Scene One: Early spring, anywhere USA, zones 2 through 10. Sky is blue, birds are singing, bees are buzzing. At a neighborhood nursery, a suburban gardener is passing by row upon row of vegetable plants. She stops, at once transfixed. Were those voices? She continues down the aisle for a moment then hesitates, obviously conflicted. She backs up, tripping over water hose left in aisle, and stops once again next to an array of seemingly innocent tomato seedlings. Bending down, adjusting reading glasses (relevant to age of casting choice), she peruses plant labels... Brandywine, Yellow Submarine, Chocolate Amazon, Green Zebra, Berkeley Tie Dye, Hawaiian Pineapple...Tiny voices get louder, more insistent..."Pick me! Pick me!". Her hand stiffens on each bio-degradable peat pot grasping convulsively as one after the other, tomato plants fill her cart. Ominous music swells, quick fade to black...you just know this will not end well.
In my private and professional life I have subdued rooms full of sugar-crazed toddlers, helped re-locate errant swarms of bees, cared for a rescued cougar with an injured paw and an attitude, hung on to a ladder 2 stories up in a 70 mile an hour windstorm and changed the channel from the Masters tournament that my golf-obsessed husband was watching to an Audrey Hepburn movie (he had fallen asleep, I saw my opportunity). But I am powerless, powerless! against a seedling tomato plant. The seductive lure of access to endless new varieties available through on-line shopping only further enables my addiction. New pairs of flip-flops also hold equal sway over me in springtime but I digress.
I am happily fated to annually repeat this season of plenty, maintaining the delicate balance between supply - my garden's tomato production, and demand - family, friends and complete strangers who relish the taste of the home-grown tomato in all its varieties...variety? ...oooh that’s one I haven’t tried before...pretty!...um, where was I?...Ah yes.
Growing tomatoes in more volume than can be readily consumed, left on neighbors’ doorsteps in the middle of the night and/or given as all-occasion gifts (jars of piccalilli for a baby shower?) requires a plan for dealing with the fruits (or is it vegetables?) of your labors. Here in California's Central Valley the tomato harvest began two weeks ago. Earlier celebrations of the charm of a ripe glowing red/yellow/striped orb eaten sunshine-warm or sliced onto a BLT have faded somewhat. My homeland garden’s threat level is turning from "fried green" to "catsup red".
"Toe-may-toe, toe-mah-toe. Let's call the whole thing off!" G. Gershwin
Below is a sampling of some of my family’s old-timey recipes and a few contemporary recipes to help relieve your own embarrassment of over-ripe tomato riches along with some unapologetic wallowing in all things tomato(e). Dan Quayle has not reviewed this diary for spelling accuracy.
The tomato is considered ambiguously "fruity" in a botanical sense along with eggplants, cucumbers and squash.
The tomato is the symbol of the Dutch Socialist party. "Past their prime" tomatoes have also been vigorously tossed in protest and derision in this country in possible conflict with their target's First Amendment rights - although the Second Amendment definitely protects the right to use tomatoes as ammo.
The suspiciously foreign-sounding Lyco persicum solanum was once considered by some Europeans (none of whom were "real Americans") as an aphrodisiac, the "pomme d'amour" or love apple. Red tomatoes are quite possibly "Commie" in origin (sorry, couldn’t find a link to the "Fox and Friends" broadcast where this was discussed).
In 1893 the U.S. Supreme Court in Nix vs Hedden ruled that the tomato was a vegetable. At the time there was a tariff on vegetables but not on fruits so there was real money involved. Sarah Palin failed to cite this decision as a problem for her during her interview with Katie Couric so I assume she agrees with the ruling.
Roasted Tomatoes
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Slice ripe tomatoes in half through the middle. Place cut side up on baking sheet or roasting pan. Drizzle tops lightly with a good olive oil; follow with a sprinkling of sea salt. Add some fresh thyme leaves if you have them - if you’re growing tomatoes, grow a few varieties of basil and thyme alongside. Roast in oven for about 2 hours or until tops of tomatoes are slightly darkened.
Store tomatoes in the fridge for up to a week or so or tightly seal and freeze (for up to six months). Use in place of drained canned tomatoes or fresh tomatoes in sauces, salsas, casseroles - the "roasted" flavor is amazing. Try making bruschetta with these and some shaved parm-reggiano.
"Sun-Dried" Tomatoes
If I dry tomatoes for camp cooking or long-term storage it's usually in the oven at 150 degrees for 12 hours or in a food dehydrator following the manufacturer’s directions. I‘ve tried drying them outside in the sun using cheesecloth-covered racks but prefer the oven/dehydrator method since overnight it’s a done deal.
In this article about drying tomatoes, there are directions for using your parked car’s interior as an "oven". Although summer temps here certainly get hot enough, my pick-up is transport for two large always slobbery and sometimes muddy dogs. Due to the questionable hygiene of the truck’s extended cab this method has been rejected. Otherwise I'd try it. Bet it would smell like spaghetti for the next road trip.
Nonna’s Tomato Sauce
A high-school friend’s Italian grandma is the source for this very simple sauce.
24 roasted tomatoes - if you want to use fresh tomatoes, you may need to increase the cooking time to reduce more of the liquid.
Process tomatoes in a food mill removing and discarding the skins or pulverize in a food processor if you don’t care about a bit of extra texture in the sauce, tastes great either way. If not mechanically inclined/endowed, squish up tomatoes using your hands like Nonna did.
1 cup white onion, finely diced
3-4 cloves fresh garlic, crushed/minced
1 tblsp each fresh oregano and fresh thyme, finely chopped
1 cup white wine (save the Chianti for drinking!)
Salt to taste - try adding some crushed chili flakes for a little zip
Saute onion and garlic with a generous splash of olive oil in a heavy saucepan until onion looks clear. Add tomatoes, herbs, white wine and salt. Simmer for about 5 minutes. Done! Makes about 4 cups of sauce.
Grandma Melva’s ‘Mater Soup
My grandmother used a tractor to till her "garden". She made a lot of tomato soup to serve with grilled cheese sandwiches or cornbread for kid-friendly summer lunches on the farm.
10–12 ripe tomatoes, chopped – or try the roasted tomatoes, even better!
2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
Fresh basil leaves, chopped - a small handful or so, save some for a garnish
Fresh thyme leaves (lemon thyme is wonderful) - 1 tblsp if not using roasted tomatoes from previous recipe
Crushed red pepper flakes (optional) – a pinch (1/8 tsp) or more
Sea salt, fresh ground pepper to taste
¼ cup heavy cream - soy milk works just fine too, coconut milk helps turn this soup into a Thai thing
Simmer tomatoes and basil for about 10 minutes in a heavy saucepan, add stock and reduce heat to a very low simmer for another 45 minutes, stirring as needed. Use hand blender or transfer soup to a blender to puree until smooth (my grandma used her food mill to pre-process tomatoes before cooking). Add heavy cream and serve with a bit of basil to garnish or top with whatever else you like. This soup is way beyond Campbell’s so not much else is really needed. I sometimes add the odd bit of grated various cheeses with the cream. Serves 4 to 6.
Gazpacho
On the last Wednesday in August every year in Bunul, Spain "La Tomatina" is celebrated in the world’s largest food fight. Tempting as it sounds to pelt and be pelted amidst 100 metric tons of over-ripe tomatoes, I prefer to enjoy my tomatoes "estilo espanol" with this recipe. Describing a bowl of gazpacho as "cold tomato soup" just seems wrong.
6 ripe garden tomatoes, chopped, about 2 lbs (try using a yellow or an orange variety for a sunny variation)
1 red (or yellow) bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 cucumber, peeled and chopped (use something besides the usual market variety if not home grown)
1 red (Spanish) or white sweet onion, chopped
¼ cup Sherry or white wine vinegar
¼ cup of ev olive oil
2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 heaping tsp sea salt or kosher salt (or to taste)
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
½ tsp ground cumin (try toasting whole cumin, then grind)
2-3 slices crusty white bread or small rolls, torn into little pieces and mashed with 1 cup water to soften (good use for slightly stale bread)
Pulse vegetables separately in food processor until very fine, or grind veg in small batches in a molcajete (mortar and pestle). Pour the veg pulp into a large stainless steel, ceramic, or glass bowl. Add remaining ingredients and stir to combine. Cover and chill in refrigerator at least 2 hours. The longer it sits the better it tastes. I make it a day ahead usually adding chopped cilantro and minced chili peppers.
Set out any or all of these choices of garnishes - chopped ham or bacon, sliced hard-boiled eggs, sliced Spanish olives, garlic chives, slices of lime or lemon, cooked shrimp, sour cream/crème fraiche, fresh thyme. Serves 4 – 6.
G.G.’s Tomato Jam
If you were a child of the 80’s and ate school cafeteria lunches you may remember Reagan’s USDA designating catsup as a vegetable in meeting its own minimum nutritional standards. Good times! My great-great-grandmother emigrated from England in the 1880’s and brought this recipe with her. I reduced the sugar so it isn’t as thick or as sweet and now it’s catsup (ketchup?). Try it in place of the store-bought stuff.
1 cup cider vinegar
1 cinnamon stick
1 tsp whole black peppercorns
¼ tsp whole allspice
1 tsp celery seed
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper or chili flakes (if you like a bit of heat)
24 - 28 medium size ripe tomatoes (about 8 lbs), skins removed (use food mill, or scald tomatoes in boiling water, cool, peel and chop)
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 cup sugar – I use ½ cup each of white and brown cane sugar as the molasses adds to the flavor
1 tsp lemon juice
Dash or two of Worcestershire sauce
Sea salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
Tie the whole spices (except celery seed) in a muslin or cheesecloth bag to add to the pot with tomatoes, removing the bag after cooking. Or boil the whole spices in the vinegar for a couple of minutes in a small saucepan, remove from heat, cover and let steep for at least an hour. Strain the vinegar before adding later to the pot with the tomatoes.
Saute onion in a generous splash of olive oil until clear. Add tomatoes and sugar then cook uncovered at a very low simmer, stirring occasionally, for 1 1/2 - 2 hours or until thickened to desired consistancy. Add vinegar mixture and other seasonings. Cook for another 1/2 hour or so, stirring often. If needed, use a hand blender to get this "jam" really smooth or leave it a bit chunky. Makes about 2 pints. Cool and store in refrigerator. It keeps as long as commercially prepared catsup. Canning is another good storage option.
Auntie Barbara’s Piccalilli
This recipe calls for green (un-ripened) tomatoes. Apron-clad Aunt Bees everywhere once worked away in their kitchens in the early fall to "put up" jars of piccalilli relish using the last of their garden's green tomatoes. If you’ve never had piccallili and like other vegetables pickled, try this relish. Piccalilli is typically used as a condiment for roasted meats, fish, and rice dishes; it’s also good on hot dogs. The original recipe came with my family from England thorough Georgia, then Texas and finally on to California influenced by regional tradition through seven generations of farm women. My aunt passed her version on to me so she gets final credit. I've tweaked it a bit here and there.
2 dozen (4 lbs) hard green tomatoes
4 medium bell peppers - I like to use red, orange, and yellow
3 medium sweet white onions (1 lb)
1/2 small cabbage
6 cloves of garlic, minced/crushed
1 - 2 fresh hot peppers, minced (your choice or leave out altogether)
1/3 cup kosher salt
3 1/2 c. white or cider vinegar
1 1/2 c. white sugar
2 tblsp pickling spice
1 tblsp celery seeds
1 tblsp dry mustard
Stem and core tomatoes and peppers, cut into chunks. Cut peeled onions and cabbage into chunks. Chop vegetables in food processor until medium coarsely ground. Combine vegetables with salt in a mixing bowl, cover and let stand overnight. Boil spices in vinegar for 5 minutes, cover and let stand overnight.
Drain vegetables in a fine sieve, or through a cloth-lined colander to remove liquid. Combine sugar, vinegar and spices, heat to boiling and add drained vegetables. Heat again to boiling then reduce to simmer for 30 minutes, stirring as needed. Process in canning jars for 10 minutes or use any recycled jars and store in refrigerator. Makes about 4 pints of relish. Chow chow is another similar relish that uses green tomatoes.
Add some piccalilli and more garlic to mayonnaise and you’ve got a remoulade for dipping your "freedom frites". Add a dab of presidentially-preferred Dijon mustard and fresh tarragon to the mayo/piccalilli melange and use it as "sauce tartare" . Adding catsup to a mayo/piccalilli mixture makes a version of Thousand Island dressing. Try piccalilli in a potato salad.
Salad Days
My family always grills extra meat and/or vegetables to use in "it's too hot to cook" salads. We start our salad prep with tomatoes - lots of tomatoes, add mixed greens or cold pasta/noodles, cold beans etc. and toss in whatever else suits the cook's mood. These combinations are a few of the favorites:
Cooked bacon, gorgonzola cheese, carmelized sweet onions, fresh basil, toasted pine nuts, balsamic vinaigrette
Leftover grilled meat or fish, grilled squash, onions and peppers, fresh cilantro, queso fresco or feta, pepitas (toasted pumpkin seeds), chili citrus vinaigrette
Grilled tuna or shrimp, drained canned garbanzos or cannellini, cucumber, Italian parsley, green onions or chives, roasted garlic, white wine or champagne vinaigrette
Crumbled grilled hamburger or shredded pit beef, roasted corn-off-the-cob, roasted anaheim chilis, red onions, jack cheese, olives, crumbled blue corn chips, chipotle mayonnaise dressing
Grilled steak, chicken or fish, fresh or sauted red bell peppers, marinated cucumbers and red onions, julienned carrots, bean sprouts, lemon mint, Thai basil, cold soba noodles, spicy peanut vinaigrette
Make mine a Margherita!
When making pizza, instead of using sauce, I very thinly slice tomatoes to arrange around the dough (except the edges) in a single layer after brushing the dough with garlic-infused olive oil. Top with fresh basil and whatever else appeals.
Pie
I had to include this option. G.G made this tasty pie for summer suppers and her "ladies in hats" bridge parties. She also frequently served little individual tomato aspics (garnished with a dollop of mayo) but I cannot recommend this menu fixture of the ladies' luncheon and southern tea rooms. Maybe one has to wear pearls and a little hat to enjoy tomato "jello".
9 inch pre-baked deep-dish pie shell
4 ripe tomatoes, sliced
1/2 medium white onion, chopped and caramelized
10-12 fresh basil leaves, chopped
1 cup grated mozzarella or jack
1 cup grated sharp cheddar
1 cup mayonannaise
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place a single layer of the sliced tomatoes in a colander or on a baking rack in the sink or over some paper towels. Sprinkle with salt and drain for ten minutes. Skip this step and you'll end up with a soggy pie.
Layer drained tomato slices, basil and onion in your pie shell. Sprinkle with salt and pepper (remember you've already used some salt on the tomatoes). Combine the cheeses and the mayonnaise (garlic mayo is a good variation) and spread the mixture on top of the tomato/onion/basil layers. Bake for about 30 minutes. The pie should be lightly browned. Serve warm.
Animal, Vegetable or ?
Rural gardeners or their pets occasionally run afoul of a visiting skunk and tomato juice baths have been traditionally suggested as a remedy for skunk spray odor. Save your homemade tomato juice for a really good "Bloody Mary". Popular Science did a study on skunk spray remedies and came up with a better method of counteracting the smell. My sister’s rat terrier mix gets a "bath" using their suggested method at least once a month so I can attest to its efficacy. Although, while working at a wildlife rescue facility I successfully used handfuls of Heinz Ketchup (squeezed from those little packets you get with take-out fries) to wash the smell of skunk spray out of a volunteer animal caretaker’s hair. Desperation is really the mother of invention.
The tomato’s botanical name is lyco persicum or "wolf peach". The natural diets of wild canids like the wolf in the New World included the tomato fruit where available - its original color being more yellow than red.
You may have heard about feeding tomatoes or tomato juice to your dog to help alleviate those unsightly yellow spots in your lawn. We tried it with our collie Aggie but never noticed much of an improvement even after she figured out how to un-latch my vegetable garden’s gate to "pick" her own ripe tomatoes - that long collie nose also fit delicately through the vines' supports. Due to the tomato's acidity, my vet thought eating more than the occasional tomato treat might cause urinary tract problems so we made the gate taller. Aggie was 14 when she went to go find her best buddy Hank - no abnormal health issues, just died of being a really old collie. Our lab and our coon hound also love ripe tomatoes so during our long growing season - I was still picking green tomatoes late last December - the dogs (and our desert tortoises) watch the garden through the pickets on Aggie's gate while visions of tomatoes (plums) dance in their heads.
Nothing to see here...
I scheduled this diary with the intention of sharing rainbow-hued tomato-copia photos from my garden but so far June has been about 20 degrees cooler than normal - it's usually in the mid-90's by now. Nothing to photograph but a few cute little yellow pear-shaped tomatoes and lots of ripe red early-bearing varieties, which are delicious but artistically ho-hum monochromatic. There're a whole lotta half-ripe tomatoes in the garden so when it's sweltering in July it'll be a home-grown version of Disney's "The Sorcerer's Apprentice". Oh well...
Now it's your turn to share so do tell. What's for dinner? Need some tomatoes?