teacher by day - chef by night
When Life gives you Lemons – You make Lemonade… SO when Life give you Tomatoes, you make Tomato Juice! We have been enjoying our garden fresh tomatoes for more than a month. I am getting to a point that I am sick and tired of chopping …
These stuffed tomatoes are everything you could want in a late summer meal…. fresh, filling, healthy. They are easily adaptable too! Think of Stuffed Tomatoes as you would Stuffed Peppers… they work basically the same way! I wanted to go full-out Italian so I stuffed …
Do no get scared off by this title – I ‘only’ used 1 habanero in the pot of soup and it was just spicy enough for me to feel it in my nose a little but without being too killer.
We had a whole bunch of tomatoes in the fridge that would have gone bad on the counter. They had spots that needed to be cut off of them and I wasn’t sure what to make for dinner. We also had some leftover Enchilada Pulled/Shredded Chicken (I just shredded all of the meat from a store-bought rotisserie chicken and heated it with a can of store-bought enchilada sauce which I doctored up with some extra cumin and such). I decided to make a Mexican Tomato Soup & of course our over-abundance of habaneros seemed like a logical choice to fit in with this!
This is an easy “after-work” meal. The first few days of school (and a long Labor Day Weekend) have thrown me off my normal schedule – but this soup has me back to my normal kitchen adventures, I have missed it! To create this meal I litterally just threw tomatoes in the blender & thought about flavors. Then pureeded batches of tomato & friends went into the pot to be heated/reduced/tasted/enjoyed. Perfect with a quick quesadilla on the side to finish off the “Mexican Tomato Soup & Grilled Cheese Dinner” theme.
Working in batches, place all of your ingredients (except chicken – if using)) in the blender. I started with whatever fit in the blender & then dumped and went back to the blender for more. Place pot over medium heat and allow to come to a boil. Skim off the bubbly parts that rise to the top. I allowed this to simmer for about 30 minutes and thicken up quite a bit – allow it to just become as thick as you enjoy your soup!
Serve in bowls with some shredded cheese and sour cream. The ideal sour cream was mine that I mixed with some of my tasty Salsa Verde. Serve with a quick pan-sauteed quesadilla & enjoy the Mexican flavors of Tomato Soup
And I leave you with this, Today’s Question of the Day… When do you know when something is too spicy – how do you walk that line?
Survey says: Rich thought it was a little “earthy tasting” (but he hates beets). My Grandmother called me when she was eating the leftovers I gave her and was “Oohing & Aahhing” over it (love you Grandma). Mom & Dad were both very impressed & thought it was better than they were expecting!
I am so glad to be back in the classroom and see all of the excitement that my students have as we start this new school year. I’m completely re-energized as we start and see so much new potential with the year and the direction …
I’m not sure how your house currently looks – but mine looks like it is covered in tomatoes. No – and not just because my kitchen is painted red but because I have almost no counter space due to tomatoes (literally, 40+ pounds of tomatoes – we are in the process of ‘dealing’ with them)! I am freezing ‘fresh’ tomatoes to use later. I also am making salsa (and freezing some). I will also have some tomato sauce that will be making its way to the freezer.
But I enjoy eating fresh tomatoes!! For lunch the other day I had just a container of tomatoes that I cut & salted as I ate them – yum. Tomato Salads & Bruschetta have been on the [snack] menu multiple times the past few days as well. Stuffed Tomatoes of various sorts are another popular appetizer around here. We wanted a yummy fresh tomato dish the other day though. After making Zucchini Baba Ganoush, Tomatillo Salsa (a few times) & Tomato Soup – I decided that the house needed to smell yummy from some roasted veggies again.
This is SO simple and easy – roast up some fresh tomatoes with garlic, olive oil, & salt and you have your sauce. The only “work” to this is planning an hour ahead to roast up your tomatoes. So what are you waiting for – enjoy the flavors of summer and enjoy!!
(amounts approximate)
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a 9-by-13-inch glass baking dish, combine tomatoes, garlic, oil, and crushed red pepper flakes (if using). Season with salt and pepper. Roast tomatoes until tender, juicy, and skins have popped, about 40 to 50 minutes.
Cook linguine according to package directions in salted water until cooked to desired texture. Serve into bowl then top with some more olive oil, the tomato mixture & some fresh basil, and a few shavings of fresh parmesan. Serve immediately. Yield: 2 – 4 servings (depending on appetites, I’m sure you know how far a box of pasta goes in your family).
*Note – I have also made this with making a quick tomato sauce (onion, garlic, peeled/diced fresh tomatoes, red wine) and mixing my pasta with that & serving the roasted tomatoes on top – that gave us two dimensions of tomato flavor!
One Year Ago: Apple Cinnamon Muffins
And I leave you with this, today’s Question of the Day… What is your favorite way to use garden ripened tomatoes?