This year my tomato plants seemed reluctant to let go of summer – perhaps because it started late – and they kept producing a lot of fruits (yes, tomatoes are fruits) late in the season.Or perhaps they were simply showing gratitude for our (mine and my husband’s) TLC during the spring.
Where we live, night frost can sneak on us unpredictably even in late June, so this spring we tried a new trick to protect our beloved tomato plants. We planted them in containers and put the containers on wheels to drag them in the warm garage at night, and out on our sunny driveway during the day. This artifice also allowed us to plant them earlier than usual, which in turn gave us a good four-week advantage over the previous years.
We dubbed our tomatoes The Babies. “Let’s go put the babies to bed,” we joked after our evening stroll.
In return, our Babies gifted us with an unprecedented bountiful production of organic tomatoes.
What to do with such profusion? Of course, the usual salads and pasta sauces but, even after sharing them with our (lucky) neighbors, we still had so many that we had to resource to new recipes to keep enjoying them.
Pantesca salad hails from Pantelleria, a dot of an island in the middle of the Mediterranean between Sicily and Tunisia. It brings to the table such a unique blend of simple yet delicious summer ingredients that I had to share it with you, hoping that you will enjoy it as much as we have.
Ingredients: S B Gf Df Ef V
(for 4 people)
- 3 Yukon gold potatoes
- 1 lb. ripe red tomatoes
- 2 Tbsp. capers in vinegar
- 2 oz. pitted green olives
- 1/2 red sweet onion
- 1 pinch of dried oregano
- A few leaves of fresh basil
- 5 Tbsp. Evoo
- 2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
- Salt & pepper to taste
Wash the potatoes and peel them, cut into cubes and steam until cooked but still firm (8-10 minutes).
Peel the half onion and slice it thinly.
Wash and cut the tomatoes into big pieces.
Put these first three ingredients into a serving bowl, add the olives, the capers, the washed basil, and the oregano.
Prepare the dressing in a small bowl: mix the olive oil, the red vinegar, salt and pepper and whisk with a fork.
Pour the dressing over the salad, toss gently and serve.