The Farmer's Almanac, which I hadn't even looked at since I was a kid rummaging through my grandfather's ranch house curiosities but is apparently a regularly referenced guide here, tells me that it is officially fall now. The students have had their first round of exams, the leaves are changing color, and my tomatoes have nearly all together petered out.
My first tomato harvest yielded this little salad with fresh basil from my herb garden. And as my father-in-law, who helped me transplant my seedlings, predicted, I've had more tomatoes than I would have asked for. He is a more generous man than me. When he has a bountiful harvest and winds up with more fruit than he would have naturally purchased at a store, he gives it away to anyone who will take it. I am a bit of a hoarder. So instead of sharing much of my tomatoes, I have challenged myself to get creative and find ways to use my fruit at a rate that keeps up with their ripening. I've lost one or two from falling behind. But in the process, I've made:
1) Caprese paninis
2) Spaghetti with tomato meat sauce
3) Pesto pizza with goat cheese, caramelized onions, chicken, and of course, tomatoes
4) Roasted corn and Tomato soup [recipe from the William Sonoma catalogue], good enough to make twice
5) Breakfast burritos [sausage, eggs, cheese, and diced tomatoes wrapped in a warm tortilla]
6) Bruschetta [I dice the tomatoes, add olive oil and balsamic vinegar to coat, salt, pepper (fresh ground if it's available), garlic salt (fresh garlic if I have the energy), lots of basil, and other italian spices to taste (such as oregano, thyme, a hint of rosemary, sage, and savory)]
7) Salsa, using this recipe from my sweet friend Jamilah:
1 cup red onion chopped
1 cup chopped cilantro(it takes a lot, you could even add more than this)
1 can diced tomatoes (I like to use the seasoned kind with onion and flavoring)
1 cup frozen corn
Salt, pepper
Combine in bowl, add white vinegar until the level of liquid is about an inch deep. Taste test.
Optional ingredients: fresh cucumber and green pepper chopped fine
8) Turkey sandwiches with sliced tomato
9) Chicken Vegetable Soup [see this recipe from Cooking Light - this was SOOOoooo good and surprisingly filling!]
And I have a few more tomatoes left on the vine, still ripening. Any more ideas for how I might use them? Not too shabby for the cost of about one good sized tomato and the transplant fertilizer! I feel like this if the first time in my life an investment has paid off so fruitfully. ;)
