Tomatoes are still cheap now. Firm Italian plum tomatoes, squat Romas, cherry tomatoes both red, yellow and green…take yer pick. I’ve made plenty of pasta sauce to keep handy; oven-dried a bunch too. But the piles of tomatoes in the markets are so tempting… So I decided to slow-roast some red cherry tomatoes at about 9:00 last night. Cut them in half – dusted salt, a tiny bit of crushed oregano, and just a little thyme over them – grated some black pepper over the pan – drizzled a thread of olive oil over all. Put them in a low oven with the door open a crack.
I should have put the timer on, because I promptly forgot all about them. Towards 1:00 in the morning, I woke up to a delicious smell floating through the apartment: my slow-roasted tomatoes had become dried tomatoes. Now I have little tomato coins. Good thing I caught them before they became tomato chips. Usually I don’t season oven-dried tomatoes, but these will be very good in pasta or rice dishes, or in salads.
Prices vary seasonally but tomatoes are available all year round. It’s in summer, though, that their flavor is full and sweet, and the flesh deep red. I’m glad I’m not allergic to them: the world would seem poor without tomatoes. But for those who are allergic, or who simply dislike them, here is an amusing site. I think I’ll order a t-shirt.
Tomato Coins
Mmmm, I know that smell, having done those myself once, they are so tasty.I love tomatoes!!