Harvest Time: Cherry Tomatoes
“It’s difficult to think anything but pleasant thoughts while eating a home-grown tomato.”
Lewis Grizzard, Humorist
Lewis Grizzard is spot on when it comes to home-grown tomatoes. I can think of only one way to improve on their simple perfection – pop one into your mouth mere seconds after it’s picked, while your still standing among the tangled, lush, green tomato vines. This sense of immediate gratification inspires my husband and me to plant several cherry tomato plants each season. Ripening days and even weeks before the larger tomato varieties, our Sweet Million cherry tomatoes are delicious harbingers of the summer sweetness yet to come. So, while we patiently wait for our favorite Brandywines to ripen, we satisfy our tomato craving, some ten months in the making, by eating cherry tomatoes straight from the vine.
But at the risk of sounding ungrateful, this year we have too much of a good thing, or rather, too much of a mediocre thing.
All but one of our Brandywine tomato plants were destroyed by rabbits early in the season. We replaced them with cherry tomato plants because that was the only variety we had left on hand, and we were committed to populating our garden with only plants that we had started from seed in our home. Well, as they say, it seemed like a good idea at the time. Subsequently, I have been harvesting one to two pints of cherry tomatoes each day for two weeks straight. The real problem, however, isn’t the quantity, but the quality. The characteristic sweetness of the Sweet Million has been watered down by all the rain we had in July. I reminded myself that even watery home-grown tomatoes taste better than store-bought, but my disappointment lingered. My pity party finally ended when I remembered something that I’d learned last summer – roasting a tomato brings out its sweetness and intensifies the flavor. Let the roasting begin! My resulting consolation dishes, ranging from tarts to risotto, have all been delicious, though not without their own drawbacks in a hot, hot, humid, hot summer.
Interested in finding new uses for your cherry tomatoes? My favorite recipes follow. I’ve included a few that don’t require cooking the tomatoes – just in case you are blessed with a crop that hasn’t suffered the ill effects of a rainy summer. Happy eating.
Cherry Tomato Fennel Tart With Balsamic Crust
My version of the Cherry Tomato Fennel Tart
Tomato, Feta and Cucumber Skewers
White Bean and Cherry Tomato Salad
By: Bobbi Marstellar
Themocracy
I wrapped in foil and grilled some cherries w/ fresh basil and garlic …..sprinkled w/some evoo…..emulsified…… made a wonderful sauce for pasta. Can’t wait to try your recipes!
How delicious and easy! I’ve thrown every vegetable imaginable on the grill this summer…except for cherry tomatoes. Thank you for the great idea.