Here’s what I’ve been cooking up and preserving this year in quantity; my favorite… roasted and dried tomatoes. I can use ‘seconds’ from Kittitas, or those that have gone a bit beyond from the garden (if you are so luck y this year). Roasting brings out a whole new set of flavors, sweet and smoky at the same time, delicious to snack on, but better yet added to sauces, pizza’s, pasta’s and used in soups.
Roasting works well for just about any vegetable, try something similar with cauliflower (add some garlic), onions, summer and winter squash, carrots, beets, parsnip and other roots.
Super easy recipe:
- Ripe tomatoes (any variety will work)
- Roasting pan or a cookie sheet with rim (I use both at the same time)
- Olive oil and brush
Preheat oven to 400 degrees (turn down to 350 about half way through). Brush bottom of pan with generous amount of olive oil. Cut tomatoes into thick slices (about ½ thick), crosswise or lengthwise will work, I prefer crosswise, removing the green sepals and stem. Place in one layer on cooking pan, then brush tomatoes lightly with olive oil. Place in oven, if you have a convection oven, turn this on. Cook until the liquid dries out then turn down the heat to about 350 degrees. Cook until the outer tomatoes are blackened and the inner ones look roasted. Rotate pans if your heat is uneven.
Once they are cooked to preference (I like mine pretty burnt on the edges), take out and cool slightly. At this point you can use right away, freeze or dry. I have been drying mine in my ‘Living Foods Dehydrator’ (no loud fan, and made right here in Fall City) and have beautiful jars full of dried tomatoes.
Tomato Sauce, a Creation Story and other Blogs (By Dea Shipp my daughter)
http://liveeattravel.wordpress.com/2010/09/19/tomato-sauce-a-creation-story/