This Asparagus and Tomato Cheese Melt is a simple half sandwich made with salty prosciutto, sweet tomatoes, smooth buttery cheese, and roasted or grilled asparagus. The pesto-mayo spread covering the Ciabatta bread brings it all home.
Put any extra asparagus you have to good use in our creamy asparagus soup, which goes great with this cheese melt!
Next Level Cheese Melt Recipe
Vegetables might not taste like a chocolate chip cookie, but that doesn’t mean they can’t be out of this world delicious and crave-worthy. This cheese melt is a perfect example. Every time I make this half sandwich, I legitimately daydream about it until I get around to making it again.
The mild flavor and smooth, soft texture of the cheese, combined with salty prosciutto and sweet tomatoes is fantastic, then topped with the bite of oven roasted asparagus is amazing. The combination of pesto and mayonnaise that’s spread on toasty Ciabatta just knocks it all out of the park!
Ingredients Needed
You only need a few ingredients to make this incredible half sandwich.
(Scroll below to the printable recipe card for details and measurements.)
- Asparagus – You can prepare the asparagus by roasting it in the oven, on the grill, or in your air fryer. Just make sure it’s seasoned and fork tender, but not mushy.
- Tomato – Any larger tomato works here. My favorite are heirloom tomatoes, which boast so much flavor.
- Prosciutto – This is Italian dry-cured ham that is very thinly sliced.
- Cheese – My preference for this cheese melt is muenster or havarti cheese, which pair perfectly with the other ingredients.
- Mayonnaise and Pesto – The combination of tangy mayo and pesto sauce is so good! We love it so much, we use this spread on all kinds of sandwiches.
- Ciabatta – This is the bread I always use to make this half sandwich, but any sturdy Italian or French bread will work.
How to Make It
This simple cheese melt is so easy to make in just a few steps.
(Scroll below to the printable recipe card for details and measurements.)
- Roast the asparagus. Drizzle asparagus with olive oil; season with salt and pepper. Roast in the oven, over a grill, or in your air fryer until crisp-tender. Set aside.
- Make the spread. Whisk together mayonnaise and pesto in a bowl until thoroughly combined. Spread a couple tablespoons on half of a sliced Ciabatta roll.
- Layer the other ingredients. On top of the mayo-pesto, layer with 4 roasted asparagus spears, 1 prosciutto slice, 1 tomato slice, and 1 cheese slice. (If the bread roll is large, just double all the ingredients.)
- Broil. Place half sandwiches on a baking sheet and place until the broiler for about 3 to 4 minutes until the cheese melts and is golden (watch it carefully, so it doesn’t burn.)
Serving Suggestions
This cheese melt is ideally served right away and it’s quite filling on its own. If you want to do a soup and sandwich combo, we love buying extra asparagus and making our creamy asparagus soup to pair it with. You could also enjoy it with a simple side salad.
More Sandwich Recipes:
- Cucumber Sandwiches
- Italian Grinder Sub
- Tuna Melt
- Tomato Sandwich
- Grilled Cheese Sandwich
- Muffuletta Sandwich
I hope you love this delicious and easy recipe – be sure to give it a review below! Also don’t forget to follow Belly Full on TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and YouTube!
Asparagus and Tomato Cheese Melt
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons pesto
- 16 spears asparagus , tough ends removed
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- salt and pepper , to taste
- 2 ciabatta rolls , split in half
- 4 thin slices prosciutto
- 4 slices tomato
- 4 slices muenster or harvarti cheese
Instructions
- Preheat broiler with rack 4-6 inches from the heat.
- Whisk together mayonnaise and pesto in a bowl until thoroughly combined. Set aside.
- Drizzle asparagus with olive oil; season with salt and pepper. Cook, turning often, on a grill pan for about 3 minutes, or until crisp-tender. (Or roast in the oven or over a grill.)
- Spread 2 tablespoons pesto mixture onto 1 side of each bread slice. Layer each slice with 4 asparagus spears, 1 prosciutto slice, 1 tomato slice, and 1 cheese slice. (If your rolls are larger, you can easily just double all the ingredients.)
- Place on a baking sheet; broil 3 minutes or until cheese melts and is golden (watch it carefully so it doesn't burn.)
- Serve immediately and enjoy!
Just made this for dinner and absolutely looooved it!!! Will keep this recipe in my collection! Your mushroom melt is next . Thank you for sharing
I just made this the other day, and boy, was it good. Now I can’t wait to make again.
This was better than any pizza I’ve ever had.
This sandwich looks and sounds delish. I’d like one (or 10) for my upcoming flight, please!
Now, doesn’t that just look divine?! *Adds it to the list* This? I am making. P~
There’s only two of us so I was looking for something simple – half sandwich it is! My husband and I loved this. Perfect pairing of ingredients and ratios.
Oh wow. This exceeded all my expectations. Everything just co-mingled together like a beautiful ballet!
This was incredible!!