Italian Broiled Tomatoes
Warm, savory and flavored with Italian seasonings, Italian Broiled Tomatoes will turn your tomato harvest into a special side dish.
Isn’t it wonderful when fall brings a bounty of cheery red tomatoes! Sweet grape tomatoes for munching, juicy beefsteaks for slicing, meaty romas for sauce! And your middle-of-the-road tomatoes? Perfect for Broiled Tomatoes!
My mother used to make Italian Broiled Tomatoes whenever we had excess tomatoes—and even as veggie-hating kids, we loved them! Somehow topping baked tomatoes with cheese and herbs makes everyone want to dig in.
And they couldn’t be easier! Just add toppings and pop into the oven for tasty broiled or baked tomatoes!
Why You’ll Love This!
Tasty. When I bite into a fresh tomato, my kids look at me like I have two heads. But serve them warm, topped with herbs and melted cheese, and everyone’s into them!
Easy. Just sprinkle with herbs, cheese and olive oil, then bake or broil. How good is that!
Healthy. Low calorie with healthy tomato and olive oil! Hooray!
What You’ll Need
Ingredient Notes
- Tomatoes. Start with flavorful tomatoes for the best results.
- Salt. Salt is a flavor enhancer.
- Garlic. Adds more flavor. You can sub garlic powder or onion powder if you’d like
- Herbs. Fresh is best but harder to get in winter. So I include instructions for dried as well (which is what my mother used, so how can I complain!).
- Grated provolone or parmesan. This provides the cheesy goodness. You may use another well-melting cheese if you prefer.
- Olive oil. Adds richness and flavor.
Special Tools
- No special tools required!
Step by Step Directions
Core tomatoes and slice in half.
Salt the cut side of the tomato, then top with fresh or dried garlic and herbs.
Sprinkle ½ ounce of grated cheese on top of the herbs.
Drizzle with olive oil.
Broil on low until cheese is melted and tomato is slightly softened and warm inside. Or bake covered for about 15-20 minutes. (If you feel you need more color, you can always put a broiler safe dish under the broiler for a minute or two)
Best served warm (but if you’re a cold pizza eater, you might like eating these cold too).
How to Serve
Italian Broiled Tomatoes make a tasty side dish for a formal or informal dinner. They go especially well with Italian entrees like Sicilian Steak. Consider making it an Italian night by adding a Spicy Italian Salad and Garlic Bread!
But truly I’ll even eat these as a snack. And I think a tray would be lovely on a brunch table!
If the cheese layer is thick and no herbs show through, you can consider garnishing with a little chopped parsley. But usually, mine go to the table right as is.
Variations and Special Diets
If you’d like to make a vegan and/or dairy-free version, you can use a plant-based cheese. Or some people omit the cheese entirely, perhaps with a little extra olive oil.
Looking for another tomato appetizer? Well this Roasted Tomato and Goat Cheese Bruschetta is delicious and super easy since, unlike regular Bruschetta, the guest do the assembly!
Or for an roasted tomato entrée you might consider Cherry Tomato Pasta Puttanesca or One Pan Baked Halibut w/ Cherry Tomatoes.
Leftovers
Leftover Italian Broiled Tomatoes can be kept, covered and refrigerated for 3-4 days. When it’s time to serve, you can reheat in the oven or microwave. They’ll still be good, but maybe not as perfect, so for guests, I’d always go with freshly made.
And just between you and me, sometimes I’ll even eat the leftovers cold (I’m a cold pizza eater too).
Tips & FAQs
I actually did a side by side taste test making some tomatoes with fresh herbs and some with dried. I liked the fresh best, but actually more for the texture than the flavor. Some of my herb mixture had some sharp rosemary in it, so if you go with dried, chose your herbs carefully.
A rule of thumb for switching between dried and fresh herbs is to go with a 1:3 ratio. That means 1 teaspoon dried herbs is (roughly) equivalent to 3 teaspoons (1 Tablespoon) fresh.
There is a little bit of art if you want your Italian Broiled Tomatoes perfectly cooked. Ideally the cheese will melt just as the tomato becomes slightly soft and warm, but still holds its shape.
For years I always broiled my Italian Broiled Tomatoes. But my currant oven’s broiler setting is so hot, the cheese starts to burn before the tomatoes are warm inside. So lately I’ve taken to baking them and setting them under the broiler for a minute or two if I want more color. Or sometimes I pop them on the grill (in a grill pan on the off burner) next to the steaks.
And for more delicious Fall Flavors, check out:
- Bacon Pear Salad with Parmesan Dressing by Jolene’s Recipe Journal
- White Chocolate Pumpkin Blondies by Hezzi-D’s Recipe Box
- Pork Marsala by A Day in the Life on the Farm
- Apple Cider Baked Donuts by A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
- Arugula, Apple, and Fennel Salad with Cheesy Crostini by Karen’s Kitchen Stories
- Baked Pumpkin Pie Pudding by A Little Fish in the Kitchen
- Apple Date Sugar Halwa by Magical Ingredients
- Italian Broiled Tomatoes by Art of Natural Living
- Pomegranate Molasses Cookies by The Spiffy Cookie
- Cranberry Apple Compote by That Recipe
Italian Broiled Tomatoes
Ingredients
- 2 large tomatoes
- salt to taste
- 1-2 cloves garlic minced or 1 teaspoon garlic or onion powder
- 1-2 Tablespoon chopped fresh Italian herbs such as oregano, thyme, rosemary or 1-2 teaspoons dried herbs (avoid rosemary in dried herbs)
- ½ cup grated parmesan or provolone or a combination
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
Instructions
- Core tomatoes and slice in half.
- Salt the cut side of the tomatoes, then top with fresh or dried garlic and herbs.
- Sprinkle the shredded cheese on top of the herbs.
- Drizzle olive oil over the cheese.
- Broil on low until cheese is melted and tomato is slightly softened and warm inside. Or bake for 15-20 minutes until warm and melty.
- Best served warm (but if you’re a cold pizza eater, you might like these cold too).
Nutrition
Updated from the original published Sep 10, 2017.
This will be a new way for us to enjoy tomatoes, they really look scrumptious!!
These tomatoes look so delicious! And a perfect way to use overripe tomatoes, I would imagine. The herbs and cheese sound so good. Perfect with those Italian beans and a paillard of chicken.
This is for me! I love tomatoes in any form.I could have this as a snack or as a side!
I definitely do not need the instructions for the leftovers because there would be absolutely zero of those!
This is perfect for all those tomatoes I have in the yard! Great for appetizer or a side dish.
These sound amazing and I’m sure my family will love them.
This is something my mother used to make for dinner often. Thanks for the reminder. I must make them!
I love family food memories!
this is a perfect straightforward side dish! i’m so sad when the tomatoes begin to fade out. :/
What is better than farm fresh tomatoes and cheese together?
Love how you prepared the tomatoes here, so simple and delicious!
look delicious ! I love tomatoes 🙂
These must be great with some toasted ciabatta 🙂