Summer tomatoes, olive oil, and a can of white beans — roast, mash a little, and you’ve got the easiest, most addictive crostini or supper in 30 minutes.
July might be the laziest cooking month — and maybe that’s exactly how it should be. The heat lingers, the days stretch on, and if midsummer calls for easing off our to-do lists and leaning into a slower rhythm, I’m all for it.
Happily, summer produce makes that possible. When farm stands are bursting with heavy, sweet cherry tomatoes, little effort is required. But if I do turn on the oven, it’s for this: a pound of tomatoes roasted quickly with olive oil and garlic until they collapse into something saucy, concentrated, and utterly irresistible. Their salty juices form a rough, rich sauce that beans tumble through and soak up, and a scattering of fresh basil at the end brightens everything.
Eaten straight from the pan, it’s comforting. Piled on toasted bread, it’s sublime crostini. And the variations are endless — slip in anchovies, capers, or olives for briny punch; swirl in pesto instead of basil; finish with parmesan, pecorino, or a cloud of burrata. But honestly, even at its simplest — just tomatoes, garlic, beans, and basil — it feels like peak summer on a plate.
Servings | Active time | Total time |
|---|---|---|
2–4 | ~10 minutes prep + 25 minutes roasting/stirring | ~30 minutes |
Ingredient | Amount |
|---|---|
Olive oil | 5 tablespoons, divided |
Very ripe cherry tomatoes | 1 lb (≈455 g), halved |
Garlic cloves | 6 small, peeled (no need to pulverize—taste is forgiving) |
Kosher salt | 1 teaspoon (plus more to taste) |
Freshly ground black pepper or red pepper flakes | To taste |
Cannellini (white) beans | 1 (15-oz / 425 g) can, drained & rinsed |
Fresh basil | 1/4 cup thinly sliced leaves, loosely packed |
Buy |
|---|
1 lb ripe cherry tomatoes |
6 small garlic cloves |
1 (15-oz) can cannellini or other white beans |
Fresh basil |
Olive oil, kosher salt, black pepper/red pepper flakes |
Bread or baguette (for crostini) — optional |
Preheat & oil the pan. Heat oven to 400°F (200°C). Pour 2 tbsp olive oil into a 13×9-inch (or similar) baking dish and spread it around.
Arrange tomatoes & garlic. Halve the cherry tomatoes and place them cut-side up in the dish. Tuck the whole peeled garlic cloves among them. Drizzle another 2 tbsp olive oil over the top; sprinkle 1 teaspoon kosher salt and plenty of black pepper (or red pepper flakes) to taste.
Roast. Roast for 20 minutes, until tomatoes are bubbly and juicy.
Mash gently & add beans. Remove from oven, set on a trivet, and lightly mash the tomatoes and garlic with a fork (be careful of hot juices that may pop). Add the drained/rinsed white beans, stir to combine, and adjust salt/pepper if needed.
Finish in oven. Return to oven 5 minutes to warm the beans through and let flavors marry.
Finish & serve. Drizzle remaining 1 tbsp olive oil over, scatter the basil, and serve right away — ladled over crostini, tossed with pasta, or eaten straight from the dish.
Crostini: Toast slices of baguette and ladle warm mixture on top.
Pasta substitute: Toss with cooked short pasta (fusilli, rigatoni) and a grating of pecorino.
Cheese finish: Dot with torn burrata or sprinkle with grated Parmesan / Pecorino for richness.
Add protein: Top with grilled shrimp, roasted chicken, or a fried egg.
Drink pairing: Crisp rosé, Vermentino, or simply a chilled sparkling water with lemon.
What to tweak | How & why |
|---|---|
Sweeter tomatoes or late season | Use as-is — this recipe celebrates tomato brightness; if tomatoes are low-sugar, roast a little longer. |
Anchovy / caper boost | Stir in 2–3 chopped anchovies or 1 tbsp capers before returning to oven for briny depth. |
Olive / pesto finish | Fold in chopped cured black olives or a spoonful of pesto before serving for Mediterranean notes. |
Cheese finish | Add grated hard cheese or torn burrata for creaminess (add after oven). |
Make it spicy | Add red pepper flakes to taste or finish with a small pinch cayenne. |
Use whole plum tomatoes | Halve or quarter and roast, though liquid release may differ. |
Make ahead: Roast the tomatoes and prepare through step 4. Cool, cover, and refrigerate up to 24 hours. Rewarm in a 350°F oven until bubbling; finish with basil and oil before serving.
Storage: Leftovers keep 3–4 days refrigerated in an airtight container. Reheat gently; add a splash of olive oil or a few spoonfuls of warm water to loosen if the sauce tightens.
Freezing: Tomatoes can be frozen, but texture softens; best eaten within a month and used for sauces rather than crostini.
Quick roasting concentrates tomato juices without turning them into chewy “tomato candy.” The short mash step releases just enough juice to create a rustic sauce for the beans; the beans soak it up and add body and comfort. Basil at the end keeps the dish bright and summer-fresh.
