This Labor Day weekend, I went on a bit of a cooking rampage. The piece de resistance was the absolutely luxurious Pomodori al Forno I made (courtesy of the August issue of Bon Appetit). You can make these from fresh plum tomatoes like I did or good quality canned tomatoes. Although you'll be tempted to eat them right after the 3 hour roasting time, hold out and wait until after you've added the garlic and parsley, and the tomatoes have cooled, been chilled, and then brought back to room temperature. It makes a big difference in both the taste and the character of the tomatoes.
This is a great dish because not only is it versatile, but the actual "work" time involved is very short--about 15 minutes. You just need to do it on a day when you can hang out at home while the tomatoes do their thing (all told, the dish will be ready after about 5-6 hours).
The first day, we ate them as the recipe recommended--with baguette slices and aged goat cheese. On the second day, we ate the tomatoes tossed with a small amount of plain linguine and fresh basil, and drizzled fresh mozzarella slices with the oil. We started with wild mushroom crostinis, truffle oil, and thyme vinaigrette (also from the same issue and a super-tasting, quick starter). Add a French cab and the leftover brandied plum claufouti I'd made the night before, and it was food-splurge heaven.
Pomodori al Forno Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup olive oil, divided
- 2 pounds plum tomatoes, halved lengthwise, seeded (canned or fresh)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 3/4 teaspoon sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 to 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 teaspoons minced fresh Italian parsley
- Aged goat cheese (such as Bucheron)
- 1 baguette, thinly sliced crosswise, toasted
Preparation
Preheat oven to 250°F. Pour 1/2 cup oil into 13x9x2-inch glass or ceramic baking dish. Arrange tomatoes in dish, cut side up. Drizzle with remaining 1/2 cup oil. Sprinkle with oregano, sugar, and salt. Bake 1 hour. Using tongs, turn tomatoes over. Bake 1 hour longer. Turn tomatoes over again. Bake until deep red and very tender, transferring tomatoes to plate when soft (time will vary, depending on ripeness of tomatoes), about 15 to 45 minutes longer.Layer tomatoes in medium bowl, sprinkling garlic and parsley over each layer; reserve oil in baking dish. Drizzle tomatoes with reserved oil, adding more if necessary to cover. Let stand at room temperature 2 hours.
DO AHEAD: Cover; chill up to 5 days. Bring to room temperature before serving. Serve with aged goat cheese and toasted baguette slices.
INGREDIENT TIP: Alta Cucina canned plum tomatoes are available online from sciabica.com.
Apparently this dish is from Seattle's Cafe Lago. If you're in town, check out the restaurant and let me know how it is.
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