The Tomato Sandwich

One of the very best things about August is tomatoes. 

Sliced in salads, served with fresh mozzarella or  made into sauces, the tomato figures into many late summer meals. But, at our house a favorite  summer lunch is a  fresh off the vine tomato sandwich.

Sliced tomatoes, good bread and a little mayonnaise are all you really need to create a good lunch.

BUT......

Sometimes a look in the garden or refrigerator can lead to more creative sandwich making, with the tomato the star.

Peeling the tomato, if you are up for this extra step, and marinate tomatoes for about 2 hours in a GOOD olive oil, with a little balsamic vinegar, sliced garlic, halved olives, salt and pepper.

Toast bread, rub the toasted bread with a clove of garlic, add the tomato, a few olives and arugula.

A big and delicious flavor!

Another variation is to make an aioli  and to spread that on the bread with tomato, arugula or any green you might have.

Just plain good.

For  a more traditional take on the tomato sandwich...the diner version, add cheese. Cheddar is a good choice going the traditional route, although a good blue or a goat cheese works really well for my liking.

James makes a knock out tonno ( tuna) sauce.

He made one for a veal loaf we had for dinner. The next day he put the tuna sauce on our tomato sandwiches. It was a little messy yet I will say it is my favorite version of the tomato sandwich yet!

Enjoy the harvest!

A Basket of Tomatoes From the Garden (Panzanella Salad)

"The Yellow Brandywine are winning the tomato contest this year," James declared, "and they are much more handsome, remember last summer they were all 'gnommy' and truly ugly."

A basket holds the contents of our lunch and beyond as the tomatoes are ripening at a rapid pace now. The perfectly shaped tomatoes are fit for slicing to create that essential summer treat, the tomato sandwich where two slices of good bread, a touch of mayo and a slice of tomato are all that is required for mid-day eating bliss.

The next day,when the bread is stale, take the perfectly ripe tomatoes, add cucumber, red onion

garlic and a dressing of olive oil and vinegar and there it is, panzanella salad.

My first taste of panzanella salad was in Italy and came by way of Aldo and Daniella Gallo in Panicale.

It was our second visit to Panicale and we were once again renting an apartment from Aldo and Daniella, the beloved owners of Bar Gallo.

We had just arrived in Italy the day before but fell right into it's rhythm. That evening as James and I were just beginning to cook dinner, after an extended sit on the small balcony overlooking the Umbrian landscape with the swallows graceful overhead and sipping an apertivio the buzzer rang. The buzzer, who could that be?

It was Aldo. Aldo with a bowl of Daniella's panzanella salad. How nice was that... and you wonder why we love this small town so much..... this is exactly why. In that bowl was a blend of all the simple elements in perfect harmony forever to be remembered.

Mille grazie!

Since that first taste of panzanella I was captive and have ordered it many times in trattorie in Italy. Making the salad my challenge is to find that balance of flavor and texture in Daniella's salad. The bread in Umbria and Tuscany does not have salt, so that creates a unique flavor, but here in New Hampshire, I find a good rustic bread to use from a small artisanal baker that works well. The only time to make this salad is when ripe tomatoes are available. It will not be the same with those icky, pale supermarket types...don't bother! Good olive oil is also a must.

The recipe requires the best ingredients, the amounts are variable depending on personal taste, size of tomatoes, etc. Everything is more or less to taste.

Panzanella Salad

Day old rustic bread, torn into pieces

2-3 ripe tomatoes, cored and seeded, chopped

cucumber, peeled and seeded, chopped

1/2 red onion diced

1-2 cloves garlic minced

parsley , finely minced

basil, leaves torn for garnish

salt and pepper

red wine vinegar ( about 3 tbs.)

good olive oil ( about 1/3 cup)

Make the vinaigrette.

Place the torn bread into bowl, sprinkle and toss with a little water to soften

the day old bread, set aside. Put the chopped tomatoes in a bowl, add about half the minced garlic, drizzle with a little olive oil, toss and set aside for about ten minutes.

Prepare the remaining ingredients.( If there is any excess liquid in tomatoes spoon it into a small bowl for possible addition to salad later if needed). Add the bread to the tomatoes, add onions, cucumbers, parsley, salt & pepper, toss ingredients and slowly drizzle in the vinaigrette using as much as necessary. Remember, this is all about balance of flavor and texture! Put into an attractive serving bowl and garnish with fresh basil.

The salad is perfect lunch or primi for dinner. How can anyone resist with all these juicy ripe tomatoes hanging around!

The work is not done yet. There are more tomatoes, San Marzanos to be cooked down into sauce and put away for winter dining and cherry tomatoes to be roasted. And then our daughter's favorite, tomato bisque to be made to be served with grilled cheese sandwiches.

Our kitchen is perfumed with cooking tomatoes. Nice!

The Essence of Summer

Nasturtiums and Cherries, Sebasco, Maine

James Aponovich

oil on canvas, 2011

*week # 27

Nasturtiums, cherries, and moist ocean breezes speak of summer. The painting, Nasturtiums and Cherries, was painted by James last summer on a trip to Maine to visit friends in Sebasco. Today feels much the same as I remember that day a year ago.

The Mid-Coast area of Maine is remarkable and has enchanted artists for decades. Countless artists like John Marin, Edward Hopper, Marsden Hartley have found their way up the coast of Maine to capture the raw beauty and life on these rocky peninsulas that into the sea. James found the same thrilling visual attraction to this stunningly rugged place.

James and I spent many summers on the coast of Maine what remains from our experience is a strong connection between time and place. This is where that memory thing 'mnemonics' comes forth connects summer to Maine.

When I look at this painting done at Sebasco it is the sound of the gong buoy I remember.The clarity of blue sky and flowers swaying in the salty breeze and nasturtiums stretched out across the stone walkway with their orange flowers held proud,the smell lobsters steaming and a neighbor appearing a huge bucket of peonies for our table are all vivid images I keep.

Summer memories are found here in our garden where certain flowers whether by color or fragrance, tell us it is summer. Pansies shout out when spring has arrived. Nasturtiums appear as we roll into mid summer and will stay until they have all been cut for vases, salads, as objects for paintings... or until the first frost claims them.

We have tall phlox in our garden that came from our decade ago garden in Maine. The phlox came to our New Hampshire garden, by way of Maine, a gift from my gardening mentor Julia Martin. There are several plants in our garden that were gifts from friends or in some cases that came from a special place, each recalls that place or person as they hold a unique spot in our garden.

The Tomato, an icon of summer.

Garden tomatoes and fresh basil with olive oil from Panicale.

Believe me, nothing is better! One worry though, our can of Panicale olive oil is nearly empty....could that mean it is time to go back to replenish our supply?

There are always tomatoes in the garden, Red Brandywine, Yellow Brandywine, San Marzano, and Sun Gold are just some of the varieties we grow. By the middle of August we are gathering tomatoes daily. The routine of making tomato sandwiches, BLT's, panzanella salad, and tomato bisque is well under way.

There are pots tomato sauce on the stove as the kitchen fills with wafting aroma of tomatoes simmering.

Our year round friend and summer neighbor Judith makes a knockout tomato salad which we adore. It is heaped full with chunks of avocado, blue cheese, scallions and wedges of ripe tomatoes in a perfect classic vinaigrette. It is all about the quality and balance of ingredients.

A salad that says, " it must be August," in a big and flavorful way!

James is in the kitchen right now.... he should be at his easel......but the lure of ripe Roma tomatoes and a bounty of fresh herbs has taken him into the kitchen to roast .

There are times during our short New England summer when it is difficult to sit still; there are the flowers in need of attention, the tomatoes calling to be brought into the kitchen, and the sunlight that beckons us out the door.

Road trips for seaside lunches are a must. Then there are the visits to farmer's markets, we went to one last weekend that sells heirloom Berkshire pork as well guinea hens

(a reminder of what we cook in Italy). I can't forget the frequent trips to Lull Farm to fill bags with sweet corn, cherries, peaches and to eat a freshly picked plum, immediately!

The season's finest combined in all the images, aromas, tastes, people and places

that get stored in our memories as

SUMMER.

Right now....the aroma of roasting tomatoes and herbs has made it's way out of the kitchen and into my studio. Now my only thought is "what's for dinner?"

*The painting, Nasturtiums and Cherries, Sebasco, Maine, by James Aponovich

was done as part of his year long project Aponovich 52.

It was painted for week #27.

WHAT TO DO WITH ALL THESE GLORIOUS TOMATOES....how about a pasta dish we learned in Umbria!

FRESH FROM THE GARDEN

Today's basket includes zucchini, cucumbers and tomatoes. We have been anticipating this moment, the moment when all the tomatoes begin to ripen at once! The basket of vegetables is whisked off to the kitchen where some of the most handsome tomatoes are arranged in a wire basket to become a still life.

Others, we determine, are to made into a sauce and yet others are to be used fresh in some fashion for dinner this evening.

Our garden contains several types of tomatoes including heirloom Red Brandywine and Yellow Brandywine. These are not the most attractive tomatoes but the flavor is superb both for fresh use and cooked. The San Marzano tomatoes are beginning to ripen and should be ready to harvest soon, then the sauce making really gets put into motion.

For dinner tonight tomatoes will be the star of a pasta dish we learned in Umbria . This dish 'Spaghetti Aldo" is named for the person we learned it from.....more on that later.

On to the stove goes a pot of water that we will bring to a boil.

An ice bath is prepared in a large bowl.

To prepare the tomatoes for tonight's dinner first they must be plunged into the boiling water and after a few minutes rescued and refreshed in the bowl bowl of iced water.

This process will make it easy to remove the skin from the tomatoes without cooking them.

Remove core, skin and seeds from the cooled tomato.

.

So, now the tomatoes are ready to create 'Spaghetti Aldo'

We were staying, as we often do, in a small hill town in Umbria called Panicale. Central to activity here is Bar Gallo. At Bar Gallo a day can begin with espresso, a light lunch can be found in the afternoon, a prosecco before dinner and after dinner a 'long drink' or gelato to round out the day.

One rather hot day we were at Bar Gallo for a refreshment, and Aldo came to our table. Aldo is the charming and hospitable owner of Bar Gallo along with his wife, Daniella, whom all know is molto bella! We find a conversation with Aldo always leads us to a local and unexpected place for a great meal or an interesting place to sketch. Aldo speaks Italian and a bit of English, so this recipe is written in our best translation . Aldo begins his Italian monologue for this recipe for using fresh tomatoes with hand gestures that are choreographed to the cadence of his words. We listen carefully. Our Italian, at least mine, is survival Italian, travel, directions,marketing and eating, largely food based, we understood most of what he was telling us. The best part of his description however, were his gestures explaining the seeding and chopping of the

tomatoes, cheese and basil. One hand into the other he mimed perfectly the chopping motion," di,di,di....ze,ze, zeee".

It was mesmerizing!

We think of Aldo and Panicale every time we make this pasta.

Aldo at Bar Gallo

Recipe for 'Spaghetti Aldo'

serves 4-6 / serve at room temperature

1 pound spaghetti ( a good Italian type)

3 cups (more or less) skinned, seeded and chopped fresh ripe tomatoes

2 cloves garlic

fresh basil (a good handful)

fresh mozzarella 8-10 oz.( bufula if available)

olive oil ( a good Italian, of course)

salt and fresh pepper

Freshly grated parmesan or pecorino cheese

1. Prepare the tomatoes ( as shown above), skin, core, seed, then chop.

Put the tomatoes into a bowl.

2. Remove skin from garlic, cut cloves in halves or quarters. Add the garlic to the tomatoes and stir in. (the garlic will be removed before serving)

3. Tear up a few of the basil leaves, the rest ( a larger amount) will be chopped and added later.

4. Add some salt, stir in the cover bowl. The tomatoes should sit for several hours, I find 2-5 hours works well.

5. At some point, after it has been resting for a time, about 2 hrs., drain some of the' tomato water' out of the bowl. Cover and let it continue to rest.

6. About 1/2 before serving fill a large pot with water and add an ample amount of salt, bring to a boil for the spaghetti.

7. once the water is boiling, add the spaghetti. Cook until al dente. ( save some pasta water )

8. In the meantime, chop the mozzarella. Finely dice the basil (rolling the leaves and cutting , then dicing works well).

9. Drain off any excess liquid from the tomatoes ( leaving a little). Remove the garlic pieces from the tomatoes.

10. To the tomatoes, drizzle olive oil, add mozzarella, basil, salt and pepper.

11. When the pasta is cooked then drain it ( remember to save a little pasta water, I often forget!)

12. Put the cooked pasta into a large decorative bowl or platter, add the tomato / cheese"sauce" mixture and gently stir, mixing it nicely with the pasta. Add additional olive oil or a bit of reserved pasta water as needed.

Grated parmesan or pecorino can be sprinkled on top.

Served as a primi (first) course it will serve 6. Serve as a light meal for 4 with some fresh bread and a good Italian wine.

In regards to serving Aldo told us,"non freddo, non caldo", which we translated to mean room temperature !

Fresh ingredients are the key to the flavor of this dish. Simple and delicious!

Dreaming of Panicale

The people of Panicale are warm and welcoming. The landscape is breathtaking. Somehow the wine tastes different there. Imagine sitting on this terrace with a wine from Montefalco while sampling a local pecorino, that moment lasts forever in the memory bank. I go back to those moments often, delicious and lovely.