A little trick up my sleeve

And now you'll have it too. We all love those delicious summertime tomatoes, right? Especially the heirloom varieties in all their splendor. The beautiful color, the multitude of uses, and that sweetness they add to almost any dish you can imagine. Heck, I know people who eat tomatoes like apples and who can blame them?! But, come late summer and early fall we've all cut or bitten into a tomato with less flavor or even worse that grainy, mealy texture. Well, I think I have the answer for you! This little trick (ok, ok, it's not a trick but play along would ya?) will keep you eating tomatoes with a smile on your face and a happy tummy all year long.

All you will need is 4 simple items and I'm willing to bet my bottom dollar that you already have at least 3 of them: salt, pepper, and extra virgin olive oil (evoo). The 4th is obviously tomatoes (told you it wasn't really a trick). I'm not willing to wager that you have tomatoes because if you are like me they disappear just as fast as you can get them out of the grocery bag. So, go to your favorite produce market and pick up some of your favorite tomatoes (I generally use plum or cherry tomatoes for this household staple, but any tomato will do). I would suggest a few pounds because these will last a little while in the fridge...well if you don't eat them all up in one sitting that is. Store them in an airtight container.

Cut the tomatoes into halves or quarters unless they are cherry and then you can leave them whole. Place them on a baking sheet and drizzle evoo over them so they are thoroughly coated all around, but you do not want them swimming in a pool of oil. Add salt and pepper to taste, don't be shy here. The one error that most home cooks make is not using enough salt. Let me be clear here, I am not encouraging you to kill your family by way of high blood pressure by any means. But, you certainly want salt to do its job if you are going to use it. If you use too little then why even bother. Experiment and this is an easy way to do so: use different amounts of salt on each half of your baking sheet (make sure you remember which side is which) and see which tomatoes come out the way your prefer. Helpful? I hope so! If some come out too salty, use the in a recipe that calls for tomatoes and salt and don't add more salt, unless it's needed after tasting. Easy enough? Look at us reducing waste and increasing taste!

Put the tomatoes into your oven, preheated to 250 degrees. You are going to cook these babies slow and low. Soon your house will smell heavenly, trust me. Give them time, at least 90 minutes and if you are doing a large batch 2 to 2 1/2 hours is better.

You can use these roasted tomatoes in anything you'd use raw tomatoes. I think the roasting deepens the flavors and most importantly gets rid of that mealy texture we talked about earlier. They make for great tomato basil soup and pasta sauces. I love them in salads and one of my favorite ways to use them is with roasted broccoli and shallot.  Don't under estimate how good they are on their own as a side dish, with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar...YUM! I look forward to hearing how they turn out! Please share how you use them too.