#38 (ENH) Eating Ugly Tomatoes

Shownotes for #38 Eat Ugly Tomatoes!

The music for the opening and ending of the show is Fast Food Rampage by the The Touch Ups, courtesy of the Podsafe Music Network.

Stuff you need to know for this show's recipe:

All the recipes here are an hour or less. Total preparation time for is less than 30 minutes.

Talk Back! We are a Snacking Community. Go to the end of these Shownotes and click on comments. Leave your thoughts and experiences. Or email me at [e-mail].

The podsafe music used in the show:

This week, I am featuring Days of Summer by Now is Now. I've played a song by them last winter. But I love this song so much I wanted to save it for just the right time of the year. Mitch Alden, former NYC resident turned backwoods Maine hermit, serves as the band’s lead vocalist & guitarist, while bassist Drew Wyman and drummer Neil Carroll, provide propulsion to the NOW sound’s heart throbbing rhythms. While only together since 2000, their music transcends generations. The Days of Summer: truly a song to hear while eating big ugly tomatoes.

Here is the lead recipe I describe in the show:

Insalata Caprese

1/2 pound tomatoes, sliced into 1/2 inch rounds
1 small red onion, thinly sliced and soaked in ice water for 30 minutes
1 small bunch of fresh basil, stems removed, leaves rolled together like a cigar and finely sliced across the grain of the leaf.
two large ball of fresh Mozzarella cheese, sliced into the same number of slices as the tomatoes
Dressing:
2 tbs olive oil
1 tbs red wine vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

Arrange the tomatoes slices alternating with the cheese slices on a plate. Sprinkle the top with the onions rings and basil shreds. Mix the dressing and sprinkle on top.

Alternative: Insalata di Pomodori e Gorgonzola (Michelle Scicolone's "The Antipasto Table")
Layer the tomatoes with onions and sprinkle crumbled Gorgonzola cheese over the tomatoes.

Diced Tomato Salad: "Ensa Salatasi" (Clifford Wright's "Little Foods of the Mediterranean" )

1/2 pound ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded and very finely chopped
1 green pepper, seeded and very finely chopped
1/2 small cucumber, peeled, seeded and very finely chopped
2 spring onions/scallions, white and green parts very finely chopped
1.4 tsp dried mint
1/2 tsp hot paprika
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
salt to taste
2 tsp red wine vinegar
1 tbs olive oil

Toss all the ingredients in a medium bowl and serve at room temperature with flat bread.

Tomato, Tuna and Egg Salad "El Moje" (Penelope Casas' "Tapas: The Little Dishes of Spain")

2 medium tomatoes, finely chopped
2 tbs flaked light meat tuna in water (1/4 can)
2 hard boiled eggs, coarsely chopped
4 tbs slivered onions
2 tbs chopped pimento, or red pepper
4 black olives, cut in pieces
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 tbs minced parsley

Dressing
2 tbs olive oil
4 tsp wine vinegar
2 tbs water
salt and pepper to taste

Mix salad ingredients together gently in a bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the dressing. Fold into tomato mixture, Chill before serving.

Bread Salad with Tomatoes "Zuppa Matta" (Carol Field's "Italy in Small Bites")

4 1-inch thick slices of white Italian bread
1 red onion, thinly sliced, soak in ice cold water for 1 to 2 hours
2 ripe tomatoes, thinly sliced
1 cucumber, pealed and thinly sliced
2 ribs celery, thinly sliced
1 bulb fennel, quartered and thinly sliced
1 sweet red pepper, ribs and seeds removed, thinly sliced
1 handful of radishes, thinly sliced
2 handfuls of black olives, pitted if desired
6 to 8 cornichon, tiny sour pickles (optional) or 3 tbs rinsed capers
12 basil leaves, roughly torn to pieces
6 tbs olive oil
2 tbs red wine vinegar
Lots of salt and freshly ground pepper

Soak the bread on cold water until moist, 10 to 15 minutes. Squeeze each slice between your hands to get rid of excess moisture and tear into small chunks. Place in a bowl and add the vegetables. Shake the oil, vinegar, salt and pepper in a bottle and pour over salad. Serve at room temperature.

Here are some additional recipes I didn't include in the show:

Here is the shopping list for next week:

Next week I'm going to tell you about how to make snacks out the zucchini squash that is everywhere in the market this week and very inexpensive. You need a pound of zucchini for each recipe. That's two large or three medium sized zucchini. Look for ones that have not gashes or bruises on the skin and are firm. Then you'll need 6 eggs, milk, butter, flour, bread crumbs, cider or white-wine vinegar, grated parmesan cheese, 1/4 pound of feta cheese, chopped walnuts, a green chile, a sweet onion, like a Vidalia, a medium cucumber, fresh flat leaf parsley, fresh mint or basil, ground coriander, and any one of the following: crème fraîche, sour cream, or drained yogurt.