By Michelle Fabio

Lakeisha Germany-Ross, a 17-year-old 11th grader at Connections High School in Panaewa, Hawaii, won first prize in Hamakua Springs Country Farm’s You Say Tomato Recipe Contest for Hawaii Community College students.

The winning dish?

Cherry tomato compote served over a mascarpone, cream cheese, and citrus zest budino (pudding in Italian).

Germany-Ross cooked cherry and beefsteak tomatoes slowly in a sugar Read the rest of this entry »

By Michael Nolan

I do a ton of Italian cooking, much of which calls for sun dried tomatoes in the recipe.

While you can substitute fresh or even canned tomatoes, the flavor and texture will not be the same and after all, when you are cooking, isn’t flavor what it’s all about?

Choosing a Tomato
The best tomatoes for sun drying are varieties that have fewer seeds and juice, such as the Roma.

The variety you choose is really up to you, just know ahead of time that sun drying isn’t going to happen overnight, especially if you are using large, juicy tomatoes. When you do choose your tomatoes, select several that are all the same basic size so they will dry in approximately the same amount of time.

Doing the Deed
The best old school method I have found is:

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By Michelle Fabio

If you’re out of a zone where tomatoes are in season or where this year’s crop isn’t living up to expectations, you may be lamenting the loss of your beloved tomatoes in your diet.

And although you may be used to heirlooms or Romas for different recipes, there’s another option.

The small one that can pack a flavor punch—the cherry tomato.
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By Michelle Fabio

While browsing my favorite blogs, I came across a post on my friend Meredith’s site entitled “Tomate en guise de fleur” with this gorgeous photo:

I emailed Meredith and asked her permission to display her beautiful tomato rose here at Tomato Casual. She readily agreed and even pointed me to a page that shows how to make one of these, immediately transforming an ordinary salad into something extraordinary.
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By Tomato Queen

How to make a tomato glow: Okay, I’m not saying it’s right. I’m fairly sure this is what my pal Charlotte would call “sick and wrong.” But if you’d like to learn how to make a tomato glow in the dark, or just see a pretty cool instructional video showing you how to do so, gizmodo.com has a tutorial called Just not eating them.

All fear the Tomato Witch: with her efficient slicing power, the tomato witch will make quick work of slicing that unripe, mushy thing called a tomato available in the stores now that tomato season is over. Probably also useful for slicing copious amounts of cheese, but: do you really need one?
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By Michelle Fabio

Maybe you’ve just squeezed some tomato juice or made some skinless sauce and you’re wondering what you can do with all those skins.

Here are some ideas:

• Keep them in the freezer until you’re ready to make a broth, which is also an excellent way to reuse peelings and other remains of potatoes, zucchini, onions, garlic, parsley, etc. Put them in a pot over medium heat, add some olive oil and salt, and once everything is softened a bit, cover them with water, bring the pot to a boil, and then let simmer for about a half hour. Strain well, and you have a great base for many stews and soups.
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