Reap the rewards of a bountiful harvest and savour the flavour of Simple Roasted Tomatoes.
This year we have been truly embracing the wonderful harvests at the local Farmer’s Markets. Such awesome fresh produce has made it so easy to get into the “Feild to Fork” culture. I only wish that we could have this luxury all year long, but unfortunately soon enough the market’s will come to an end and I will have to rely on the grocery store. I don’t know about you, but nothing beats FRESH from the farm!!
We use a lot of tomatoes in this house. Pasta sauces, pizza sauce, chilis and soups are just a few ways they make their way into my dishes. I use very few items from cans in my kitchen, but I do purchase canned tomatoes. They usually are packed in a way that they do retain flavour. However….if you really want to have totally awesome tomatoes…ready for your very special creations, these Simple Roasted Tomatoes are just what you are looking for. Intense, robust flavour with very little effort.
Really this is so simple…the oven does all the work….and your house smells like a little country kitchen in the heart of Italy. I totally love the smell of garlic so I was in heaven for the few days these gems were roasting away in my oven. You can find lots of complicated versions of roasting tomatoes, but I just thought “How would my Baba do it?”. I mean she did have 7 kids and a farm to run. Making all food from scratch, canning, preserving….seriously she didn’t need any complication in her life. So as I thought of her and remembered some of the wonderful smells that came out of her kitchen…Simple Roasted Tomatoes were in honour of all her hard work to feed her family wonderful, nutritious, awesome food.
Before it’s too late, head over to a local market and get yourself a box of tomatoes. I used Roma tomatoes, but really any tomato will do. Other varieties will have more seeds, more juice…but there is not a wrong decision here so choose your favourite.
Now comes the hard part (but I don’t mean that….it is so freaking simple). Wash the tomatoes, cut them in 1/2 or 1/4 depending on their size. Put them in a baking dish (make sure it has a rim…or you will have juice running into the oven). Be sure not to crowd the dish as you want the tomatoes to have room to be able to get lots of heat around them. Generously coat them with olive oil. Throw in some sliced fresh garlic, season with salt and pepper….and I also added some Italian Seasoning (Silk Road is my favourite spice company). Give this a stir. Place them in a 350º F oven for 2 hours!! Every now and then, as you take in the wonderful aroma of these roasting away, give them a stir.
That’s it…see told you it was simple. When they cool, place your desired amount into freezer bags and enjoy all winter long. Nothing fancy or complicated. Taking the time roasting your tomatoes is so rewarding. Your family will love you for it…trust me.
For other wonderful tomato dishes check out these great recipes:
Spicy Beluga Pasta Sauce with Mushrooms and Wine
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Simple Roasted Tomatoes
Ingredients
- Box of farm fresh tomatoes
- Head of fresh garlic
- Olive oil
- Salt & pepper
- Italian Seasoning
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350º F
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Get a RIMMED baking dish
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Wash tomatoes and cut into 1/2 or 1/4 depending on the size
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Place in baking dish (DO NOT crowd)
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Generously coat with olive oil
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Add slices of fresh garlic
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Season with salt and pepper
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Add 1 tsp. Italian seasoning (optional)
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Roast for 2 hours....stirring several times during roasting
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Cool
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Place desired amount into freezer bags. ENJOY!!
Recipe Notes
For other great tomato recipes try:
Fresh Tomato Puttanesca Sauce
Spicy Beluga Pasts Sauce with Mushrooms and Wine
I love roasting tomatoes. The flavour is just amazing and they are so handy to have on hand for all sorts of wonderful recipes, or just to serve simply on toast with a drizzle of olive oil and some fresh herbs!
That is so true….this was the first year I have done this. I truly loved the smell of the garlic cooking…it actually helped my cold at the time.
You just can’t beat homegrown tomatoes or getting them from the local farmers’ market. This is one of my favorite things to do with them!
This was actually the first time I did this…it was soooooo easy and the house smelled wonderful!!
So much flavour in roasted tomatoes. I never thought to freeze them! Brilliant tip, thank you.
Thanks…give it a try…sooooo easy!!
You’re making me wish I had done this now! Every year I swear I’m going to roast some tomatoes to tuck away in my freezer for a bleary winter day and always end up eating them all fresh. They’re hard to resist, but oh-so-good when roasted. .
I know…it was the first time I actually did it myself…so easy…so yummy!!
How easy is this!?!? Definitely going to whip up a big batch to freeze!
I know…so easy it’s crazy!!
Great idea with preserving the tomatoes. For some reason I always thought that preserving tomatoes would mean making and canning sauce, but your way is so much easier!
I know right….my mom always did it the hard way. Me…I look for easier and for this I think tastier ways!! The oven does all the work…you reap the rewards.
Yum! They look so caramelised, the flavour would be divine!
Yes roasting brings out such a wonderful robust flavour!!
This is a great idea to prepare large batch and freeze them! so much healthier than the canned one. Lovely pics too 🙂
This was the first time I did it. No effort at all really….awesome results!!