5 tomato sandwich recipes to make with your garden harvest

High summer is tomato season, when farm stands and gardens are bursting, sometimes literally, with ripe fruit. From beefsteaks to heirlooms to fresh off the vine, there’s nothing quite like slicing up a tomato straight from your own garden and whipping up something delicious for lunch or a late-afternoon snack. That’s what’s so great about a simple tomato sandwich. It’s low-lift with downright delicious results. We’ll never knock a classic—mayo on fresh or toasted bread with sliced tomatoes and a sprinkle of salt and pepper will never not do the trick on a summer day. But we’ve also got a few recipes we think you should add to your rotation, especially if you’ve got a harvest of tomatoes to use up.

For a more classic and simple sandwich, try the Grilled Cheese with Tomato or the open-faced toasts. For something a little fancier, we’ve got two twists on a classic BLT, one with crispy pancetta and one with fried tomatoes. (Both excellent if you love a lot of crispiness.) And because tomato sandwiches aren’t just for lunch, we’ve got biscuit sandwiches with homemade spicy tomato jam that are just begging to be made for your next weekend brunch. Happy harvest!

Roasted Tomato and Crispy Pancetta on Focaccia

First up in our tomato sandwich party is a flavorful number that’s a little bit reminiscent of a BLT. This is one of those sandwiches that you take some time to savor. You don’t just throw it together and slap it on a plate. Those kinds of sandwiches are fine, of course! But that’s not what this is. This is warm focaccia, a bed of fresh greens, roasted tomatoes, some quick pickled onions, and crispy pancetta. It’s like the BLT’s fancier cousin, and it’s absolutely worth making.

Get the recipe for Roasted Tomato and Crispy Pancetta on Focaccia.

The Ultimate Grilled Cheese with Tomato

For a simpler—albeit still incredibly delicious—tomato sandwich, may we introduce you to this extra-melty grilled cheese. You can easily customize this sandwich however you like, but we used super-ripe and flavorful heirloom tomatoes, brioche, and Fontina cheese. Save the cheddar for burgers! Fontina is a great melting cheese and works wonderfully on this kind of sandwich. When it comes to the grilling, we love using cast iron to get extra crisp and toasty bread. Another trick we used here is spreading a thin layer of mayonnaise on the exterior of the bread, which grills up nice and toasty. If you’re not a fan of mayo, the good news is that once it’s been grilled like this, you can’t taste it! Just delicious tomato and cheesy goodness.

Get the recipe for The Ultimate Grilled Cheese with Tomato.

Egg & Biscuit Sandwiches with Tomato Jam

Tomato sandwiches aren’t just for lunch! They also make for one tasty breakfast. Think of these as the ultimate brunchy ham and cheese sandwich. They start with homemade biscuits that aren’t just any regular old biscuits (although those work fine too!). Buttermilk keeps them rich and moist, and cheddar and chives are mixed in there for good measure. Pan-seared ham, melted cheese, and a fried egg are a match made in breakfast heaven. But the real star of the show is homemade Spicy Tomato Jam. If you need to use up a fresh harvest of tomatoes from your garden, this tomato jam is what we’d make. And then put on everything.

Get the recipe for Egg & Biscuit Sandwiches with Tomato Jam.

Open-Faced Tomato and Dill Toasts

Thare is one of those recipes that’s barely a recipe, but it’s just so good. This simple sandwich tastes best with perfectly vine-ripened tomatoes. Use whatever you happen to have on hand, but we recommend a slicing variety, something about 3 to 4 inches across, such as beefsteak or Brandywine for maximum bread coverage. The bread is rubbed with garlic before toasting, and the only ingredients you need other than that is some mayo, dill, and salt and pepper to taste.

Get the recipe for Open-Faced Tomato and Dill Toasts.

BLT with Crispy Fried Tomatoes and Avocado

If you’re saving your garden-fresh tomatoes for something extra special, this is the sandwich you’ve been waiting for. This BLT has the usual ingredients, but it doubles down on the crispiness of the bacon by battering and frying the tomato. The tomato slices are covered in a mixture of panko and parmesan, which really adds to the crisp factor. We’ve also added avocado for a little bit of added creaminess. This might just be the best BLT you make all summer!

Get the recipe for BLT with Crispy Fried Tomatoes and Avocado.