Is It Tomato Season yet?
Roasted Tomatoes
What to do with those tomatoes on the counter?
Even though it’s not tomato season yet, I often buy a bunch of them this time of the year and hope they will magically ripen on the kitchen counter and turn into a perfect sun kissed garden tomato. If they are not quite ripe, or on the way to being over-ripe, it might be best to just roast them. My friend Tom ( you’ll hear a lot about Tom if you follow this journal) taught me years ago to how roast them and intensify their flavor. It’s become a favorite not-in-season treat over pasta, polenta, rice, crusty bread, eggs or cutlets.
ROASTED TOMATOES
Serves 4
8 to 10 medium tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Fresh ground pepper ( about 8 turns of the pepper mill)
1 1/2 teaspoons thyme, fresh or dried
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
Preheat oven to 400 F.
Wash, stem and quarter tomatoes. Place in a medium mixing bowl. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, thyme and olive oil. Toss to coat tomatoes evenly.
Place tomatoes in a single layer, in a cast iron skillet ( or your favorite roasting pan).
Roast 25 to 30 minutes or until soft and tender. If you are not using a convection oven and a cast iron skillet, you may need to roast 10 minutes longer. Serve warm. Or let come to room temperature and refrigerate 1 to 2 days in an airtight container.