So what did I make with those beautiful tomatoes from last Thursday?? Well, I knew that I wanted their flavors to be a huge part of whatever I did. They were too bright and deliciously soursweet to simply become another veggie in the mix. No, these guys needed to be large and in charge of a dish.
On the other hand, though, I didn’t want to just cut them up and add them as-is to a salad. Of course they would have made a splendid addition, but I also felt that they deserved some fun process.
So I decided to make a pasta sauce. But it was hot outside and I didn’t want to simmer and bubble the tomatoes into a hot sauce. Instead, I blended those babies with some zucchinis (to thicken) and spices. It was a cold pasta sauce that I was extremely pleased with. It had a nice kick of freshness that perfectly dressed some simple noodles. In addition, it was the quickest preparation ever. Ten minute meal for sure!
This is the best sauce for a hot evening where the amount of heat generated by a boiling pasta pot is already too much and you just want something cold, fast, and easy. My tomatoes were really juicy and I didn’t need much oil to thin out the sauce, so this is also pretty healthy. (Gotta be healthy when you’re pounding down the pasta haha). Anyways, I’m not a wine-pairer (by any means… I’ve just recently begun attempting to step away from the two-buck chuck display into the $3.99 section of Trader Joe’s), but I had this pasta with a glass of (not so bad, actually) Chardonnay and was pretty stoked.
So go! Find an especially weird looking pair of heirloom tomatoes and make some summer tomato sauce!
Recipe: Summer Tomato Sauce
Summary: A cold tomato sauce that lets heirlooms reveal their fresh, summery beauty.
Ingredients
- 2 heirloom tomatoes (reserve a quarter of one)
- 2 small zucchinis (I used a green and a yellow)
- 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- sprig of dried sage
- dash of black pepper and salt
Instructions
- Chop both tomatoes (reserve about a quarter of one of the chopped tomatoes) as well as the zucchini and then add to a blender.
- Add the olive oil, yeast, sage, and spices.
- Blend until you get a thick sauce. Can add more or less oil/zucchini to either thicken or make more watery.
- Dress your pasta with the sauce and add the extra chopped tomato.
Preparation time: 10 minute(s)
The Drunk Squash
I have a huge tomato garden in my backyard so I have been eating tomatoes with almost every meal! I’ve been hesitant to make my own tomato sauce because of the all time and all the effort involved but these look so easy! I love how it can be made in a blender!
Yeah, it’s definitely a perfect recipe when you don’t feel like spending much time. And I am envious of your many tomatoes! I’ve been waiting excitedly for them in my CSA box