It Safe Menu Planner FoodFit Profile Search for healthy and delicious recipes by type of food, season, meal, etc. Learn more about Purple Cherokee tomatoes and other heirloom varieties . Try recipes for Baked Tomatoes with Garlic, Parsley and Breadcrumbs, Summer Tomato Soup and Tomatoes with Fresh Grape Juice. Not many foods engender the passion and fond memories that tomatoes arouse in cooks and diners.
People can recall, and talk emotionally about the best tomatoes they ever ate.
It had the perfect balance of sweetness and acidity, it was picked in their grandmother's garden, warm from the sun, and they ate it out of hand with maybe a bit of salt carried in the pocket for just such an occasion, or it was in a classic insalata caprese , ripe tomatoes, fresh mozzarella and basil, served at a restaurant overlooking the Amalfi Coast. It's not surprising that something so good should be desired 365 days a year. But of course, this is an impossible dream. As a chef, I am amazed that reputable restaurants keep tomato, mozzarella, and basil salads on the menu all year. Or that sliced tomatoes adorn sandwiches in the dead of winter, adding a note of color, but not much else.