, i say. these little toastlets look great–the creamy ricotta, crunchy bread, and juicy 'maters would no doubt form a blessed union in the mouth. :)

Reply

Tiffany June 1, 2010 at 5:42 am

Yum…who could ever get tired of tomatoes? Crazies.

Reply

Pines Lake Redhead June 1, 2010 at 5:45 am

Yummy! Believe it or not but tomatoes are out of season in Florida during the summer. :(

Reply

Gibby June 1, 2010 at 6:27 am

Wait. There are people who hate tomatoes?

Reply

mo.stoneskin June 1, 2010 at 6:30 am

Steamy weather I wish. Still, nothing like a tomato-based snack, preferably with Mozzarella I might add, coupled with a cold white.

Reply

Liz June 1, 2010 at 4:58 pm

Okay, you did it Kitch. I'm actually gonna do this one. Congrats. You accomplished the impossible. Will let you know how it goes this weekend…

Reply

faemom June 1, 2010 at 5:01 pm

OMG That looks so good! I love tomatoes. My go-to summer tomato recipe is bruschetta, so it'll be nice to have something else to throw together.

Reply

evaevolving June 1, 2010 at 6:22 pm

Ooohhh yeahh! I'll be makin' these little babies as soon as I get some 'maters from the garden. Ricotta plus grilled garlic bread plus prosciutto??! All my favorite things.

And who are these tomato haters? Lemme have their unwanted tomatoes!!

Reply

naptimewriting June 1, 2010 at 9:04 pm

Don't let the 'mater haters get you down, Witch. If I had to pick one desert island food, it might be bread, it might be cheese, and it might be 'maters. Put 'em all together and I'll come to your desert island any day.

Reply

theUngourmet June 1, 2010 at 9:51 pm

I truly believe that tomatoes and basil together are like manna from heaven! Awesome recipe! ;)

Reply

Justine June 2, 2010 at 11:44 am

I LOVE tomatoes, and these look deeeeelicious. I'm bummed that my farmers' market is still only carrying herbs and asparagus in abundance but not much else. I need my tomatoes and blueberries – I can't wait! (But to have those would be to wish the summer away as they arrive later in the season – great produce or long hot summer? Hmm…that's a tough one).

Reply

~Laura June 3, 2010 at 12:10 pm

Wait, who hates tomatoes??? I think I may have fallen in love with you a little more for this one! It is my kind of cooking. Deelisshhh!!!!

Reply

Velva June 3, 2010 at 8:18 pm

Damn, that looks good. You can keep posting "love apple' recipes because I love them! Mine are still green on the bush. My lips are already smacking at the idea that they will soon be ripe-

Reply

natalie June 6, 2010 at 7:40 pm

All I can say is…. NOMNOMNOMNOMNOMNOM!!!!

Reply

backlinks genie July 10, 2012 at 8:06 am

Hello, Neat post. There is a problem along with your site in web explorer, may check this? IE still is the marketplace chief and a large component to other folks will pass over your wonderful writing because of this problem.

Reply

Article Submission July 12, 2012 at 2:02 pm

gYowwP Fantastic blog article.Really looking forward to read more. Really Cool.

Reply

Fiverr best GIGs July 14, 2012 at 9:11 pm

DfxeDN Im thankful for the post. Awesome.

Reply

Love in the Wild Season 2 Episode 3 July 16, 2012 at 3:44 am

I really liked your blog article.Much thanks again. Fantastic.

Reply

Zebra Zoologist July 16, 2012 at 6:20 pm

nice page you should write a weekly newsletter :)

Reply

Cancel reply

Leave a Comment

Previous post:

Next post: