Oven Dried Tomatoes

Whenever you’re not happy with some decisions you make, the easiest thing to do is blame it on your parents. Time and time again, I have boldly stated my love and commitment to cooking seasonal, local foods. So you may ask yourself…why I am sharing an oven-dried tomato recipe at the end of April when I live in NYC.

I’m blaming this one on my parents. 😉

I recently came home to Chicago for a visit and wanted to make dinner one night. As I searched through our refrigerator I came across a pack of tomatoes in the refrigerators. My Mom suggested of using them in my dinner. I, of course, shot her the look of disappointment, “tomatoes in April…really?” Nevertheless, they were available so I set out to use them.

The only way to eat to tomatoes out-of-season is to cook them to allow the natural sugars of the tomatoes to awaken, so they don’t taste like bland, acidic, rocks.

Oven Dried Tomatoes

Makes 4 Servings

1 serving = 1 Point Plus

• 1# tomatoes cut into medium pieces
• 1 sprig rosemary, minced
• 1 tsp fresh thyme, minced
• 1 garlic clove sliced
• 1 tsp olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste

Preheat your oven to 300°F. Combine the tomatoes, rosemary, thyme, garlic, and olive oil in a small bowl. Season liberally with salt and pepper.

Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray with non-stick cooking spray. Lay your tomatoes onto the baking sheet making sure there is enough room between each piece of tomatoes.

Allow to slowly cook in the oven for 2 hours. Tomatoes should be caramelized on the outside but still soft and moist on the inside.

I realize that it is extremely difficult to constantly be focused on seasonal ingredients, especially when you in cooler climate places (like NYC, Chicago, or even North Dakota). The most important thing is to buy seasonal and local when you can. It’s not realistic to think people can do it 100% of the time, no one is perfect, but if you can do it once or twice a week it’s a great start for the environment and for your local economy. Even I buy things out-of-season, but for now I’m still blaming this one on my parents.