tomatoes!

I went down to the farm stand yesterday, and found some great stuff. Cantaloupes, fresh corn, peppers. And of course, tomatoes. Hundreds of them. Maybe thousands. Stacked on carts, piled in tubs, crated in rows.

A tomato glut.

If you grow your own tomato plants you might have it, too. But don't fear, you can be a tomato glut-ton! Here are a couple of my favorite summer tomato recipes.

Fresh summer spaghetti sauce:
Take six ripe tomatoes, core them and cut them in half. Place them cut side up in a roasting pan or dutch oven. Top with minced garlic and drizzle generously with olive oil. Sprinkle with dried basil. Roast in a 375 degree F oven for 45 minutes or until soft when poked with a fork. Allow tomatoes to cool. Remove skins and place pulp in a large sauce pan. Squish with your hands until pulp is broken up. Cook over medium low heat for half an hour (no lid, but use a screen to cut down on splatter) to reduce liquid. You can also add a little bit of sugar if you like your sauce sweet.


Tomato and cucumber salad:
Slice two cucumbers lenthwise, remove seeds and cut into 1-inch chunks. Cut two tomatoes into 1-inch chunks. Slice 1/2 a medium sweet onion into ribbons. Put all ingredients into large bowl and sprinkle with dill. In measuring cup, mix 1/3 cup vegetable oil and 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar. Pour over vegetables and stir. Allow to sit in fridge for an hour or two or overnight before serving, to allow flavors to mix. (You can also add two stalks of sliced celery if desired.)

Salsa!
Finely dice two fresh tomatoes. Run half an onion, one jalepeno pepper (no seeds!), and half a sweet green pepper through the food processor. Add chopped fresh cilantro and salt to taste.

There they are! Hope they help you ride out that tomato glut.

--Donna