Summer's Bounty - Tomatoes

From now until the end of summer tomatoes will be at their very best. Right now at my local farmers’ market and I am sure at every other one all around the country there are wonderful heirloom tomatoes, ranging from big red convoluted masterpieces that fill my hand to tiny black cherries. Last weekend I bought a selection of beautiful fruit from Miranda Orchards stand at The Parnell Farmer’s Market. With romantic names like Brandywine Pink, Amish Gold and Peron and some not so romantic ones like Oxheart, they all have one thing in common, and that is flavour. They all taste so good! And they are meaty and when cooked don’t collapse into nothing.

Of course to be full of flavour they need to be perfectly ripe and they need to be at room temperature. Please don’t store tomatoes, even the common supermarket varieties, in the fridge. Even commercially grown tomatoes can taste good if left to ripen especially when they are left on the vine.

If you want to grow your own, Kings Seeds have about 50 varieties listed on their website. Or save the seeds from some that you buy – squeeze onto paper towels, dry and store until the next year when you can just plant the paper straight in the ground.

Late summer, when tomatoes are most plentiful and therefore cheap to buy, is the time to be making sauce, chutneys, passata etc to use over the winter. Right now enjoy lots of raw and cooked dishes that allow tomatoes to shine.

• Dice a selection of ripe tomatoes and make a simple pasta sauce, warmed or not, with excellent olive oil, fresh basil and lots of salt and pepper. To that basic sauce you could add a few chilli flakes, some baby rocket leaves, or maybe some capers. Whatever takes your imagination works. It’s the ultimate quick dinner.
• Take sweet cherry tomatoes and toss them in a hot pan until they just start to burst. Season and add a handful of torn basil leaves. Serve alongside grilled fish or meats or cool and add to salads of roasted vegetables for a hint of colour.
• Make Catalan Tomato Bread as a pre-dinner snack. Grill slices of good bread, rub lightly with a cut clove of garlic, drizzle with your best olive oil and then rub over a cut, very ripe tomato, squishing it on but discarding the skin. Devour straight away.
• And the simplest way of all to intensify the flavour of tomatoes is to roast trusses at high heat. 

Here a couple of favourite recipes. In this first one the tomatoes are the hero of the dish so use the best ones you can find.

Vine-Ripened Tomatoes with Fresh Ricotta

Tomatoes and ricotta are a match made in heaven and even better when teamed with toasted sourdough. It’s a favourite for breakfast or brunch in our house. 

8 large and 12 small tomatoes, variety of colours and shapes

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar

flaky sea salt and freshly ground pepper

1 sourdough baguette

300 grams fresh firm ricotta ( my favourites are Zany Zeus or Clevedon Buffalo)

basil leaves to garnish

Slice the large tomatoes thickly and cut the smaller ones in half.

Combine the olive oil and balsamic vinegar and season with the salt and pepper.  Pour over the tomatoes, toss gently to coat and leave for 15 minutes to half an hour.

Cut 4 diagonal slices from the baguette and toast or grill them. Generously spread them with ricotta, season with salt and pepper and place each one on a plate.

Spoon the tomatoes over the ricotta toasts and drizzle a little dressing over each. Garnish with basil and serve immediately. Serves 4

Niçoise Tart

This tasty tart is reminiscent of the Mediterranean and really should only be made at the height of summer when tomatoes and capsicums are at their best. If in a hurry you can of course use ready rolled short pastry although the flavour of the thyme and mustard in this pastry adds to the overall deliciousness. However you could always spread a little mustard and sprinkle some thyme over the base of the tart before you fill it. This pastry though is very short and utterly delicious. By way of variation I sometimes use 50/50 onions and capsicum and capers instead of olives on the top.

Pastry

1¼ cups flour

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves

½ teaspoon salt

freshly ground pepper

120 grams cold, unsalted butter

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

2 tablespoons iced water

Filling

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

4 red capsicums, seeded and sliced 1cm

1 onion, sliced

Topping

5 ripe fleshy tomatoes such as Roma

10 anchovy fillets, rinsed and drained (I like the Ortiz brand)

15 black olives, halved and pitted ( Always Fresh do a good pitted kalamata which is so easy to use)

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 tablespoon olive oil

Pastry: Place the flour, thyme, salt, pepper and butter in a food processor and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs.  Add the mustard and enough iced water for the mixture to hold together.  Tip out on the bench and bring together quickly into a disc with your hands. Wrap and chill for 30 minutes.

Filling: Heat the oil in a large skillet.  Add the capsicum and onion to the pan. Season and cook until soft and thick, about 30 minutes.  Transfer to a bowl and cool.

Preheat the oven to 190°C and place a flat baking sheet in the oven to heat.

Assembly: Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface and line a tart tin with a removable base (24cm round or 21x29cm rectangular).  Using a slotted spoon spread the filling over the base.

Halve the tomatoes through the core, scoop out and discard the seeds.  Cut the tomatoes in half again and arrange in rows alternating with the anchovies. Scatter with the olives and thyme leaves.  Combine the garlic and oil and spoon over the tart. 

  

Give the top a good grind of pepper and bake until the filling is bubbling and the crust is golden, about 35 minutes.  Rest for 10 minutes before serving. Serves 8