Here come the tomatoes

[mroybal]

I like to do a large dice of a variety of tomatoes, then saute some sliced garlic a little bit of chili flakes. I toss in the tomatoes and any juice that has come out and give it a quick toss then add a little bit of fresh chopped oregano, finish with some whole basil leaves then toss in some linguini (or any pasta) then plate it and enjoy.

[Kent Wang]

Tomatoes are at their peak at the farmers market here. What should I do with them?

Of course I ate a few raw. Then I made a tomato pie (pizza). I really liked that and am hard-pressed to think of anything that would be better.

Even a salad seems likes like it would fail to put the tomato front and center, and I'm just not a big fan of salads.

Suggestions?

[Lapin d'Argent]

I think the basic concept for this originally came from the NYT, but I really can't remember:

In the morning, mince a good amount of garlic, preferably fresh from your own garden. Put it in a decent-size bowl and pour in a hefty amount of olive oil. Now add more. Go on, a little more won't kill you. That's better.

Wander off for part of the day.

When you feel like it or it's convenient, pick your tomatoes from the garden or the farmer's market, cut them up, toss them into the bowl with the garlic and olive oil, add some sea salt, stir it up. (Don't seed or peel the tomatoes; it takes too long, you have better things to do, it's too hot, that's where all the flavor is, you need the fiber, and besides I said so.)

Go off and do other stuff until it's time for dinner. If you're around, stir the tomatoes occasionally. Try not to eat all of them, unless you add more. (For the love of pete -- DO NOT put this in the refrigerator!!!! If you do, I do not want to hear about it.)

Boil some pasta, tear or slice some fresh basil. Drain the pasta, stir it into the tomatoes, serve it up with the basil sprinkled on top. And a nice white wine.

That pretty much takes care of August at our house.

[SobaAddict70]

What, besides BLTs and half-inch thick salted slabs on a plate, is your favorite thing to do with tomatoes in summer?

←

I use them in dishes designed to show off their "specialness", which is to say, I do very little to them.

chopped with salt, pepper, olive oil and herbs, served over pasta or with slices of crisped day-old bread;

in a salsa, with fish, shrimp or scallops;

in gazpacho;

in a salad or in a tomato sandwich;

with cucumber, summer squash and/or shallot, lemon juice, salt, olive oil and herbs, served atop toasted sourdough, a baguette, or brioche, alongside an omelette, fried eggs, poached eggs or scrambled eggs.

Later in the season, I might make tomato confit or in a tart, or preserve them for use in the winter. Simple is best, in my opinion.

They're wonderful.

[Ktepi]

Tomato pie, the non-pizza sort. Although it's cooked, it really requires good fresh tomatoes.

I use Paula Deen's recipe, but leave out the basil and the green onions, and generally use only cheddar, no mozzarella. Sometimes I use homemade pimento cheese, sometimes I add some ramps from the freezer, but I like the focus to be on the tomatoes.

[djyee100]

Don't forget panzanella. I like this version that once appeared in Saveur. I always reduce the amt of oil and butter, and the dish still tastes good.

http://www.saveur.com/article/Food/Summer-Panzanella

My favorite fresh tomato sauce with pasta is from Beverly Gannon's General Store cookbook, Angel Hair Pasta with Tomatoes, Basil, and Pine Nuts. The recipe is available on Googlebooks.

Go to Page 30:

http://books.google.com/books?id=hUK0obUbH...=beverly+gannon

[jmolinari]

I think the basic concept for this originally came from the NYT, but I really can't remember:

In the morning, mince a good amount of garlic, preferably fresh from your own garden.  Put it in a decent-size bowl and pour in a hefty amount of olive oil. Now add more.  Go on, a little more won't kill you.  That's better.

Wander off for part of the day.

When you feel like it or it's convenient, pick your tomatoes from the garden or the farmer's market, cut them up, toss them into the bowl with the garlic and olive oil, add some sea salt, stir it up.  (Don't seed or peel the tomatoes; it takes too long, you have better things to do, it's too hot, that's where all the flavor is, you need the fiber, and besides I said so.)

Go off and do other stuff until it's time for dinner.  If you're around, stir the tomatoes occasionally.  Try not to eat all of them, unless you add more. (For the love of pete -- DO NOT put this in the refrigerator!!!!  If you do, I do not want to hear about it.)

Boil some pasta, tear or slice some fresh basil.  Drain the pasta, stir it into the tomatoes, serve it up with the basil sprinkled on top.  And a nice white wine.

That pretty much takes care of August at our house.

←

This is my single favorite pasta sauce in the world. I look forward to it every summer.

[Lindsey]

OH I SO envy anyone who can grow toms, our days are too short and our weather too bad up here But, on the odd occasion I get a good tomato I love to slice through the middle and lightly sprinkle with sea salt and fresh ground black pepper and place in a roasting tin, depending on personal taste top with fresh garlic, either one slice or a small heap of minced garlic, 3 or 4 basil leaves and generous glugs of semi decent olive oil, put into a low oven until the tomato is getting soft and giving up it's juice. I like these served as an appetiser with heaps of good bread to mop juices or squashed onto toasted chiabatta.

[judiu]

Tomatoes are at their peak at the farmers market here. What should I do with them?

Of course I ate a few raw. Then I made a tomato pie (pizza). I really liked that and am hard-pressed to think of anything that would be better.

Even a salad seems likes like it would fail to put the tomato front and center, and I'm just not a big fan of salads.

Suggestions?

←

Try http://www.bigoven.com/25067-Tomato-Summer...ing-recipe.html this

It sounds great to me!

[Pierogi]

.....In the morning, mince a good amount of garlic, preferably fresh from your own garden.  Put it in a decent-size bowl and pour in a hefty amount of olive oil. Now add more.  Go on, a little more won't kill you.  That's better.

Wander off for part of the day.

When you feel like it or it's convenient, pick your tomatoes from the garden or the farmer's market, cut them up, toss them into the bowl with the garlic and olive oil, add some sea salt, stir it up.  (Don't seed or peel the tomatoes; it takes too long, you have better things to do, it's too hot, that's where all the flavor is, you need the fiber, and besides I said so.).....Boil some pasta, tear or slice some fresh basil.  Drain the pasta, stir it into the tomatoes, serve it up with the basil sprinkled on top.  And a nice white wine.

.....

Similar to this, in a more umm, *Southwestern* vein.......dice your tomatoes, throw in garlic, good olive oil and some good mozzarella, cut into about a 1/4" dice (bigger, smaller, don't stress it, just chunk up the cheese). Add some finely diced jalapenos to taste (seed and devein to your tolerance for heat). Add some S&P, stir and cover with some plastic wrap. Leave at room temp for at least 1/2 an hour. Boil your pasta (whatever you have or like, I've done it with just about any cut). Drain. Put the pasta back into the warm pot, add the tomato mix, cover the pot and leave on the hot burner (HEAT OFF) for 5 minutes. Add copious amounts of chopped cilantro, toss, and adjust seasonings. May need a slight squeeze of acid (lime juice....rice vinegar, something fairly mild). Top with grated Parmesan and inhale.

[kayb]

Tomato-watermelon salad. Dice up the tomatos and some watermelon (about equal amounts. Whisk up a light balsamic viniagrette with basil, drizzle and toss. You can also throw in diced fresh mozzarella.

Tomato breakfast stack. Nuke a medium redskin potato until soft; flatten with a water glass, brush with olive oil, bake @400 degrees until toasty, top with a thick slice of tomato, some crumbled bacon, and an over-easy egg.

Deconstructed BLT salad. Thick-slice tomatos, top with a schmear of Hellman's mayo and crumbled bacon; serve atop baby spinach.

Constructed BLT: Toasted sourdough, Hellman's, crisp thick-sliced bacon, baby spinach or leaf lettuce.

Tomato stuffed with some kind of salad -- Core tomato and cut from top down, to within 1/2 inch of bottom, into eighths. Spread open; top with tuna, chicken or egg salad, or cottage cheese.

Tomato on a muffin -- thick slice of tomato, seeded and drained, on an English muffin half, topped with grated parmesan, broiled.

Summer garden salad -- sliced onion, tomatos, cucumbers in a viniagrette of half-and-half white vinegar and water, with sugar to taste; soak in the fridge for several hours, drain, and toss with sour cream or plain yogurt.

Easy tomato bisque -- peel, dice and saute tomatos in olive oil until soft; add plain yogurt, spice to your taste, and puree.

[quattroporte]

Halve some red bell peppers and remove seeds - lay them on their sides. Add roughly-chopped ripe tomatoes, thinly-sliced garlic and a couple of anchovies in each. Drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper. Bake about 45 minutes until lucious and soft. Don't let the anochovies scare you - there is barely a hint of the sea left after cooking.

Devour, preferrably with some good bread.

[BarbaraY]

And of course there is always Salad Caprese: sliced fresh mozzarella and sliced fresh tomatoes, sprinkling of basil and olive oil... summer on a plate.

←

You don't really need the mozzarella. Just tomatoes, basil and olive oil are delicious.

Edited July 27, 2009 by BarbaraY (log)

[joiei]

Tomatoes are at their peak at the farmers market here. What should I do with them?

Of course I ate a few raw. Then I made a tomato pie (pizza). I really liked that and am hard-pressed to think of anything that would be better.

Even a salad seems likes like it would fail to put the tomato front and center, and I'm just not a big fan of salads.

Suggestions?

←

Kent, I make a salsa crudo to go over pasta. Chop up some fresh basil leaves, press a couple of cloves of garlic over top then do a large dice of fresh tomatoes juice and all over top of that. Give it a good drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of kosher salt, cover with some plastic wrap and let sit on the counter to marinate for a while. Cook your pasta and drain then immediately put the pasta back into the empty pot, pour the tomato mixture over that and toss only long enough to warm up the tomato/basil mixture, serve with a nice crisp romaine salad and a tasty bottle of wine, maybe a french rose. Don't forget your bread.

Edited July 27, 2009 by joiei (log)

[Stephanie Brim]

I'm tapping my foot at my tomatoes. They're doing well and have tons of buds, I've only gotten 3 ripe ones: 2 Amish Paste (which aren't really big enough to do anything with alone) and one Sugary grape tomato (which my daughter threw on the ground after taking one bite - and yes, I did ponder picking it back up and eating the rest myself). The two paste tomatoes will probably go into the sauce I plan to make out of the can of whole tomatoes that I have sitting on my pantry cupboards for lasagna tonight. The others are going to ripen around the same time, I think, so I'm going to have a BLT blowout at my house to celebrate. Bacon, leaf lettuce, and fresh off the vine tomatoes on homemade sourdough with mayo. Mmm.

[Amy D.]

apart from just grazing on them whole like I do any soft fruit, although sometimes with a spinkle of salt in between bites. I also enjoy a quick salad of sliced tomatoes, thinly sliced red onion tossed together with a spinkle of salt and pepper & drenched in balsamic (apple balsamic works really well if you can get it) and a little drizzle of good EVOO. good as a side dish but also great just with some bread to soak up the juices.

[JSD]

We had a cool spring so we haven't had any ripe tomatoes yet. The plants are as tall as me and have set quite a few fruit, so hopefully it'll be soon.

My favorites:

1. Sandwich consisting of toasted sourdough, mayo, thick slices of peeled Brandywine tomatoes, salt and pepper.

2. Eggs poached in stewed peeled tomatoes, with garlic, butter, pepper flakes, salt and pepper.

3. Tomato Salad with chunks of peeled tomatoes, ripped basil leaves, feta cheese, and vinagrette with garlic, olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper.

4. Deborah Madison's Fresh Tomato Soup, consisting of peeled tomatoes, butter, garlic, and salt and pepper. I serve this with grilled cheese sandwiches, with sourdough bread and Tillamook Sharp Cheddar.

5. Uncooked pasta sauce of chunks of peeled tomatoes, feta, olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper, and torn basil leaves. Toss hot cooked pasta with uncooked sauce.

The theme of these "recipes" is simplicity. More is not better. Let the tomato shine.

[SobaAddict70]

Today's lunch:

Spaghetti with uncooked tomato sauce -- heirloom tomatoes (Aunt Ruby, Japanese pear, Sungold cherry toms), shallot, extra-virgin olive oil, mint, salt, pepper

A glass of pinot noir

Life is good.

[rlummis]

I've really been enjoying a NY Times recipe for a Spiced Tomato Cooler that is a nice change from gazpacho.

www.nytimes.com/2009/07/19/magazine/19food-t-002.html

[nikkib]

http://www.easylivingmagazine.com/Food/Rec...te/default.aspx

this is one of my favourites - pan con tomate, delicious and simple

[Lapin d'Argent]

Today's lunch:

Spaghetti with uncooked tomato sauce -- heirloom tomatoes (Aunt Ruby, Japanese pear, Sungold cherry toms), shallot, extra-virgin olive oil, mint, salt, pepper

A glass of pinot noir

Life is good.

←

Even while reading this, I'm eating leftovers from last night: strozzapretti with fresh garlic, olive oil, salt, and Matt's Wild Cherry. And a few shaves of parmesan, just because it was only a small leftover.

It's very hot tonight, so mine is with a cold Smuttynose IPA. Last night, it was a Soave.

Life is indeed very, very good.

[Stephanie Brim]

These have been taunting me just lately.

These have been taunting me for a month.

Hot weather would be nice, methinks. It's been unseasonably cool here for the last few weeks.

I am regularly picking other cherry tomatoes, but just enough for a snack. I'm hoping to have enough for a small salad by tomorrow.

Edited August 6, 2009 by Stephanie Brim (log)

[SobaAddict70]

A couple of pix taken from the market this past weekend:

Assorted heirloom tomatoes

Sungold cherry tomatoes

Well worth it even at $5 a lb.

[snowangel]

These have been taunting me for a month.

Hot weather would be nice, methinks. It's been unseasonably cool here for the last few weeks.

Stephanie, where do you live? It's been unseasonably cool all summer here in MN (outside of one hot spell for two days in May). Night time temps are in the 50's (read bad for tomatoes), and the days aren't much warmer.

It's also been unbelievably dry in in the Upper Midwest. That doesn't help, either.

I just celebrated a birthday -- the first since I've been a home-owner and tomato grower (think since 1986) that I haven't have a home-grown from-my-garden tomato. So sad.

[jgm]

Soba, I'm sitting here eating a chocolate cookie, wishing it were one of those tomatoes. Considering that my favorite anything is chocolate, that's saying something.

MAN they look good! Thanks for posting.