Take it as red; They named a beauty brand Yes To Tomatoes and you can see why: the magic ingredient has a power more than skin deep; FOOD
0 Comments | Mail on Sunday (London, England), The, July 18, 2010
Byline: Recipes ANNIE BELL, ANGELA MASON
MALLORCAN TOMATO TAPAS
The appetiser pa amb oli (Catalan for bread with olive oil) is every bit as fondly regarded in Mallorca as bruschetta in Italy, if less familiar to us. Tomatoes are the essential topping. Traditional Mallorcan bread is neither white nor brown but somewhere in between and naturally leavened. Here I suggest rye or light wholemeal.
SERVES 4
a long loaf of rye bread or light wholemeal see method
1 peeled garlic clove extra virgin olive oil
2-3 ripe tomatoes see method sea salt .
You’ll need the bottom half of a long loaf, trimmed to about 2cm-3cm deep. Heat a ridged griddle over a high heat, and toast the bread on both sides, pressing down with a spatula until it brands with stripes. Give the crumb-side a few swipes with a garlic clove, and coat with a slug or two of oil.
Pierce the top of the tomatoes with the point of a knife, plunge them one by one into boiling water for 20 seconds, then into cold water, and slip off the skins. Remove the seeds and spread these over the toast. Discarding the cores, roughly grate or chop the tomato flesh and mash this on top.
Crumble over a few flakes of sea salt and splash over a little more oil. Cut diagonally into 3cm wide strips, arrange on a plate and splash over more oil. These will still be good an hour or two later.
MALLORCAN METHOD
Select tomatoes ripe to the point of bursting and simply break them open using your fingers, working over the toast. Squeeze the seeds over the crumb, then mash the flesh on to the surface and throw away the skin and core.
SWEET TOMATO AND CHILLI RELISH
One-step oven method – no preserving skills required. Recipe on page 63
TOMATO ICE WITH SEAFOOD
Fashionable in Capri in the1950s, long before Heston’s savoury ices: a small scoop or two of rich frozen soup-come-mousse, with a little seafood on top. Serve freshly churned or within the hour: for the full experience serve with a pile of fragile melba toast.
SERVES 4-6
TOMATO ICE
300g cherry tomatoes
1 tsp caster sugar sea salt and black pepper
200ml whipping cream
SEAFOOD
125g cooked shelled king prawns
80g smoked salmon
2 squeezes of lemon juice
TO SERVE
finely chopped chives chive flowers if available
Puree the tomatoes with the sugar and a little salt in a liquidiser, then press through a sieve into a large bowl