There’s nothing better than a tomato straight off the vine. They remind me of my childhood, standing in the yard with my dad, each with a big juicy tomato in one hand and a salt shaker in the other hand. We’d polish off tomatoes, one after another, with juice dripping down our arms and off our chins.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Tomatoes from the grocery store just are just not the same. They lack the flavor and texture of the home-grown varieties. So, when summer comes to an end, I sadly say goodbye to my tomato plants and silently hope that I’ve canned enough tomatoes to last me through the winter season.
Now that it’s fall, I’ve pulled the last of my tomatoes off my vines saving them from the rains that split their skins and the heavy frost that will eventually kill the plants. Bowls of tomatoes now crowd my kitchen and, to my husband’s chagrin, are calling in the fruit flies. So, it’s time to make a batch of my Roasted Tomato Pesto. This dip is really good on sliced artisan bread, topped with fresh mozzarella, or as a sandwich spread, or dip for fresh or roasted vegetables.
To make this pesto, preheat the oven to 400 deg F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Wash 3 pints of cherry tomatoes and place on baking sheet with 2 teaspoons of olive oil and a ½ teaspoon of salt. Roll the tomatoes through the olive oil and salt so that they are well coated. Roast the tomatoes for 30 minutes. When the tomatoes come out of the oven, toss the hot tomatoes with four cloves of minced garlic and let the mixture cool.
While the tomatoes are cooling, wash 1 cup of fresh basil and add to a food processor along with a ½ cup of raw almonds and 2 ounces of Parmesan cheese. Process the ingredients until well chopped, scraping down the sides as you go. Next, add cooled tomatoes, 1 tablespoon of red wine vinegar, 1 teaspoon of salt and ¼ cup of olive oil and process again until smooth. If the tomato mixture is too thick to blend easily, add up to ¼ cup of cold water to the pesto. You want the pesto to be on the thick side, so do not add too much water.
Serve pesto with slices of bread, topped with fresh mozzarella, or as a sandwich spread, or dip for fresh or roasted vegetables.
Roasted Tomato Pesto
Ingredients
- 3 pints cherry tomatoes
- 2 tsps. + ¼ cup olive oil, divided
- ½ tsp + 1 tsp salt, divided
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 1 cup fresh basil leaves
- 2 ounces Parmesan cheese
- ½ raw almonds
- 1 tbsp. red wine vinegar
- ¼ cup olive oil
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 deg F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Wash cherry tomatoes and place on baking sheet with olive oil and salt.
- Roast the tomatoes for 30 minutes
- When the tomatoes come out of the oven, toss the hot tomatoes with four cloves of minced garlic and let the mixture cool.
- While the tomatoes are cooling, add basil, raw almonds and Parmesan cheese to food processor. Process the ingredients until well chopped, scraping down the sides as you go.
- Next, add cooled tomatoes, red wine vinegar, remaining salt and olive oil to food processor and process until smooth.
- If the tomato mixture is too thick to blend easily, add up to ¼ cup of cold water to the pesto. (You want the pesto to be on the thick side, so do not add too much water.)
- Serve pesto with slices of artisan bread, topped with fresh mozzarella, or as a sandwich spread, or dip for fresh or roasted vegetables.
