Slow-Roasted 'Candied' Cherry Tomatoes
If you’re anything like me, you’re browsing the garden center in early spring and you can’t help but be lured in by all the amazing sounding tomato varieties. You eagerly await their bounty all spring and carefully tend the plants in anticipation. Then summer comes around and your garden is literally exploding with tomatoes, all at once! There’s always that point in the middle of summer when it’s just too many to handle. This is the method for that moment. There is really nothing to it other than a long, very slow bake. Use any varieties or colors you have on hand. The low heat transforms the fruit into the sweetest, chewiest, most delicious jewels of summer.
I can think of a million ways to use these. Here a few serving suggestions:
Toss them into any pasta dish for a tangy, chewy surprise.
Top any sandwich, burger, or brushcetta
Toss into every salad you can imagine.
Use in a fresh ‘salsa’ with chopped fresh herbs.
Fill an omelette with them.
Use with fresh tomatoes in a tomato & mozzarella salad to boost the tomato-y flavor.
Use for a sundried tomato pesto.
SLOW ROASTED 'CANDIED' CHERRY TOMATOES
Yields 4 servings
2# cherry tomatoes, cut in half crosswise. Cut the tomatoes across the ‘equator’ horizontally if possible as they hold together better when cooked.
2 TB olive oil
Salt & Pepper
Heat oven to 300°F. Line baking tray with parchment or silicone baking mat (Silpat).
Arrange cut tomatoes in a single layer, no overlapping. Use 2 trays if you need to. Sprinkle tomatoes with salt & pepper. Drizzle lightly with olive oil.
Bake for about 2 hours, rotating after 1 hour. The length of time you bake will depend on the size of your tomatoes and the their juiciness. You want the edges to be crinkly and dark reddish-black but the tomatoes to still remain juicy. Imagine a sundried tomato packed in oil. That’s the desired texture.
Allow to cool about 15 minutes on the tray. Remove from the pan when the tomatoes are still warm. If you wait until they’re fully cooled, good luck getting them off the parchment! Store in an airtight container in your fridge up to 10 days.
