It's Tomato Season-Recipes

I just couldn’t bring myself to mess up a fantastic tomato with a pogey smellin’ minner..

Stuffed tomatoes.

There's always the afternoon spent making a giant pot of tomato sauce to put in the freezer, too, once you're just freaking sick of them.

Gumbo

I quarter the tomatoes, season with my seasoning blend (similar to Old Bay) and into the box smoker on a foiled grate to catch the juices for just over a half hour. When not too hot to handle, the skins slip off. The smoked flesh gets pureed with a stick blender then passed through a sieve. You wouldn't believe what the smokey flavor adds to sauces, Cioppino, bisque, etc.

Another thing I do is to make tomato water. After blanching the tomatoes for 15 seconds and then shocking them in ice water so that the skins fall right off, puree them and then put into a large filter of some sort. I have a professional cone filter set up which works great. Layered cheesecloth or a clean dish rag would work too. Suspend it over night over a bowl while the clear water drips out drop by drop. DO NOT PRESS, SQUEEZE OR MANIPULATE because this will incorporate the pigment into the water. Let gravity do the work. What you'll end up with is clear tomato water which is basically concentrated tomato flavor.

I'm surfing a giant wave of tomatoes right now....so far, I've done:
--gazpacho
--panzanella
--tomatoes cored & stuffed w/seasoned bread crumbs, & broiled
--chopped salad w/feta, mint, and basil
--cherry tomatoes roasted w/garlic, olive oil, and a little honey, used to top rotini w/pesto
--halved cherry tomatoes pressed into focaccia
--halved cherry tomatoes on homemade pizza w/spinach & mushrooms
--caprese salad
--chicken thighs braised w/rough chopped tomatoes & herbes de provence
--ratatouillie: tomatoes, eggplant, squash

Coming up soon:
tomato & goat cheese tarts, tomato jam/confit....

Keep it simple. Two slices of Evangeline Maid, Blue Plate Mayo, salt, pepper

I usually make tomato pies and I also stuff and bake them. I love them that way. I haven't done it yet this season.

I don't love the tomato pies with all the mayo. I usually do somewhat of a caprese pie.

I put them on the grill. Slice thick. Top with blue cheese, bread crumbs, salt and pepper melted to a paste.

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Gumbo

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My tomato pie is really more of a goat cheese tart....use your favorite savory crust, fit into a pie pan, and blind bake it until set. Then spread a layer of dryish goat cheese (or if your cheese is very soft, blend with an egg before spreading on the crust), add a layer of sliced tomatoes, and put it back in the oven until the crust is as brown as you like. Of course, you can flavor the goat cheese w/herbs, cracked pepper, etc.....or you can brush the tomatoes with a garlic/olive oil paste, or gild the lily in an endless array of improvements. Do what’cha like....