This rainy season has made it tough on tomatoes, but we're happy to announce that they're finally here. This weeks share of produce from Wayward Seed Farm featured the usual fare (scarlet nantes, swiss chard, striped beets) as well as a couple of cups of some wonderful tart cherry tomatoes. Although they're perfect to pop in your mouth as a mid-afternoon snack, we came up with a few recipes for cherry tomatoes, including a lovely salsa by Mandy Rich, one of our newest Professional Foodies. Read below for more details.
Tonight's Ohio Vendor: Luna Burgers
Tonight's Wines:
Louis Jadot Beaujolais Rosé 2007, $2.00/sample, $3.00/glass:
The Beaujolais region has a long tradition of producing rosé wine but not as famous as the red Beaujolais. The Gamay grape is vinified by being first pressed, like a white wine and then put into stainless steel vats with a quick contact with the red skin overnight. This vinification process will allow nice raspberry fruit aromas and flavors.
Santa Barbara Winery ZCS 2007, $2.00/sample, $4.00/glass:
SBW’s first ZCS was created in 1998 as a blend of that Zinfandel with a Carignane and a Sangiovese. In this balanced blend, the Zinfandel from 50 year old vines lends the jammy fruit quality to the wine, the Carignane from 85 year old vines adds density and finish, and the Sangiovese from younger vines in San Luis Obispo shows off the cherry aromatics and flavors.
Squash Cakes with Parsley & Feta
adapted from The Kitchen Diaries: A Year in the Kitchen with Nigel Slater
3 yellow squash
4 leeks, finely chopped
olive oil
1 clove garlic
3 TB. all purpose flour
3 large eggs
1/4 lb. feta cheese
small bunch chopped parsley
tomato salsa to serve
Coarsely grate the squash into a colander, sprinkle lightly with salt and leave in the sink for half an hour or so. Warm the leeks with a little oil in a shallow pan. Pat the squash dry with paper towels. Peel and chop the garlic and stir into the leeks with the squash. When all is soft and starting to turn pale gold, stir in the flour and continue cooking for a couple of minutes or so, with the occasional stir, to cook the flour. Beat the eggs lightly and stir them into the leek mixture, then crumble in the cheese and the chopped parsley. Season with black pepper and a little salt.
Heat four tablespoons of olive oil in a shallow pan, drop heaped tablespoons of the mixture into the hot oil and let them cookin until they are golden on the underside. Turn carefully - they will be fragile - and cook the other side. Lift the cakes out with a spatula and drain briefly on paper towels. Serve with the salsa.
Mandy Rich's Tomato Salsa
1/2 red onion
juice from 1/2 lemon
1 TB. golden balsamic vinegar
1 teas. ground mustard
1 bunch basil, chopped
1 bunch parsley, chopped
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
Toss together and serve.
Marinated Cherry Tomato Salad
from Allrecipes.com by Rainey Jr
4 cups halved cherry tomatoes
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3 TB. cider vinegar
2 teas. parsley
2 teas. basil
2 teas. oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons white sugar
In a small bowl or cup measure, mix together oil, apple cider vinegar, herbs, salt, and sugar.
Pour dressing over cherry tomatoes in a serving dish, and gently stir
to coat. Chill for at least 2 hours. Gently stir from bottom to top,
coating all tomatoes, before serving.
Parsley Pasta with Tomato and Peas Villa Gaidello
adapted from The Splendid Table: Recipes from Emilia-Romagna, the Heartland of Northern Italian Food by Lynne Rosetto Kasper
8 oz. Rossi Pasta
1/2 cup fresh sweet peas or frozen tiny peas
4 quarts salted water
6 TB. unsalted butter
2 oz. prosciutto, thinly sliced and cut into matchsticks
1/2 medium onion, minced
1 small clove garlic, minced
1 cup halved cherry tomatoes or 1 large vine-ripened tomato, peeled, seeded and diced
1/2 teas. imported Italian tomato paste
generous pinch of sugar (optional)
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1 cup freshly grated Parmegiano-Reggiano cheese
Cook fresh peas in a steamer over boiling water until barely tender, about 5 minutes. Turn them into a strainer and rinse under cold running water to stop the cooking and set the color. If you are using frozen peas, simply defrost them.
About 20 minutes before dining, place shallow soup dishes in a warm oven to heat. Bring the salted water to a fierce boil. While the water is coming to a boil, melt the butter in a large heavy skillet over medium-low heat. Add about one third of the prosciutto and all the onion. Slowly cook 8 minutes, or until the onions are soft and clear, stirring frequently with a wooden spatula. Take care not to brown them. Stir in the garlic and remove the skillet from the heat.
Drop the pasta into the boiling water and cook according to instructions. Drain the pasta and immediately finish making the sauce. Turn the heat to medium-high under the onions, and stir in the tomatoes and the tomato paste. Heat 1 minute, or until the tomato skins are seared, taking care not to break up the tomato pieces. Don't cook the tomato; you are simply heating through, keeping its fresh flavor intact. Stir in the sugar and th peas, cooking only until the peas are heated through, about 30 seconds. Taste for seasoning. Turn the drained pasta into the skillet, and add the remaining prosciutto. Turn gently with two wooden spatulas, coating the pasta with the sauce. Spoon the into the heated soup dishes and serve immediately. Pass the cheese separately.
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