I say to-may-toe, you say to-mah-toe. Let’s call the whole thing delicious.
At long last, the tomatoes are ripening. That time between that first big green tomato and that first ripe one seems interminable. And then, boom, tomatoes are piling up all over the kitchen.
Around here, we love tomato season. It’s a cornucopia of tomato goodness, and daily menus of all-things-tomato. We like tomato sandwiches, tomato-cucumber salad, sliced tomatoes as a side dish, and of course fresh salsa and tomato-basil tart.
Fresh Garden Salsa
For this salsa, I usually toss in whatever I have in the garden that sounds tasty. Today’s batch includes tomatoes, garlic, cilantro, cucumber, and onion. I mixed it all together with a bit of lemon juice and salt. I hope there’s some left by the time I finish typing this column…
Tomato-Basil Tart
A dear friend introduced me to this decadent dish. It’s rich, but so addictive that I’m impatient to make it each year.
1 9-inch pie shell
1 ½ cups grated mozzarella cheese, divided
4 tomatoes, sliced thin and drained on a paper towel
1 cup loosely packed fresh basil
4 cloves garlic
½ cup Greek yogurt
¼ cup parmesan cheese
Dash of salt
Preheat oven to 350.
Chop basil and garlic together in food processor. Set aside.
Bake pie shell according to recipe or package directions.
Sprinkle ½ cup of the mozzarella cheese into the warm pie shell. Arrange tomatoes on top of melting cheese. Top tomatoes with garlic/basil mixture.
Mix remaining mozzarella cheese, parmesan, salt, and yogurt together and spread over garlic/basil mixture.
Bake for approximately 25 minutes or until top is golden. Serve warm.
Tomato-Cucumber Salad
I make this as the tomatoes start to ripen, so the ratio of tomato to cucumber varies with each batch.
Simply chop up a peeled cucumber and a couple of ripe tomatoes and mix together in a bowl. Add a spoonful of mayo, a few dashes of cider vinegar, and a small sprinkle of salt and sugar. Toss ingredients together and enjoy. This dish is even better after overnight refrigeration, and makes a great addition to cookouts – just increase the ingredients for more servings.
How does your family enjoy tomatoes?