Tomatoes. Fruit or veggie? Technically fruit but since I found tomatoes in the veggie section of my first grade food pyramid, I think they're having an identity crisis. That's okay, so do a lot of us going from adolescence to adulthood. Tomatoes really embody the changing identities we have as we grow up. And tomatoes come in a lot of varieties too. Guys, tomatoes are PEOPLE. Metaphorically anyway. Unlike people, however, they're delicious. Can I be real for a second though? I used to hate tomatoes. I didn't like marinara and I used to get White Pizza which isn't racist pizza, but pizza that usually uses an olive oil mixture (or sometimes I've seen alfredo sauce as well) as the sauce instead of a tomato based sauce.
Now I like them. Isn't it funny how that happens? Same thing happened for me with avocados, which now can't last two days in my apartment. But we're talking about tomatoes.
My favorite tomatoes to use are grape tomatoes, which have a ton of versatility. They're super popular for salads. Grape tomatoes, spring mix, olive oil, vinegar, salt/pepper, basil, oregano, YUM FACTOR TIMES 100. I also like them for sauces. Roast them in the oven, maybe 350 degrees, wrapped in foil for about 15 minutes, or until they look kind of shriveled. Blend with some extra virgin olive oil and your favorite seasoning. I like fresh basil, Italian seasoning, garlic or garlic powder. Pro Tip: Either sauté the fresh garlic prior to adding or pop some garlic in the oven with three minutes to go on your cooking time. Burned garlic is not fun folks, so mind that timer. Sometimes I add a bit of spinach as well. Blend some more and add to…basically anything. You can also keep this as a leftover for a few days, the sauce is really good the second day when it's been given the time to sit absorb all the seasoned goodness. Note, this process is good for cherry tomatoes too.
But let's back up here, because picking your tomatoes starts off this whole process. For me, picking tomatoes can be a long and annoying routine for whoever is with me. Okay, I'm picky. And for that reason, I love getting tomatoes from Farmer's Markets. Save for avocados, anything that I generally eat raw I try to buy either organic or from Farmer's Markets. Now that's not always feasible, either economically or logistically. So in order to work around cost and time, I ask the grocery store when they tend to get their produce in. I know that sounds sort of annoying, I'm not sure if the grocery workers think it is or not, but I try not to be too pushy. Trader Joe's is very helpful when applying this tactic as well. Their clerks were exceedingly helpful, not to mention cheerful! In short, they were awesome and I've learned that it never hurts to ask, especially when it comes to your confused veggie-fruit items. To be honest, I do all this for the taste. I really prefer the taste of organic tomatoes, not that I begrudge the scientific acumen necessary to create tomatoes that stay fresher longer. Granted, I was at Publix the other day and they had these Ugly Ripe tomatoes that were fantastic, so I guess it depends on preference and whether you find a good batch. Also, let's talk about how amazing the name 'Ugly Ripe' is. They're not even ugly, just, different. I'm telling you, tomatoes are like people.
Any foods you guys like to go the extra mile for? Let me know in the comments! Or, you know, psychic message. That's a thing right?
Think Delicious,
J
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