Monthly Feature
Lyndi knows what it’ss like living without certain foods due to allergies, sensitivities and conscience.

Talk to any foodie and I guarantee you will find that the humble tomato is one of their favorite foods.

If you probe a little further, you will hear them gush on and on and on about their favorites – heirlooms, beefsteak, Pruden’s Purple, Big Ben, African Queen, Aunt Ruby’s German Green – one variety more exotic sounding (and tantalizing) then the next.

Me? I believe that the perfect tomato is… roasted.

Yes, roasted.

It does not matter if they are freshly picked from the vine, mushy and on the verge of the compost bin, or as solid as baseballs. Add a little heat and the magic begins.

What happens when a tomato is roasted?

Once it begins to warm, the natural sugars begin to caramelize, adding a brilliant intensity of flavor to greet all your senses: the slightest hint of smokiness wafts up to your nostrils, you watch in wonder as the juices ooze and bubble as if the tomatoes themselves are their own miniature dutch ovens, and the taste? Um, let’s just wait on that description, shall we? I don’t want to get you worked up too quickly.

The fascination with roasted tomatoes was rekindled when my family and I had the luxury of visiting Southern Italy in the Fall. Every lunch and dinner before our main meal we were served a plethora of vegetables: eggplants, escarole, rocket, zucchini, and yes, roasted tomatoes. Pasta was served often with what appeared to be a simply-prepared pasta sauce of mashed roasted tomatoes.

We were hooked.

I would walk into town when the shopkeepers would line their fruits and vegetables on the sidewalks. Seriously, can you even imagine a world where we had offerings like this on every downtown sidewalk? Fresh, beautiful, and always in-season variety of tomatoes like these? Ahhh, forget world peace. I want a global refrigerator!

Roasting tomatoes is easy.

Preheat oven or toaster oven to roast at 350 degrees. Line parchment paper in a sheet pan, cut tomatoes in half and rub with olive oil. Grind a little black pepper and toss a little sea salt on the tops. Go on, add a little powdered garlic while you are at it. Pop in the oven and watch it do it’s magic. 20 minutes later, it’s ready.

Get creative. If you have a grill pan, by all means use it! I like to grill mine next to long strips of zucchini. Oh wow, now that’s going Italian for you! Add a little parmesan cheese on top or bread crumbs and they are delish by themselves.

Sometimes I like to place them in little ramekins with parmesan lightly grated on top, just to mix things up! Isn’t that gorgeous?

It is a snap to add to any pasta! Just mash with a potato masher or even a spoon. I incorporate roasted tomatoes into every kind of gluten-free pasta that I get my hands on.

The end result is always the same: a full-flavored, healthy alternative to opening a can or jar of pre-made sauce. Something so simple that has such beautiful presentation.

How does it taste?

It is like taking a stroll in your grandmother’s garden on an early summer morning right before the humidity hits you in the face when the smells of the tomatoes in the garden are literally bursting the air! It’s the first bite of piping hot pizza pulled straight from the neighbor’s brick oven when you know there couldn’t possibly be a better culinary moment then this. It’s the realization of all senses, alert and alive.

In a single word?

Perfection.

Editor’s note: Please check out Lyndi’s wonderful food blog at: http://nwafoodie.blogspot.com/