Tomatoes – Fresh Off the Vine

By Debra Morris–

“A world without tomatoes is like a string quartet without violins.”Laurie Colwin, Home Cooking

One of the best things about summer is the joy of eating a delicious juicy tomato picked fresh off the vine and delivered to your farmers’ market the same day. The taste of fat slices of Early Girls in a simple tomato salad, or beefsteak tomatoes stuffed with cooked shrimp, or Romas chopped into a fresh pico de gallo salsa are enough to make anyone a convert to summer tomatoes from the farmers’ market. These tomatoes are not picked under-ripe, trucked across the country, and then gassed to ripen them for supermarket shelves. The flavor of a fresh-from-the-farm tomato surpasses even the “vine-ripened” ones you get at the grocery store.

During the summer months, there are many tomato varieties available at your farmers’ market. There are little cherry, pear, and grape tomatoes, medium-sized hybrid Early Girl, beefsteak tomatoes, and large juicy heirloom varieties. The flavors of each variety are simply amazing!

There are over 10,000 known varieties of tomatoes, each with a slightly different taste, size, and even texture. There’s a tomato variety for every culinary need. Beefsteaks are large, juicy, and great for slicing on sandwiches. Romas hold up well in sauces and salsas. Sweet little cherry tomatoes are small enough to pop in your mouth for a snack or roast on a sheet pan till they pop with flavor. Fragrance is an indicator of a good tomato rather than color. Use your nose and smell the stem end. The stem should retain the garden aroma of the plant itself—if it doesn’t, your tomato will lack flavor.

Once you have purchased these luscious tomatoes, don’t store them in the refrigerator. The cold destroys the wonderful flavor and can alter the texture. Place them on the counter and use within three days. If you must refrigerate them, bring them to room temperature before preparing or cooking to bring back some of the flavor.

Here are some easy ideas for using summer-fresh tomatoes:

• Toss halved Roma or San Marzano tomatoes with olive oil, garlic, salt, and pepper and roast at 400°F for about 30 minutes to 1 hour, until they are slightly blackened. Chop the tomatoes, garlic, and an onion, then add ground chili pepper, some chopped cilantro, and lime juice and you have a savory homemade salsa.
• “Zoodle” some zucchini, toss with olive oil and halved cherry tomatoes for a light meal. Or toss with cooked pasta.
• Slice thick slabs of beefsteak or colorful heirloom tomatoes and plate. Add sliced mozzarella, a drizzle of olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
• Add a slice of beefsteak tomato to your grilled cheese or bacon, lettuce, avocado sandwiches. Any sandwich is better with a slab of summer tomato!
• Make some homemade marinara sauce, ketchup, or tomato sauce. Yum!

Stop by your local farmers’ market and find summer’s favorite vegetable from Bautista Ranch in Stockton, J&M Farms out of Hollister, Tomatero Organic Farm in Aptos, Guzman Farm from Denair, Resendiz Farms in Hughson, and so many other fantastic farmers.

Debra Morris is a spokesperson for the Pacific Coast Farmers’ Market Association (PCFMA). Check out the PCFMA website for recipes, information about farmers’ markets throughout the region and for much more: https://www.pcfma.org/

Published on July 14, 2022