We are officially under attack

Team

We are in our Nantucket home later in the year than usual….and it has been WAY hotter than usual this year…. And as such:

We are under attack by tomatoes and especially cherry tomatoes. Any ideas on how best to manage that? In addition to the usual salad deployment… we have been roasting with olive oil and throwing on pasta etc

Any ideas for managing the flood?

You can use them in any Italianate dish that says "pomodoro." Also fine for making spaghetti sauce.

If I have heaps i bottle them, peeled and halved so I have home grown Tom’s for the winter and also I might bottle up some as passata . I always just do them plain so I can use them in any way..
Also tomato soup, ketchups,.
For a tasty luncheon dish try atomto and garlic tart tartin.

I roast all my excess tomatoes. No need to skin or seed. Toss cherry tomatoes and any others you have on a sheet pan. Cut cherry toms in half if they are large, and regular size tomatoes into chunks. If sheet pan is full, add a whole head of garlic to roast, as well. Toss with olive oil, salt and pepper, sometimes I add Italian herb mix. Roast at 375° until a nice char is on the tomatoes. When done to your liking, put the whole sheet pan into a food processor and whirl away. I freeze in small 1 cup containers. Makes the best tomato sauce or paste if using a lot of paste tomatoes. If you prefer a little less char, you can also use them as sun-dried tomatoes for use in pastas, soups, or just to snack on. I learned this method from an Italian family who took part in starting our local Farmer's Market 46 years ago. The garlic will be done before the tomatoes. I take my tongs and squeeze the head to see if it feels soft. You can take it out to cool. When cool enough remove the cloves and squeeze them out into the food processor.

[Jenise]

What I made for dinner last night: it's to-die-for heavenly. You NEED this. Oh, and it's vegan!!!! I served it with a 20 year old Rioja. Pure magic.


Mark Bittman's Tomato Paella

Ingredients
Yield: 4 to 6 servings
3½ cups stock or water
1½ pounds ripe tomatoes, cored and cut large dice or into thick wedges
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, minced
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon tomato paste
Large pinch saffron threads (optional)--I recommend it
1-2 teaspoons Spanish pimentón (smoked paprika), or other paprika (I used 1 tsp smoked)
2 cups Spanish Bomba or other short-grain rice
Minced parsley for garnish

Preparation
Step 1
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Warm stock or water in a saucepan. Put tomatoes in a medium bowl, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and drizzle them with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Toss to coat.

Step 2
Put remaining oil in a 10- or 12-inch ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables soften, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in tomato paste, saffron if you are using it, and paprika and cook for a minute more. Add rice and cook, stirring occasionally, until it is shiny, another minute or two. Add liquid and stir until just combined.

Step 3
Put tomato wedges on top of rice and drizzle with juices that accumulated in bottom of bowl. Put pan in oven and roast, undisturbed, for 15 minutes. Check to see if rice is dry and just tender. If not, return pan to oven for another 5 minutes. If rice looks too dry but still is not quite done, add a small amount of stock or water (or wine). When rice is ready, turn off oven and let pan sit for 5 to 15 minutes.

Step 4
Remove pan from oven and sprinkle with parsley. If you like, put pan over high heat for a few minutes to develop a bit of a bottom crust before serving.

Gee, the traditional fall attack vegetable in New England is the zucchini.

Ratatouille is a way to take care of excess production for both zucchini and tomatoes.

-Paul W.

The folks at my greenmarket do what Karen recommends: roast (or simmer if you have big pots) and whirl for sauce, keeps in the freezer very well.

Jenise that is the exact recipe I use. So delicious. A Bittman recipe I got here, I especially love the photo.
https://wednesdaychef.typepad.com/the_w ... ans-t.html

[Jenise]

Jenise that is the exact recipe I use. So delicious. A Bittman recipe I got here, I especially love the photo.
https://wednesdaychef.typepad.com/the_w ... ans-t.html

It's SO SO SO good. Oh, and guess what, I participate on a Facebook food site that is mostly populated by Europeans. Someone there was crowing about a recipe by a well-known-to-them Englishwoman named "Delia" and her recipe for "baked risotto". Guess what--identical recipe to Mark's. Wonder who copied whom. No way to know, but I'd give the nod to Mark on name alone because, procedurally, it's a LOT closer to paella.

Jenise that is the exact recipe I use. So delicious. A Bittman recipe I got here, I especially love the photo.
https://wednesdaychef.typepad.com/the_w ... ans-t.html

It's SO SO SO good. Oh, and guess what, I participate on a Facebook food site that is mostly populated by Europeans. Someone there was crowing about a recipe by a well-known-to-them Englishwoman named "Delia" and her recipe for "baked risotto". Guess what--identical recipe to Mark's. Wonder who copied whom. No way to know, but I'd give the nod to Mark on name alone because, procedurally, it's a LOT closer to paella.

The Delia referred to would be Delia Smith a very well known TV cook in Britain and elsewhere she’s been around a very long time so it’s possible she had such a dish in her repertoire (she’s 81)
com
Description
Delia Ann Smith CH CBE is an English cook and television presenter, known for teaching basic cookery skills in a no-nonsense style. One of the best known celebrity chefs in British popular culture, Smith has influenced viewers to become more culinarily adventurous. Wikipedia

Recipes are passed down from one family to another. They get the inspiration from somewhere, tweak it to make it their own. My Portuguese grandmother used to tell me there is no right or wrong way to make a good recipe, and that each family makes it their own. Here in Redding we have Italian families who own restaurants. They all say, "this was nona's recipe , but we tweaked it with our little enhancements, which has gotten better over the last 50 years!

[Jenise]

My Portuguese grandmother used to tell me there is no right or wrong way to make a good recipe, and that each family makes it their own.

I don't disagree with that. I just think 'paella' is a better name for the dish than 'risotto', regardless of where the recipe came from.