BlogHer - PSA or Warning? Slow-Roasted Tomatoes - Comments

this cracks me up

Mata H — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 14:51:59 -0500

I froze a half bushel and am starting to think that is not near enough...LOL

~~ Contributing Editor, Mata H. also blogs right along at Time's Fool

We have 10 batches in the freezer

sassymonkey — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 15:50:56 -0500

I've taken two weeks off roasting. I was getting tired. When I first informed my boyfriend that we'd be roasting tomatoes, slowly, in the oven he was skeptical. So I made a small 'intro' batch. He was hooked. We're so going to love these in November.

Sassymonkey and Sassymonkey Reads.

So funny: I was just thinking the same thing

Lelonopo — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 17:04:38 -0500

Alanna, this is so funny. Last year I tried your slow roasted tomatoes, and loved them. I wished I had made more. Just this week I was thinking it's probably about time to do them...and here was your post. Ha! Thank you for this PSA!

Tonight's the night...

theinadvertentgardener — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 12:48:42 -0500

I'm heading to the farmer's market shortly to pick up some more tomatoes to roast -- I have only done a couple of batches so far, and that's simply not enough! This is such a great way to preserve late-summer's bounty...

--- Genie, The Inadvertent Gardener

1/2 bushel done

Mata H — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 10:34:58 -0500

I should probably do more. these are amayyyyzzzing. I now have 3 friends who are similarly hooked since I passed on the recipe. They are great cold on a baguette with goat cheese and arugula. Or on an English muffin. Or in pasta. or plain..or or or

~~ Contributing Editor, Mata H. also blogs right along at Time's Fool

Very fun!

Kalyn Denny — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 23:44:24 -0500

It really is an obsession. I made my first batch today and only the new braces kept me from eating a lot of them immediately.

Kalyn Denny
Kalyn's Kitchen

Good luck!

Alanna Kellogg — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 13:58:05 -0500

Are they a 'meaty' tomato? That's what's needed for roasting. The big juicy tomatoes so perfect for slicing just kind of stew ... at least according to comments I've seen on other sites.

I picked up the 'last' of the roasting tomatoes from my tomato guy just today: a mere pound. Oh dear, a winter without slow-roasted tomatoes for me unless I can find tomatoes elsewhere.

The temperature is 200F --maybe put them in as late as you can, just before bed, so you can check after 7-8 hours or however long you sleep.

Alanna Kellogg
Kitchen Parade &
A Veggie Venture

Just Picked a 5 gallon bucketful

debra roby — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 13:18:56 -0500

UNCLE!!

I have never slow-roasted tomatoes because I have such a small freezer. But I picked a 5 gallon bucket almost full of tomatoes this morning (from 2 plants!) so I will give slow-roasting a shot tonight.

It's too hot to run the oven all day, I'll prep after dinner, and slide them in as I go to bed tonight. When I wake up, I should have tomatoey heaven right? I'll use the lowest setting in the oven just to be sure...

Debra
A Stitch In Time
Weight for Deb

PSA or Warning? Slow-Roasted Tomatoes

Alanna Kellogg — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 12:01:47 -0500

Consider this either a public service announcement or a warning siren. You see, two years ago just about now, I was obsessed, completely, with learning all the tips and tricks for slow-roasting tomatoes. All the recipes suggested roasting tomatoes for an hour. Me, over 17 batches of slow-roasted tomatoes, I kept stretching and stretching the oven time until finally settling on the 'sweet spot' for slow-roasted tomatoes roasted for ...

... yes, an entire ten to twelve hours. Talk about 'low and slow'.

So why is a two-years-ago obsession a public service announcement? Because late summer and early fall is the time to roast tomatoes, the window is short, and once you've done one batch, you'll want to roast more tomatoes, so you need to allow time, lots of time, lots of slow time. Don't let the season pass you by, it will be another whole year before it returns!

So why should something as simple and natural as roasting tomatoes be setting off warning sirens? Because you, too, may become equally obsessed, so much so that you begin stalking the tomato man for more of the small, meaty tomatoes that are needed? that you nearly burst into tears when you hear that this year's crop is stingy? that you wonder how to get along an entire winter without a big stash in the freezer? Aii, enough about me but really, it's enough to make a girl go out and buy a whole hog.

The thing is, once you figure out the details that work for you, with your own oven, with your own taste buds, with the tomatoes that you grow or purchase, you never go back. You watch what others do, you maybe tweak a little, but really, you've got your tomato roasting gig down, you're not giving it up.

The Perfect Pantry ~ uses fresh herbs for her version of Slow-Roasted Tomatoes.

Kalyn's Kitchen ~ has learned to take the smaller tomatoes out first, then give the larger ones an extra hour when making her version of slow-roasted tomatoes.

Smitten Kitchen ~ says that her three-hour version of Slow-Roasted Tomatoes transforms even supermarket cherry and grape tomatoes

FamilyStyle Food ~ used a huge box of past-due tomatoes from a warehouse club for her version of Slow-Roasted Tomatoes

Other ways to obsess over tomatoes ...

Wednesday Chef ~ Bruschetta di Pomodori Gratinati, slices of country bread rubbed with garlic and smashed grilled tomatoes

DorieGreenspan.com ~ uses oven-roasted tomatoes to spice up a plate of pasta

Orangette ~ uses glugs of olive oil to roast tomatoes for an hour to make Pomodoro il forni in her column in Bon Appetit

BlogHer food editor Alanna Kellogg provides a photo tutorial for how to slow roast tomatoes for her food column Kitchen Parade and collects recipes that use slow-roasted tomatoes throughout the year.