Easy cheese and tomato sandwich recipe that works as an appetizer or main dish. A simple and delicious gourmet sandwich that showcases garden fresh tomatoes.
These Scandinavian-style sandwiches known as Smørrebrød are easy to prepare. Totally impressive in appearance and certainly delivers on taste. Less bread and more toppings are a win for me.
Not your old fashioned cheese and tomato sandwich, this is kicked up a few notches. Ripe tomatoes and ricotta cheese make this a gourmet delight.
I am sure you have enjoyed lots of open sandwiches like:
- Smashed Avocado Toast – perfect for any meal of the day.
- Smoked Salmon and Cream Cheese Bagel – this classic is so easy to make at home.
- Fresh Tomato Bruschetta – perfect with pasta or as a starter.
- Strawberry Bruschetta – great for an appetizer or dessert.
- Cucumber Sandwich Bagel – you can serve this as an open sandwich.
Let’s not forget all the tuna melts and hot open-faced sandwiches with gravy too. The best part about great sandwiches is that to make it a full meal add a tasty side. This simple pea salad is perfect. Crisp, refreshing, and bursting with flavour.
Sandwiches with tomatoes fresh from the garden are the absolute best ever. With some simple toppings this sandwich goes from ordinary to extraordinary, pure delight in every bite.
Gourmet Cheese And Tomato Sandwich Ingredients
Super easy to find ingredients. Keep reading for some awesome substitutions and recipe tips.
- Sourdough bread
- Fresh tomatoes
- Ricotta cheese
- Olive tapenade
- Black pepper
- Balsamic glaze
- Fresh basil
Open-Faced Sandwiches With Tomatoes And Cheese
All you need to do is slice and layer. This is the perfect sandwich for brunch, lunch or dinner. Bonus points, you can ever serve it as an appetizer.
- Layer the ricotta cheese on the slice of bread.
- Top with the olive spread.
- Layer on fresh tomato slices.
- Add a sprinkle of pepper.
- Drizzle with the balsamic glaze.
- Garnish with fresh basil.
This tasty open-faced sandwich so simple to make and so delicious to eat. We happen to think it is the best tomato sandwich we have ever eaten.
Suggestions/Recipe Tips
Bread – I love sourdough bread. Any dense bread will work in this sandwich recipe. This is a topping heavy sandwich, so thin bread will not hold up. I did not toast my bread, but by all means, toast away it you like.
Cheese – I love the taste of ricotta cheese. It spreads nicely and tastes delicious. You can easily swap it for cream cheese, goat cheese or any kind of cheese slices you like.
Tomatoes – The freshest, best-tasting tomatoes work best. If you cannot find heirloom, beefsteak or Kumato are great options. Of course, if you grow your own tomatoes in the garden, those would be perfect.
Olive tapenade – This adds a delicious layer of flavour to this tasty sandwich. You can just use olives if you like, or replace the tapenade with an antipasto spread.
Balsamic glaze – Always a great choice. You could also just use a few drops of regular balsamic. It will be much thinner and the flavour will not be as intense or as sweet. Another delicious option would be a drizzle hot honey.
Garnish – Fresh herbs of any kind will work. I choose basil, but chives, dill, thyme, parsley or oregano are great alternatives. Skip the dry herbs on this.
Serving – I like to serve these as soon as they are made. You can store them in the fridge until ready to eat. Just be aware the longer they are stored, the chances of the bread getting soggy increases.
Be sure to check out the other delicious sandwiches, wraps and burgers on this site.
For more sandwich ideas, here are a few to try:
- Brie Grilled Cheese
- Curried Tofu
- Smoked Salmon Sandwich
- Egg Salad Wrap
- Harvest Turkey Wrap
- Sliced Corned Beef Sandwich
Open Faced Tomato and Cheese Sandwich
Ingredients
- 1 slice sourdough bread
- 2 ounces ricotta cheese
- 1 tablespoon olive tapenade
- 2 ounces tomato slices
- 1 teaspoon balsamic glaze
- pepper (to taste)
- sliced fresh basil (optional garnish)
Instructions
- Slice the fresh tomatoes and set aside.
- Spread the ricotta cheese on the slice of bread.
- Layer the olive tapenade on top of the cheese.
- Top with the tomato slices.
- Sprinkle on some fresh ground black pepper on the tomatoes.
- Drizzle on the balsamic glaze.
- Garnish with sliced basil.
Adriana
Beautiful sandwich, the cheese and tomato are perfect pairings. This was so yummy!
Gloria Duggan | Homemade & Yummy
You can never go wrong with a tomato and cheese sandwich.
Elizabeth
The perfect summer lunch! So easy and quick to make!
Gloria Duggan | Homemade & Yummy
We love these sandwiches, especially with fresh tomatoes from the garden.
Nora
This is perfect for a hot summer day—refreshing and delicious! We will be making it more often from now on!
Gloria Duggan | Homemade & Yummy
One of our favourite ways to enjoy garden fresh tomatoes.
Leslie
Goodness..this is such a great recipe!
Gloria Duggan | Homemade & Yummy
Easy and delicious, no need to spend lots of time in the kitchen during the summer months.
Nicole
This is such a yummy sandwich! Fun to try new things to spice up our summertime lunches and use up some tomatoes!!
Gloria Duggan | Homemade & Yummy
Fresh tomatoes are all you need for a great summer sandwich. Perfect for lunch or dinner.
Bernice
We make these sandwiches on repeat during the summer when our tomatoes are so delicious. I look forward to them every year.
Gloria Duggan | Homemade & Yummy
I also look forward to fresh tomatoes from the garden. These sandwiches are so good.
Helen at the lazy gastronome
This is delicious!
Gloria Duggan | Homemade & Yummy
I totally agree, basic and so delicious.
Allyssa
This is really helpful! Thanks a bunch for sharing your fantastic recipe, will have this again for sure!!
Gloria Duggan | Homemade & Yummy
So glad you enjoyed these tomato sandwiches.
Moop Brown
I’ve never thought to put balsamic glaze on a burger but it seems like such a nice and tasty touch to this recipe.
Gloria Duggan | Homemade & Yummy
Balsamic is great on so many things, burgers…and these open-faced sandwiches too.
Jamie
This cheese and tomato sandwich was the perfect summer snack for my family! We had some heirloom tomatoes from the farmer’s market that we paired with herbed goat cheese. It tasted amazing!
Gloria Duggan | Homemade & Yummy
You can never go wrong with a delicious tomato and cheese sandwich, especially in the summer.
Ann
I made this sandwich for lunch the other day, with a substitution for the goat cheese. Was delicious! Excited to give it another try with the goat cheese!
Gloria Duggan | Homemade & Yummy
There is no wrong kind of cheese to this delicious tomato sandwich.
Marie
This is the perfect summer lunch! Loved the idea of serving this open-faced sandwich on flatbreads. Easy and delicious!
Gloria Duggan | Homemade & Yummy
Oh yes, served on flatbread is the best. Less bread more toppings.
Amy Casey
This was the perfect lunch for the warm weather we have been having lately. I used delicious Jersey tomatoes and they were so tasty with the goat cheese.
Gloria Duggan | Homemade & Yummy
I have never heard of Jersey tomatoes, but you can never go wrong with fresh tomatoes of any kind.
Amanda
I just picked up some heirloom tomatoes, and this was the perfect way to use them! They were so good with the creamy goat cheese. I’ll definitely have to make this again while heirloom tomatoes are still in season.
Gloria Duggan | Homemade & Yummy
I agree the goat cheese really adds a nice level of flavour to this sandwich recipe.
Dani
This open-faced tomato sandwich was the perfect way to use up the abundance of tomatoes coming from our garden. Love it!
Gloria Duggan | Homemade & Yummy
I have to agree. Tomato sandwiches are perfect for garden fresh tomatoes.