By Charity Shumway |

Have Tomatoes, Won’t Cook: 2 Quick & Easy No-Cook Recipes

Tomato, Scallion and Ricotta Crostini with Honey Balsamic Dressing

You’ve gone to all that trouble to raise and nurture your own tomatoes, and you did a fabulous job. You instilled the fullest flavor, bright color and a deeply gratifying aroma. You’re a great parent. So of course you’re not going to throw all that hard work down the drain and cook your tomatoes to death. It’s not that a slow cooked tomato sauce isn’t tasty, but for your fresh-as-can-be babies, I don’t think so. Instead, we have 2 no-cook recipes that not only cast your tommies in the freshest lead roles, but give them lines they deliver with Hollywood starlet calibre flair.

Oops Did I Just Finish That Tomato and Peach Salsa

Recipes after the jump!

Oops Did I Just Finish That Tomato and Peach Salsa
My husband happened to come home in the middle of the afternoon one day, and fate would have it that I had just finished making this salsa. Suspicious, I know. Still he didn’t let the chance finding put him off, and pounced right in. Even more suspicious, I know.  The combination of the sweet peaches, with the rich, savory tang of the tomatoes and the rousing kick of jalapeno was an unbeatable triumvirate. They kicked ass like I’d never seen it been kicked before. But then, I had also never seen anyone mow down so much salsa and chips as I did that day.

There’s a secret ingredient in there, too. I’ll cook you lunch if you can guess. Hint: It adds just the just amount of sweet complexity to balance the acid in the salsa to perfection.

Serves 6 as an appetizer with tortilla chips

1 lb. tomatoes, cored and diced small (see tips)
2 peaches (or 1 1/2 if you want the tomatoes to hold more weight), peeled (see tips) and chopped – I prefer slighter larger pieces than the tomatoes, just for more interest
1-2 jalapeno peppers, depending on your propensity for heat, minced
1 large garlic cloves, peeled and minced
1/2-1 tsp. Japanese mirin rice wine
Splash of hot sauce or tabasco
Medium handful cilantro leaves, rinsed and finely chopped
Lime juice to taste, about juice of 1/2 -1 lime
Salt to taste

Place all the ingredients, except the lime juice and salt, into a medium bowl, including just 1/2 tsp. of the mirin rice wine. Stir everything together well, then add the lime juice to taste, followed by the salt. Finally, add the remaining mirin if you think it needs it; you’re looking for a balanced flavor that’s not overly sweet, or acid. Leave for all the flavors to develop for at 15 to 20 minutes before serving. (If leaving for more than that, keep in the fridge).

Tips:

  • If your tomatoes are very juicy, halve them and squeeze out some of the juice by firmly squeezing each half in your palm before dicing, otherwise your salsa will become very watery. Save the juice for a tasty vinaigrette.
  • To peel the peaches I just use one of those old fashioned metal swivel peelers and run it gently down the peach exerting slight pressure, rotating the fruit in the other hand as I go. Make sure the peaches are quite firm, otherwise they’ll get too mushy when you try to peel them.
Tomato, Scallion and Ricotta Crostini with Honey Balsamic Dressing
Yes, the title is something of a mouthful, but these toasts are an even bigger bite of flavor. Oh, that was so terribly cheesy wasn’t it? I hope you don’t mind, but I’m going to leave it in to publicly shame myself into never writing so pitifully again. (Ok, ok, enough with the cringes, I’m drowning in shame already.)
But I speak the truth, these toasts titillate the taste buds something magical. Creamy ricotta is given a earthy, oniony boost with sauteed scallions and lots of black pepper before being slathered onto crisp, grilled slices of baguette. Then, chopped tomatoes tossed with scallion greens and dressed with a lively balsamic and honey vinaigrette is piled over the top, and a final drizzle of dressing completes the stack.
Makes 10 to 12 crostini
For the Dressing:
1 tsp. honey
2 tsp. Balsamic vinegar
2 Tbs. Extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly cracked black pepper
For the Topping:
1 Tbs. olive oil, plus little extra to brush the bread
5 scallions, sliced, white and green parts kept separtely
Salt and freshly cracked black pepper
5 Tbs. ricotta cheese
1/2 lb. tomatoes, chopped into 1/2-inch chunks
10 to 12 slices French baguette
Make the dressing: in a small bowl, whisk together the honey, vinegar and oil until thickened and emulsified. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.
Make the topping: Heat the olive oil in a saute pan over medium high heat. When hot, add the white and light green parts of the scallion. Cook, stirring, until cooked through and translucent. Season with a pinch of salt and a few grindings of pepper. Remove from the heat, and leave to cool.Place the ricotta in a small bowl,  and stir until smooth. Add the cooled scallion and season to taste with a little more pepper and salt. Place the tomatoes in another small bowl. Whisk the dressing to re-emulsify, and add 3/4 of the dressing and the scallion greens to the tomatoes. Mix to combine everything and set aside.
Lightly brush the baguette slices (on both sides) with olive oil, then toast on a grill, under the broiler or in a skillet for a couple of minutes on both sides until lightly charred at the edges.
Spread the ricotta mixture on the toasts, dividing the mixture equally between them. Top each with a spoonful of the tomato mixture, then drizzle the remaining dressing over the crostini. Serve immediately.

3 Comments

  1. Alice | July 25th, 2011

    those crostini sound delightfully delicious. i’m also liking the sound of the honey balsamic dressing! would love to pour that over some greens.

  2. Nadia | July 27th, 2011

    Hey Alice! Glad you like. They were incredible moreish…No one believes me that this is a word. But it really is!
    Ps Spot the amateur food styling mistakes…I was rushing out the door to catch a flight as I was taking these shots… drip on the plate, unironed place mat, piece of scallion propped up on the tomato like a top hat…they niggle me every time I see that photo : )

  3. Julene Gamble | October 25th, 2011

    Great recipe, i am going to test it with my girl tonight. Hope i get it right! Cheers

Comments