You Say Tomato...

It has begun...The basil and parsley reach higher.  The eggplants plump.  The tomatoes redden.  It starts with the bottom-most fruit.  The early girls and the heirloom zebras.  Then the cherries and Roma.  It's like a bell curve: a few juicy handfuls.  Some toppings to salad.  Then, twice-daily trips to harvest pounds at a time, cherry tomatoes now cherry bombs of exploding juices as I try to keep up.  Canning, canning, and more canning.  Giving away.  Donating to food pantries.  Pickling the green ones in the fall.  But right now, I have a handful ripe, and look forward to salsas and stuffed fruits.  This year, I'm also going to try "sun-drying" in a slow oven.  Tomatoes are low in Sodium and are a good source of Vitamin E (Alpha Tocopherol), Thiamin, Niacin, Vitamin B6, Folate, Magnesium, Phosphorus and Copper, and a very good source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin K, Potassium and Manganese.  They have over 55% Vitamin C, 21% Vitamin A, not to mention cancer-fighting lycopene.  It also acts as a blood cleanser and reduces fat and cholesterol.  Cooking helps release most of these nutrients and also helps us absorb the calcium and iron in other foods, such as spinach.  So cook it, can it, eat it, enjoy!

First Tomato

Summer pizza

Vegan Option

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Basic Pizza Dough

Taste of Italy

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Prep: 15 minutes  Rest: 40 minutes  Cook: 20 minutes  

Makes 1 large pizza or two small. 

2 tsp. yeast

2 tbs. olive oil

1 cup warm water or whey

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 1/2 cups unbleached flour

1 tsp. salt

This makes a stiffer dough than most, but holds up well to numerous toppings.  Dissolve yeast in warm liquid.  Add olive oil.  Sift flours and salt into a medium bowl.  Make a well in flour mixture and add liquid.  Mix well with spoon, then knead on floured surface 3 minutes.  Return to bowl and cover with hot damp towel.  Let rise 40 minutes.  Preheat oven (and pizza stone, if using) to 425ºF.  Roll dough out on floured surface.  (Divide dough first if making two pizzas.)   Transfer dough with two thin cutting boards or spatulas to pizza stone sprinkled with corn meal or to baking sheet.  Add toppings and bake 15-20 minutes, until edges start to brown.

Summer Pizza: Slice large tomato as thin as possible.  Arrange slices on dough already on baking surface.  (Juice from fresh tomatoes can make dough soggy until cooked.)  Drizzle with olive oil.  Top with crumbled feta cheese.  (I used Narragansett Creamery Salty Feta.)  Sprinkle with pepper.  Top with fresh basil leaves.  Bake 15-20 minutes at 425ºF.

Have a lot of odds and ends from your garden or CSA?  Make ragout!  This hearty dish cooks up quick. The tomato, onion, and eggplant are essential, but try mixing up different kinds, as well as squash varieties.  Nasturtium leaves have a peppery, watercress quality.  The entire plant is edible, so throw on some flowers for extra punch (or let the flowers form seed heads to pickle as caper substitutes later).

Early Harvest

Mussaka/Ragout

Gluten-Free Option/Low Sodium/Vegan Option

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You Say Tomato

Taste of the Mediterranean

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Prep: 15 minutes  Cook: 15-20 minutes  Serves 6

1 medium eggplant, peeled and cut into 1/2” cubes

1 tbs. olive oil

1 tsp. fresh ground coriander

1 1/2 tsp. paprika

1/2 tsp. cumin

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 cup of onion (mix of green, yellow, or red, just avoid 

     using tough stems)

4 cloves garlic, minced*

2 medium zucchini, quartered lengthwise and sliced 1/4” 

     thick

2 cups of heirloom tomatoes, roughly chopped (halve cherry 

     tomatoes)

1 15 oz. can chickpeas, drained and rinsed (or 2 cups local 

     beans, soaked overnight)

2 cups plus 1/4 cup vegetable or chicken broth

1 cup quinoa (gluten-free) or couscous

4 tbs. chopped nasturtium leaves and/or parsley

1 lb. ground lamb (optional)

Lebanon meets Tunisia in this mussaka/ragout-inspired dish.  Place eggplant cubes in a single layer on a baking sheet and spray with olive oil.  Bake at 475ºF 15 minutes, stirring halfway through baking time.  Meanwhile, heat olive oil in large sauté pan.  Heat spices one minute.  If using meat, brown meat in same pan, then set aside.  Add garlic and onions to pan, starting with more oil if necessary.  Cook two more minutes.  Add tomatoes, zucchini, and 1/4 cup of broth, mixing well.  Bring to boil then reduce to simmer.  Add eggplant and chick peas (and meat, if using) and simmer, covered, 10-15 minutes.  While that simmers, prepare couscous or quinoa.  For quinoa, rinse one cup of dry grains.  Heat small sauce pan, then toast grains until they’re almost dry.  Add two cups of broth, bring to boil, then reduce heat and cover.  Cook until all liquid is absorbed, about 15 minutes.  Divide couscous or quinoa among plates and top with mussaka/ragout mixture.  Sprinkle generously with fresh chopped nasturtium leaves and/or parsley.

* If using fresh garlic, let the microplaner tear an opening to help you peel it.  Use a fork or corn skewer to hold clove as you mince it.