tomato Archives | Fake Food Free

Smoky Tomato Jam

September 25, 2012

You will never hear me use the word guilt in association with food and eating. Personally, I think it is a damaging word that has shaped our thoughts on eating habits, weight and health for far too long.

That being said, I have one exception.

The garden.

When this time of year rolls around and I see hot peppers so heavy on the plant that they touch the ground, and tomatoes that are ripe, but a little ugly, I start to feel guilty. It’s food, I can’t let it go to waste! And while I’m exhausted from thinking of ways to use it, I just can’t leave it out there to rot, or pull up the plants knowing they have some life left in them.

So with a full freezer, I turned to a little more canning this past week.

First up? Tomato jam.

I’d been entertaining the idea of making tomato jam, most of the summer, but never committed. Then I found a recipe from Food in Jars for Orange Tomato Jam with Smoked Paprika. It was the smoked paprika that got me. I love that stuff!

Smoky Tomato Jam Recipe for summer | FakeFoodFree.com

So I gathered up the last of the tomatoes, and got cooking. Our orange tomato plants are done producing, but I still had Better Boy and San Marzano hanging on. They worked perfectly. I also used dried ginger (half the amount) instead of fresh, and skipped the cayenne simply because I didn’t have any dried on hand.

You can find the recipe on the Food in Jars blog. This jam is the perfect balance of sweet, spicy and smoky. Next year, I will be pulling this recipe out early to get a head start during prime tomato season. Yes, it’s that good.

Smoky Tomato Jam Recipe | FakeFoodFree.com

Beer Cheese Tomato Soup Recipe

August 2, 2012

When it comes to soup, tomato is my favorite. Before your mind jumps to visions of cans and concentrates, allow me to explain. Homemade tomato soup with fresh spices, splashes of balsamic vinegar and wines, and olive oil is what I’m talking about. I love it straight with basil, but sometimes I like to get fancy.

Enter beer cheese.

Okay, so maybe it’s not fancy, but it is a Kentucky staple. There is even a festival at which I had the opportunity to judge the competition last year. If you are unfamiliar, there are as many recipes as people who love it. But to simplify, it is cheddar and beer turned cheese spread. I’ve grown to love it, and I can no longer imagine a tailgate at a football game or at the horse track without it.

So when I was thinking about tomato soup for this round of the Tomato Love Recipe Exchange, I first considered beer. Then I considered cheddar. Then, well, why not?

This recipe experiment is a winner. The mild tang of beer and the sharpness of cheddar pop with the sweet tomatoes. I may no longer be able to have tomato soup without beer cheese!

Beer Cheese Tomato Soup Recipe

2015-06-30 09:00:37

Makes: 4-6 servings

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Basic Beer Cheese

4 oz. block of sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
2 tablespoons chopped onion
1 clove garlic, peeled
1 tablespoon hot sauce (I used sriracha)
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
¼ cup beer (any variety, I like to use lagers)

Tomato Soup

1 tablespoon olive oil
¼ cup chopped onion
3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
4 lbs. tomatoes, cored and chopped
2 tablespoons dried basil
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

Instructions

To make the beer cheese, to a small food processor add the cheddar cheese, 2 tablespoons of onion, 1 clove garlic, hot sauce and Worcestershire sauce. Pulse for 10 to 15 second intervals until the ingredients are blended. Pour in the beer and continue to pulse until it reaches a spreadable consistency. Set aside.
To make the soup, in a 4 to 5-quart soup pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high. Add the 1/4 cup of onion and 3 garlic cloves. Cook for 2-3 minutes, until the onions soften. Add the tomatoes. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring often, for about 15 minutes.
Once the tomatoes begin to break down, remove the pot from the heat. Use an immersion blender (or transfer in batches to a blender) to puree until smooth.
Stir in the basil, sugar, salt, red pepper and black pepper. Return to the heat and simmer 2-3 minutes. Stir in the beer cheese. Serve warm.

By Lori Rice

Fake Food Free https://www.fakefoodfree.com/

Thanks for reading! All images and content are the property of Fake Food Free unless otherwise stated. Please do not republish full recipes and images without written permission. What is okay? Feel free to Pin images, share links to my posts or share the photo in a round up post with the title of this recipe and a link back to the post. Confused about copyright and food blogs? Here is some helpful information on Recipe Attribution. If you want to use a photo or full recipe, just ask. I’m sure we can work something out.

Honey Peach and Tomato Black Rice Salad Recipe

July 31, 2012

Don’t let this combination of ingredients scare you! This black rice salad is full of sweet and savory flavors that uses some of my favorite produce of the summer season!

Honey Peach and Tomato Black Rice Salad Recipe | FakeFoodFree.com

If I had to pick my favorite kind of rice it would be sticky rice. Although, black rice, also known as Forbidden rice, comes in a close second.

The idea of even having a favorite variety seems a bit crazy to me considering that five years ago I only knew of two kinds – white and brown. That’s what a little travel and food blogging will do for you. If nothing else, it opens you up to the world of rice.

Rice at a market in Chiang Mai, Thailand

Jasmine, basmati, glutinous, purple glutinous – and those are just a handful of the varieties I’ve been exposed to the past few years. Black rice really stands out among the crowd because of its purple color, and aromatic, nutty flavor.

A sweet and savory snack or side recipe with black rice, peaches, and tomatoes in a honey dressing!

I’ve had some sitting in the pantry for a while, and I finally cooked it up this past weekend. Since, for me, summer is the season for cold grain salads I thought I’d give it a try with some local fruits.

A natural, savory and sweet snack recipe made with black black rice, peaches, and tomatoes in a honey dressing. At FakeFoodFree.com

I matched up the peaches from the farmer’s market with some of the yellow tomatoes that are growing like wildfire in our garden. The nutty rice called for something a little tangy and sweet as the dressing so a little lemon juice and honey did the trick.

Honey Peach and Tomato Black Rice Salad

2018-06-14 11:36:38

Serves 4 to 6

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Ingredients

1 ½ cups chopped peaches
½ cup chopped yellow or orange tomato
2 tablespoons chopped red onion
2 cups cooked black rice, cooled
2 tablespoons honey
Juice of ½ a lemon
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
¼ teaspoon salt

Instructions

In a medium bowl, stir together the peaches, tomato, onion, and black rice. In a small bowl, whisk together the honey, lemon juice, olive oil and salt.
Pour the dressing over the black rice salad and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes before serving.

By Lori Rice

Fake Food Free https://www.fakefoodfree.com/

Honey Peach and Tomato Black Rice Salad Recipe

Honey-Pecan Tomato Tarts with Blue Cheese Recipe

July 12, 2012

This recipe for tomato tarts is one of my favorite tomato recipes of all time. I first made them back in 2012 and I’ve been recreating them since. They are well worth firing up the oven in the summer!

Honey-Pecan Tomato Tarts with Blue Cheese Recipe | Fake Food Free

The tomatoes are finally on in the garden! We’ve had a few setbacks with sun scorching in the extreme heat, but there has been a steady stream on the kitchen counter for about a week now.

The SunSugar cherry tomato plant is doing well this year. As much as I love these little orange gems, I’ve hit my limit for eating them fresh (at least for a couple days). We needed a little variety.

Over the 4th of July, my aunt sent some Georgia pecans home with us. After my husband got them all cracked open, I had 3 cups of fresh pecans that were screaming to be used.

I love the combination of blue cheese, nuts and honey so that inspired mini-tarts using the cherry tomatoes.

Tomato Tarts Recipe with Honey, Pecans and Blue Cheese | Fake Food Free

The blue cheese was the perfect topper to balance out the sweetness from the nuts, tomatoes and honey. If you don’t like blue cheese, feta, or even parmesan, would work well, too.

Honey-Pecan Tomato Tarts with Blue Cheese

Makes: 6 tarts

What you’ll need:

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup minced onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 pint cherry tomatoes
1/3 cup pecans, chopped
1 teaspoon honey
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 9-inch pie crust
3 – 4 oz. blue cheese, crumbled

How to make it:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions and garlic. Cook for 1-2 minutes. Add the cherry tomatoes. Reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring often, about 7 minutes. The tomatoes will begin to burst and the onions will caramelize. Gently smash the tomatoes as they begin to burst.

Stir in the pecans and cook about 1 more minute. Stir in the honey, and the salt. Allow to cool while you prepare the crust.

Roll the pie crust to about 9 inches, and cut into 6 – 3 1/2 to 4 inch circles. I used an x-large muffin pan for the tarts. Place each circle of dough into the muffin tin. Press gently to fill the bottom and to come up about 1 inch on the side. Prick the dough with a fork. (You will likely have a little dough left over.)

Spoon the tomato mixture into each of the muffin tins, filling the crust. Next, divide the blue cheese and sprinkle each tart with an equal amount.

Bake for 20 minutes, until the cheese is melted and begins to bubble, and the edges are browned. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for about 5 minutes before removing from the pan.

Tomato Tarts Recipe with crunchy honey pecans and tangy blue cheese! | Fake Food Free

Thanks for reading! All images and content are the property of Fake Food Free and Lori Rice unless otherwise stated. Please do not republish full recipes and images without written permission. What is okay? Feel free to Pin images, share links to my posts or share the photo in a round up post with the title of this recipe and a link back to the post. Confused about copyright and food blogs? Here is some helpful information on Recipe Attribution. If you want to use a photo or full recipe, just ask. I’m sure we can work something out.

tomato

Smoky Tomato Jam

Beer Cheese Tomato Soup Recipe

Honey Peach and Tomato Black Rice Salad Recipe

Honey-Pecan Tomato Tarts with Blue Cheese Recipe

Honey-Pecan Tomato Tarts with Blue Cheese

Thanks so much for reading!

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