After enjoying the zucchinis, summer squash, cucumbers, okra, purple broccoli and one sweet baby honeydew (I wasn’t really sure these melons grow any larger) melon, the tomatoes are now starting to ripen.  And as what seasoned gardeners have warned me, they do ripen at the same time and faster than we can consume them!  My tomatoes are of the tiny variety (grape, cherry, etc), and as such faster to consume and easier to keep or incorporate in our salad.  But I find myself the recipient of more tomatoes — a present from my friend Lisa from her vegetable garden. At our party, she handed me a huge bag containing beets, a big bag of basil leaves and tomatoes. The tomatoes were not yet ripe, some were even green still, so I wasn’t worried about consuming them immediately. In my laziness in the past few days (hey, I need to take a break from partying!), I had forgotten about the tomatoes and when I looked in the bag, all of them where very ripe and looking like past the consumption date for fresh tomatoes.  Even with the salads, spaghetti and omelettes we enjoyed morning, noon and night, I still have a handful of tomatoes which I am wary of throwing away.  I hate wasting such wonderful produce. I needed something that would preserve the tomatoes for later use.

Tom Colicchio’s (chef owner  of Craft and The Gramercy Tavern) cookbook Think Like a Chef has this awesome recipe for roasted tomatoes and garlic. It was the perfect solution to my problem. With the addition of one herb and a couple of heads of garlic, I was able to get 3 usable-for-later ingredients: roasted tomato, roasted tomato juice and roasted garlic.  The great part is that I can store them in my freezer for 6 months! Just perfect for the fall and winter dishes.

Roasted Tomatoes and Garlic as adapted from Think Like a Chef by Tom Colicchio

Ingredients:

• 20 ripe tomatoes, stems and core removed
• 2 large heads of garlic, divided into cloves unpeeled
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• salt and pepper for seasoning
• 8 sprigs of fresh thyme

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350F. Cut the tomatoes in half crosswise.
2. Place tomatoes and garlic in a bowl.  Add olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Mix carefully.
3. Line 2 large baking pans (with sides) with parchment paper or aluminum foil.  Place tomato halves cut side down and pour the olive oil from the bowl.  Divide the garlic and thyme sprigs between the two pans.
4. Bake for 20 – 30 minutes until the tomato skins loosen.  Remove and discard tomato skins. Pour any juices that have accumulated into a bowl and set aside.
5. Return the tomatoes in the oven and reduce temperature to 275F. Continue roasting, pouring off and reserving juices, until tomatoes appear cooked, shrunken and concentrated but not dry. This could take 3 – 4 hours or more.
6. Remove the tomatoes from the oven and allow to cool in the baking sheets.  Discard the thyme and transfer garlic and tomatoes in separate containers. Store in the refrigerator for 1 week or in the freezer for up to 6 months.

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