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Monday, August 22, 2011

Slow Roasted Tomatoes

Sometimes...my eyes are bigger than my stomach.

(like, usually all of the time)

Sometimes...I buy way too much food at the grocery store.

(or spend too long at the grocery store, I tend to hang out there like its my favorite bar)

It's really hard not too in the height of summer when everything is so fresh and so ripe and so delicious...

Some people make jam (some day when I have more than 24" of counter space I will too). Some people make  bread (how many zucchini/banana/pumpkin breads have you made-slash-been given-slash-given to other people when your bounty is about to go bad but you just can't bear to see it go to waste??

No? Just me?

LIARS


See, I had these tomatoes that were about to go bad. They were getting kind of soft and I could just tell their insides were turning ever so slightly gritty and I couldn't stand the thought of them going to waste. So, I roasted them.

Do you know what happens when you cook something low and slow for a few hours? Something amazing. Something delicious. Something...magical. I don't know exactly how it happens, but the tomatoes turn slightly chewy and their flavor becomes concentrated and slightly smokey, earthy if you will. 

Not to mention it's seriously the easiest thing ever. I wouldn't even call it cooking. But you can, I won't tell on you. You can totally tell your friends that you made these from scratch and watch them marvel at how amazing you are (like they do ALL the time, I'm sure). I won't tell them that this recipe only takes 5 minutes to throw together and then you get to WALK AWAY for an hour or so.

(your secret is safe with me)


Roasted Tomatoes
You can use these in a number of fabulous ways - try adding them to a toasted bagel with cream cheese, chop them up and add them to a salad, or do like I do and add them to some pasta. I made this risotto recipe and swapped out the peas and mint for roasted tomatoes and basil. My heart sang, so will yours.

7 small, ripe tomatoes
2 (ish) tblsp Olive oil
Salt
Pepper

- Preheat your oven to 300* F, line a baking sheet with parchment paper (this makes clean up wicked easy)

- Halve or slice tomatoes (depending on their size), drizzle with olive oil and lay them out on the prepared baking sheet. Lightly season them with salt and pepper (not too much, these suckers don't need a lot of doctoring up). 

- Roast in the oven for one to one and a half hours (depending on your oven, how well done you want them and what awesomely horrible reality TV is on at the same time).

*Notes* You can use any kind of tomato for this recipe. Cherry, roma, regular - the world is your oyster tomato. This works best with fresh, ripe tomatoes but feel free to use it year round when you inevitably grab some sad looking tomatoes in the middle of winter from the big box grocery store. This will save their life. The longer you roast them the more concentrated their taste will be.

                  

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