This easy recipe for lobster bruschetta is the perfect fancy appetizer or light lunch. Full of seafood and vegetable goodness!
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Why we love this recipe
To be fair, I pretty much love all lobster recipes (hey there, lobster pasta!) but this quick and easy lobster appetizer recipe has a special place in my heart.
Lightly toasted slices of Italian bread brushed with olive oil and topped with a mixture of chopped lobster, shallots, tomato and fresh herbs, all tossed with a little bit of sherry wine.
It’s the perfect speedy and elegant first course, or you can do like we do and have them as a light supper…add a glass of wine and some chocolate something for dessert and you have a memorable dinner to sit down to.
What is bruschetta?
Traditional bruschetta is an Italian appetizer made of good-sized slices of toasted Italian bread topped with a mixture of tomatoes, olive oil and garlic.
And while we are talking bread-based appetizers, the little cousin of bruschetta is crostini, which can have any number of different toppings but is made out of thinner, smaller slices of bread (usually a baguette). We have a fig jam and blue cheese crostini recipe that has our whole heart.
Ingredients you need
Ingredient notes and substitutions
- Lobster: You can absolutely cook your own lobster for this recipe, but we always ask our friendly neighborhood seafood folks in the grocery store to steam a lobster for it, so all we need to do is shell it. Or if we are lucky, they have some fresh cooked lobster already shelled. It’s spendy, but you are worth it!
- Tomatoes: We like cherry tomatoes for this recipe (especially in the winter months when they magically still have a fresh tomato flavor) but you can use chopped larger tomatoes if you prefer.
- Herbs: We go back and forth between basil in the summer and parsley in the colder months, but either is great – so is fresh oregano!
- Bread: We recommend a loaf of fresh-baked Italian bread from your supermarket bakery. You won’t need it all, but the leftovers are wonderful!
How to make this recipe
STEP 1: Mix some white wine vinegar and a peeled and chopped shallot in a mixing bowl and let it sit for five minutes.
STEP 2: Add some cooked lobster, cherry tomatoes, chopped celery, Sherry wine, basil (or parsley) and olive oil to the bowl and give it all a toss. Let it sit for 30 minutes.
STEP 3: While the lobster mixture is marinating, lightly toast four pieces of Italian bread and drizzle them with olive oil. Divide the lobster mixture between the bread slices and serve it up!
Recipe FAQs
If you can’t find fresh, frozen is the next best choice! Our preferred brand is Cozy Harbor. You can also swap the lobster for cooked chopped shrimp.
Shallots are part of the onion family. They are smaller and a little sweeter, and you can find them in the produce section near, yep, the onions!
You can, although it does give this recipe a lovely sweet flavor. Madeira wine is a good substitute if you have that on hand.
The lobster topping definitely can be made ahead (store it in the fridge in a covered container). You do want to make the toast right before serving so it stays nice and crispy.
Pop your question in the Comments section below and I will answer pronto!
Other appetizer recipes we love
Looking for more appetizer inspiration? Here is our complete collection of appetizer recipes!
Could you leave us a review?
If you try this recipe, we would love to hear how it came out for you! I’d be super grateful if you could leave a star rating (you pick how many stars! 🌟 ) and your thoughts in the Comments section.
PrintLobster Bruschetta
This easy recipe for lobster bruschetta is the perfect fancy appetizer or light lunch. Full of seafood and vegetable goodness!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Marinating time: 35 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Diet: Low Lactose
Ingredients
- One 1 1/2– to 1 3/4-pound lobster, steamed, shelled and torn into bite-sized pieces
- 1 shallot, peeled and thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- I cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1/2 cup finely chopped celery
- 2 tablespoons sherry
- 1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley or basil
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil plus additional (for drizzling)
- 4 one inch slices of Italian bread
Instructions
- Mix the shallot and vinegar in a large bowl and let it stand for 5 minutes.
- Add the lobster meat, tomatoes, celery, sherry, herbs and 1/4 cup oil to the bowl with the shallots. Toss until everything is nice and mixed up and if you have time, let it all stand 30 minutes for the flavors to blend.
- While the lobster mixture is marinating, lightly toast the bread and then drizzle it with a little more olive oil. Divide the lobster salad among the toasts and serve it up!
Notes
-
- Lobster: You can absolutely cook your own lobster for this recipe, but we always ask our friendly neighborhood seafood folks in the grocery store to steam a lobster for it, so all we need to do is shell it. Or if we are lucky, they have some fresh cooked lobster already shelled. It’s spendy, but you are worth it!
-
- Tomatoes: We like cherry tomatoes for this recipe (especially in the winter months when they magically still have a fresh tomato flavor) but you can use chopped larger tomatoes if you prefer.
-
- Herbs: We go back and forth between basil in the summer and parsley in the colder months, but either is great – so is fresh oregano!
-
- Bread: We recommend a loaf of fresh-baked Italian bread from your supermarket bakery. You won’t need it all, but the leftovers are wonderful!
Jane says
This appetizer was easy but felt fancy for a party I had. Guests absolutely loved it!
Yu can never go wrong with lobster, I always say! Glad you loved it as much as we do – happy Valentine’s Day!
Roger says
I ate something like that in Restaurant and I want to try this recipe,
Hi Roger! I hope you like this lobster treat as much as we do!
Mary says
This loos insanely delicious!!!!! Love the top photo – totally drew me in!!
Mary xx
Delightful Bitefuls
Kate Morgan Jackson says
ericucci: I think this would be great with either one! You'd want to cut up the shrimp unless you used those baby ones – personally I'd get the nice big ones and cut 'em up. :)