Lucille's

A TON OF TOMATOES

Picked up some veg at the local market and found a plethora (I know it’s not an exact amount but I do love using that word) of tomatoes in $1.00 bags on the discount table. I scooped up a bunch of them, romas, vine-ripened, camparis, so pleased with my good fortune. (God is so good to me !)

 Raced home and cut up those babies….not a spot to be found. Laid them lovingly on parchment paper     (dollar- store  purchase) on baking sheets, sprinkled them with freshly- ground pepper and sea salt, slathered them with olive oil, tucked in peeled whole cloves and onion wedges and dotted them with fresh basil, and oregano and parsley from my garden. I was feeling very farm-wiferish.

I roasted them at 400 till they were caramelly and shrivelly…about an hour. The aroma was killing me!!

You could cool them and freeze for later use…

makes sauces very intensely tomatoey (go figure)

I chose to make soup by simply putting my roasted beauties in a large pot, covering with water (could use chicken stock), bringing to a boil and then pureeing with a hand blender (preferably red….thanks Vivian) or a normal blender which is messier and to be honest (not that I would lie) I make enough mess as it is (ask my husband Art)

 I had about 35 tomatoes and got about 12 big servings of soup which I froze in meal-size containers. I like to add a bit of milk or cream when re-heating but it’s not necessary. If mixture separates, simply blend again. Sometimes the flavour seems like it is lacking something….often a little more salt and a pinch of sugar will do the trick.

  I serve the soup with homemade garlicky croutons and a sprinkle of fresh herbs. It’s also pretty with a swirl of cream. Grilled cheese on pumpernickel and Lucille’s bread and butter pickles are its best friend. (Beg me and I will post the recipe)

My other fave thing to do with tomatoes is make a tomato tart. This is other-worldly m-m-m---m—m.  It is great with a salad for a girly luncheon, or add a cup of soup for a bigger appetite. Don’t worry, guys love it too.

You can make it in a traditional pie plate, removable bottom quiche-type tart pan or make a free-form one on a parchment-lined cookie sheet which is usually my choice….very rustic, farm-girlish. This time I’m making them in little individual pizza pans just for a difference and because anything individual is just too cute for words and ‘cuteness’ is my middle name.

After I roll out the dough (recipe below)  I spread some Dijon mustard on the crust, then a layer of mozzarella or other white cheese followed by a couple of layers of sliced tomatoes (you can use any kind, the more different ones the merrier) then some sliced green onion tops, garlic slivers, s and p, and fresh basil, oregano or whatever. I also like to add a bit of crumbled feta cheese. Drizzle all with olive oil, then fold and pleat the crust up around the edge. Before you bake them, brush the turned-up dough edges with a beaten egg and sprinkle with parmesan cheese. You can make these earlier in the day then bake later at 375 for 40 minutes or until you want to rip the oven door open and eat them RIGHT NOW!! If you can find a way to bottle the aroma….do it!

 You can also bake these and freeze them for later, last-minute cleverness. Just reheat from frozen or thawed out.

Just-out- of- the- oven delicious

I do hope you give these a try. They really are easy and you could also make batches of the dough ahead and freeze them to make it all even easier. Not every meal has to be meat-centered….trust me you will never miss it. Oh and it’s cheaper!

Happy cooking!!

So thankful for the abundance of fresh foods we enjoy and too often take for granted! We are among the most fortunate.  Purposing to learn gratitude will change your life.

Recipe for pastry

                               1 and ½ cups flour….use some whole wheat if you like to appear healthy

      ½ tsp. salt

     1-2 tsp. lemon zest….please use this…it adds that ‘je ne

 sais quoi!’

                  ½ cup of parmesan….scrimp on this if you don’t have a lot and save it to put on crust before bakin

     ½ cup cold butter

                                     ¼ cup cold water

Throw all willy-nilly into a stand mixer (red preferred) and mix till it holds together well. Roll out on a touch of flour to required size .Proceed as above. Stand back for accolades.

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