Baked Tomatoes with Cheese
by Katie Webster
July 24, 2020 (updated 5/1/23) Jump To Recipe
These simple Baked Tomatoes with Cheese are a favorite recipe in the summer and early fall. Once you see how easy this easy side dish is—it only calls for 4 ingredients—you’ll fall in love with them.
I originally shared this recipe on September 14th, 2014. I have updated the images and some of the text today.
Table of contents
Why We Love This Recipe For Baked Tomatoes with Cheese
This is one of those recipes like my pickled beets that is so easy, it’s hard to even call it a recipe. I mean, including the pepper, it only has 4 ingredients. And really the pepper is optional.
Ultimately this recipe is all about the perfect sweet summer tomatoes. I typically have a ton of tomatoes in my garden so I’m always looking for different ways to use them. This is a super versatile side dish that’s a crowd pleaser—kids and adults alike love it.
Recipe Highlights
- Easy enough for a busy night, but also great for a casual summer get together.
- They only take 25 minutes to make.
- Great to serve with grilled chicken or sausages.
- In the oven these cheesy baked tomatoes get hot and juicy and the flavor even more intense.
Ingredients For Roasted Tomatoes with Cheese
- Tomatoes: Since this recipe is all about ripe juicy tomatoes, you really want to find the yummiest summer fresh tomatoes. Look for beefsteak, Brandywine or really any medium sized heirloom tomato. If you prefer a less acidic tomato, you can use yellow tomato. They will bake a little faster. Even though Roma tomatoes are smaller and less juicy they still work in this recipe and bake in about the same amount of time. Learn more about tomatoes in my Ultimate Guide to Tomatoes.
- Shredded Extra-Sharp Cheddar: I opted for Vermont sharp cheddar since that is the kind I have been buying lately. Cabot makes a cheddar called Alpine which I use on my Low Carb Grilled Stuffed Summer Squash and it’s so good. If you live in an area of the country where your cheddar is yellow/orange that will work fine too. You’ll just want to look for sharp or extra sharp.
- Italian Seasoning: The flavor of the dried Italian Seasoning is really nice with the tomato and the cheddar.
- Freshly Ground Pepper: Freshly ground pepper is the only other thing you need to make these juicy yummies totally delish.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Prepare pan and heat oven
Since the prep work to make these roasted tomatoes goes so fast you’ll want to make sure you turn your oven on asap. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Also, set up a sheet pan lined with foil for easier cleanup. If you prefer not to use aluminum foil, use a large glass baking dish coated with cooking spray instead.
Step 2: Cut tomatoes for roasting
Remove the stem of the tomatoes but leave the core intact. Cutting them out before you roast the tomatoes will cause a tomato meltdown. Just cut around them as you eat. Cut the tomatoes in half along their equator which will give you two wide halves each that aren’t too wobbly and have more surface area for cheese! Lay the tomato halves on top of the prepared pan cut side up.
Step 3: Top tomatoes with cheese and seasoning
Divide the cheese among the tomato halves. Sprinkle with the Italian Seasoning and pepper.
Step 4: Bake tomatoes with cheese
Since there are so many different kinds of tomatoes you have to be flexible here. I’ll say that this should only take 15-20 minutes for ripe tomatoes, and longer for larger tomatoes or ones that aren’t super ripe. Roast them until they are soft and buckling under their own juicy weight. You want to make sure you don’t bake them so long that you can’t get them off the baking sheet in one piece. I also love to let the melted cheese start to brown ever so slightly. If you see that, they’re definitely ready!
Cheesy Baked Tomatoes Variations to Try
- Sprinkle with oregano and crushed red pepper flakes instead of the Italian seasoning.
- Feel free to use another type of cheese. Mozzarella, Gouda or Fontina would be so good too! You could also do a blend with a bit of Romano or Asiago for a saltier taste.
- You can add 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil to this recipe. Simply sprinkle the basil under the cheese before roasting so that it doesn’t blacken in the oven.
- You can try using Parmesan and one of my favorite cheater ingredients, Jane’s Crazy Mixed Up Salt.
- Top tomatoes with crumbled feta then sprinkle with Za’atar and drizzle with olive oil before baking.
FAQs and Expert Tips
Store them in an airtight container or cover with foil. Refrigerate for up to 5 days. Reheat in the microwave until the tomatoes are just warmed through and the cheese is melted, about 1 minute.
These tomatoes are best served hot out of the oven. If you want to make them partially ahead, say for a dinner party, slice them, arrange on a baking dish and top with cheese and seasoning. Let sit at room temperature until about 25 minutes before you’re ready to serve and then just pop them in the oven to bake.
What To Serve With These Baked Tomatoes with Cheese
- Serve them with something that will absorb the juice like couscous or baguette. Or put them on a plate with rims and then just spoon up the juices that spill out as you cut into them.
- Serve them as a side dish with Rosemary Garlic Grilled Pork Tenderloin.
- If you eat beef, then you could pair them with this Grilled Sirloin Steak with Chimichurri Sauce made with hazelnut oil. It’s so easy and so full of flavor.
- I make this Garlic Herb Marinated Chicken pretty regularly and the flavors are great with these tomatoes.
- Serve them as a vegetarian main course with a salad with my Lemon Tahini dressing.
More Recipes to Try
- I’ve been on a huge Middle Eastern food kick lately and I love this recipe for Jerusalem Salad by The Wanderlust Kitchen
- What a great idea from Diethood: Tomato Crumble
- Oven Roasted Tomato Sauce on Brooklyn Farm Girl- Because roasting intensifies the flavors. Brilliant!
Thanks so much for reading! If you are new here, you may want to sign up for my email newsletter to get a free weekly menu plan and the latest recipes right to your inbox. If you make this recipe, please come back and leave a star rating and review. I would love to hear what you thought!
Happy Cooking! ~Katie
Print
Baked Tomatoes with Cheese
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
These simple Baked Tomatoes with Cheese are a favorite recipe in the summer and early fall. Once you see how easy this easy side dish is—it only calls for 4 ingredients—you’ll fall in love with them.
Ingredients
- 4 medium tomatoes
- 1 cup shredded extra-sharp cheddar
- ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
- Freshly ground pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with foil.
- Cut tomatoes in half along the equator. Place cut-side up on the baking sheet.
- Divide the cheddar among the tomatoes. Sprinkle with Italian seasoning and pepper.
- Roast until the tomatoes are soft and starting to sag under their own weight, and the cheddar is bubbling and starting to brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Let cool about 5 minutes before serving.
Notes
Cooking Tips:
- You can add 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil to this recipe. Simply sprinkle the basil under the cheese before roasting.
- If you do not have Italian Seasonings you can substitute dried oregano.
- Tomatoes that are very large or not super ripe will take longer to bake.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Side dish
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 2 tomato halves
- Calories: 146
- Sugar: 3 g
- Sodium: 210 mg
- Fat: 10 g
- Saturated Fat: 6 g
- Carbohydrates: 7 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 7 g
Keywords: cheddar roasted tomatoes,roasted tomatoes,roasted tomatoes with cheese
Katie Webster
Katie Webster studied art and photography at Skidmore College and is a graduate of the New England Culinary Institute. She has been a professional recipe developer since 2001 when she first started working in the test kitchen at EatingWell magazine. Her recipes have been featured in numerous magazines including Shape, Fitness, Parents and several Edible Communities publications among others. Her cookbook, Maple {Quirk Books} was published in 2015. She launched Healthy Seasonal Recipes in 2009. She lives in Vermont with her husband, two teenage daughters and two yellow labs. In her free time, you can find her at the gym, cooking, stacking firewood, making maple syrup, and tending to her overgrown perennial garden.
Love Katie’s recipes! It’s like reading a ‘good book!’
This is my ultimate go to dish to use up my tomatoes, So easy and so delicious!
★★★★★
This is one of my favorite ways to use up fresh summer tomatoes. Even my veggie hate family loves these!
★★★★★
Made this for our side last night! So easy and so delicious!
★★★★★
This is the ultimate summer recipe. So fresh, so creamy! Perfect for all those red, ripe tomatoes!
★★★★★
Love this simple way to use the tomatoes growing in my garden. They were delicious on the crusty bread I just bought!
★★★★★
they look so beautiful! this would be a great side dish for my friday night grilling! Thank you