Oven Roasted Tomatoes

I woke up this morning finally feeling a bit better after two days of a strange flu-like stomach bug.  Middle Garcon also got a touch of it 'sans fièvre'... and I must say for a solid 24 hours it felt like d-e-a-t-h...imagine being feverish, in bed with all of the body pains and nausea, dressed in t-shirt, sweater, pants, socks and a scarf, under the covers and for the life of me, I couldn't get warm.....in July. The phrase, 'Just shoot me now' echoing in my head....

Well I think I am back in the land of the living today...maybe well enough to do some cooking.  My mind (in between the feverish delirium of the past two days...) has been on exploring the idea of doing some canning this summer.  Produce is just gorgeous at the markets right now; peaches, cherries, plums, berries and loads of veggies. Petite Fille is starting on 'solids' or mushy stuff--and I have been steaming some veggies for her to try. So far carrots--one thumb up, sweet potatoes--one thumb up, and peas--two thumbs up!

So I thought I would share an easy summer recipe, because if you are lucky enough to have an excess of tomatoes this is a geat way to make them last longer (or not!) and inspire 101 uses for them, and if you don't yet have tomatoes and are stuck with the slightly hard and colorless 'Roma' variety from the grocery store, this recipe will help punch-up the flavor until the vine-ripe yummy summer ones are ready or available.

Provencale Oven Roasted Tomatoes

8 (at least) ripe or semi-ripe tomatoes--any variety
Olive oil
Sea Salt
Herbes de Provence
1-2 cloves garlic as you like
Balsamic vinegar

Set your oven at 325--ish....You can go lower and leave them longer--but if you do around 300 then they will be in there around 2 hours.

Wash and slice tomatoes....the fun part is cutting out the top and jamming your thumbs in to remove all of the slimy-seedy part...beware of getting covered in tomato juice, though.  Lay them out in a dish and sprinkle with about 1 tbs. of oil, 1 tsp. of Balsamic and the herbs and garlic, toss in some salt....toss with your hands and then rearrange the slices in a single layer on parchment paper on a baking sheet.

 Note: I generously use the Herbes de Provence...it's the kind of herb mix that is perfect for slow roasting and only gets more intense the longer you keep the tomatoes.  Careful with the garlic--it can overwhelm the flavor of the tomatoes.

Once in the oven, the tomatoes can go to an almost dry stage...you can leave them for up to 4 hours--but put your oven down to the 200's after 2 hours.  Your house will smell heavenly and the slices reduce down about 50%....when they are done store them in a glass container. If you don't eat them straight off the baking sheet like I do!

Endless ways to eat them---in a fresh herb omelet, on homemade pizza, in a roasted tomato salsa, tossed with pasta, or on a tomato 'tarte' (recipe to follow for that one!)

Oh--it's so good to be back to 'normal'!  Stay tuned for my canning-adventures...I have made jams in the past and some relishes and chutney, but I am going to see what new French-inpsired specialties inspire me!  Suggestions?  ........................

Bonne Journee--mes amis!