POMODORO BASILICO SALAD

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I found this 1940s produce crate label for Dominator Tomatoes, used by the T.O. Tomasello Company of Watsonville, California, on ebay.  It features a U.S. fighter plane.  I got it along with several other labels featuring airplanes, thinking it would be cute to frame them for my then-young son’s airplane-themed room.

I never did get around to framing those labels.  Never finished collecting all of the state quarters with him either, but somehow we’ve managed to carry on.

This time of year, tomatoes do indeed dominate.  The tomato season in Houston is short, and the tomatoes are not pretty, but they taste great.  These heirloom tomatoes from the farmers market a few weeks ago were wonderful with sliced red onions and kirby cucumbers, drizzled with a little olive oil and red wine vinegar.

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Tomatoes are believed to have originated in the Andes.  The word tomato comes from the Aztec “xitomate,” which means “plump thing with a navel.”  So the next time your loved one refers to you as a hot tomato, don’t be so flattered.

Botanically speaking, a tomato is a fruit.  For culinary purposes, which, let’s face it, are far more important than botanical purposes, a tomato is considered a vegetable.  As I told my son, when he was studying for his theology final and trying to explain the difference between knowledge and wisdom:

Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit; 

Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad
Well, they may not be great in fruit salad, but tomatoes — especially ripe summer tomatoes — are wonderful in vegetable salads.  Inspired by the Dominator tomato crate label, this recipe for Pomodoro Basilico Salad makes great use of the season’s fresh tomatoes, and really allows the tomato to be the star of this salad.  For the very best results, use a good quality olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

POMODORO BASILICO SALAD
Author: 
Recipe type: Salad, Vegetable, Vegetarian
 
Ingredients
  • 1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
  • 12 calamata olives, sliced
  • 6 large basil leaves, thinly sliced into ribbons
  • ½ of a small red onion, thinly sliced
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
  • Salt and pepper, to taste
  • ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
  1. Place tomatoes, olives, basil, and onion in a medium bowl. In a small bowl, whisk together oil and vinegars, and pour over tomato mixture. Stir gently to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Just before serving, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

 

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You say to-may-to, I say delicious

STARS AND STRIPES PIE

Happy 4th of July!  This week my inbox was flooded with recipes for foods in every shade of red, white, and blue, but one in particular caught my eye.  It was a blueberry and strawberry rhubarb pie that resembled a flag.  The recipe was from Tiny Pies in Austin.  I adapted the recipe only slightly, using all strawberries instead of a mix of strawberries and rhubarb, because I couldn’t find rhubarb anywhere.  It was fun to make, easy as pie really.  🙂

STARS AND STRIPES PIE
Author: 
Recipe type: Cakes and Pies
 
Ingredients
  • I package refrigerated pie crust (2 crusts)
  • Blueberry filling:
  • 1-1/2 cups fresh blueberries
  • 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • Pinch of ground ginger
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • Strawberry filling:
  • 4 cups strawberries, hulled and quartered
  • Juice from ½ of an orange:
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 3 tablespoons cornstarch
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. For blueberry filling: In a medium bowl, toss blueberries with lemon juice. In a small bowl, whisk together sugar, spices, and cornstarch. Add sugar mixture to blueberries and mix gently until thoroughly combined.
  3. For strawberry filling: In a medium bowl, combine strawberries and orange juice. In a small bowl, whisk together sugar, spices, and cornstarch. Add sugar mixture to strawberries and mix gently until thoroughly combined.
  4. Place one pie crust in a 9" pie pan. Add blueberry filling to left corner of pie, then add strawberry filling to remaining area. Cut stars out of half of the second pie crust using a small star cookie cutter, and cut free-hand wavy stripes out of the remaining pie crust. Place stars on top of blueberry filling, place stripes on top of strawberry filling.
  5. Bake until fruit is juicy and bubbling, and crust is light golden brown, about 45 minutes.
  6. Remove from oven and set aside to cool, allowing fruit juices to thicken.

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Blueberry filling

IMG_4499Strawberry filling

IMG_4500 I used pastry cutters to keep the filling in place, but it really wasn’t necessary

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 Stars and stripes

IMG_4505American Pie!

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 My lovely assistant

I also made some Rice Krispie Treats for the holiday:

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See the red and blue cereal?  That’s Fruity Pebbles.  While I sat waiting for a batch of muffins the other morning, I sorted out blue and red ones for my special treats.  Pretty sure I’m gonna want those 20 minutes back at the end of my life.  Especially since my dog Jasper ate most of them off the counter when no one was looking.  He apparently confused Rice Krispie Treats with Dog Treats.  🙂