Hey All!

As we look around this first week of August, a few things are quite apparent: the weather is hot, the sun is shining, and we are knee deep in tomatoes. Although the heat can be oppressive and at times downright frustrating, you gotta' embrace the upside, which is that summertime crops love it! This heat is how we are able to grow such an abundance of crops like tomatoes and melons. Our cherry tomatoes are producing like crazy out there, and we are having a great time hearing back from all of your who have written, emailed, and called us to let us know how much you are enjoying the new recyclable cherry tomato pint container, and of course the tomatoes inside the box. Cherry tomatoes are great fun because they make such a delicious little snack just as they are. But what happens when you are 5 pints in and are bored of eating them raw and want to get a little creative? Well today we have a very simple recipe for you to try out to up your cherry tomato game in the kitchen. It only requires a pint of cherry tomatoes, some olive oil, and some basic spices including salt and pepper. You can use the final product as a topping for pastas, salads, together with other vegetables in a saute, on top of eggs in the morning, on tacos, in salsas, etc. These broil-roasted little guys taste like summery heaven, sweet and savory! Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 1 pint - cherry tomatoes (medley if possible)

• 1 Tbl - olive oil

• 1/4 tsp - salt (something like Maldon sea salt flakes are a great consistency for this recipe)

• 1/4 tsp - black pepper

• (Optional) pinches of other spices like cayenne, paprika, dried oregano, garlic powder, etc.

Supplies:

• Oven or toaster oven with broil function

• rimmed sheet pan

• parchment paper

Directions:

1. Turn broiler on high setting in oven or toaster oven

2. Rinse cherry tomatoes and drain water

3. Slice cherry tomatoes lengthwise to halve them (slice the opposite direction on halves to quarter them if you are working with bigger sized tomatoes)

4. Arrange tomatoes on parchment paper lined pan

5. Drizzle olive oil over cut cherry tomatoes so that most tomatoes have some oil on them

6. Sprinkle with the salt and pepper over all tomatoes

7. Add additional spices if desired (see above)

8. Put pan in the over for about 15-20 minutes checking periodically to make sure they don't burn. You are looking for a little brown color, but most obvious will be the change in shape and texture as they broil. *See below for alternative baking method.

9. After about 20 minutes, take the pan out of the oven and let cool for 10 min before touching

*If you would rather bake than broil the tomatoes, roast them for about 20-25 minutes at 400 degrees until they are well blistered and beginning to burst

**Optional toppings: before mixing the broil-roasted tomatoes with anything, another fun addition is to add some chopped, fresh herbs to the mix. You can throw the tomatoes in a bowl and toss with the herbs. Complimentary herbs can include fresh basil, oregano, chives, cilantro, lemon thyme, etc.

Enjoy, and let us know how you end up using your broil-roasted cherry tomatoes!