And not in a gross, “I’m not eating that” kinda way, but in a “Whoa, this MUST be tomato season” kinda way.
And instead of getting my rocks off about heirloom tomatoes, I thought I would go straight China-import pesticidal, bright reds. Psyche. But really, I did start with some nice looking Sweet Cherry Tomatoes on the vine – you know the kind I’m talking about. They come in a flat plastic container of like 12 or 15. You should do this, it’s a beautiful thing.
Olive Oil Poached Sweet Tomatoes with Garlic
Keeping them on the vine, simply place the tomatoes in a heavy baking dish that fits them all snugly-like. I used an enameled cast iron which worked pretty well, you can also use a glass one which is all kinds of pretty. Shove barely wrapped garlic cloves all up in the cracks and pour in enough olive oil to cover. Using a brush, coat the tomatoes and garlic so its all oiled well, season with salt and pepper. Pop er in a 400 degree oven for 30 minutes-ish or until the tomato skin starts to split but before they completely turn to mush. Bake for less if you want them more firm – up to you. Once or twice while cooking, use a brush to re-coat the veg with the oil.
Now dip!
Alts: add fresh herbals like thyme or basil or the sticky icky.
Serve with crusty bread for dipping and for mashing the juicy (and very hot) tomatoes and soft-as-shit garlic into.
Left overs? We are going to turn it into a lo-fi pasta sauce. Stay tuned bizzes…
