Rosemary Tomato Confit w/Torn Toasty Bread

Tomato confit uses a slow, medieval, French cooking technique that turns ho-hum tomatoes into wow-wow tomatoes. It turns up the dial on even average/out of season tomatoes, or is a great way to use up a bumper crop of cherry tomatoes at the end of summer. It makes a delicious appetizer or side any time of the year. Serve it alongside a grilled steak or a hot bowl of soup - you can't go wrong.

INGREDIENTS:

6 cups of cherry tomatoes
6 - 12 garlic cloves, peeled and lightly smashed (optional)
3/4 cup House Blend, Olio Santo or Rosemary EVOO
Several whole sprigs fresh herbs, such as rosemary, thyme, oregano or a mixture of herbs or 1-2 Tbsp Herbs de Provence, North Beach Blend, Napa Valley Blend or Aglio Olio
1 generous pinch crushed red chili peppers
2 generous pinches kosher salt
Fresh ground pepper to taste

1 loaf ciabatta or your favorite bread
Olive oil for drizzling
Maldon Sea Salt flakes for serving (optional)

Heat oven to 275F. Put tomatoes in a single layer in a baking dish. Tuck garlic and whole springs of herbs around the tomatoes, then pour olive oil over everything. Season with crushed red pepper, kosher salt and pepper.

Bake for about 1 1/2 hours until the tomatoes have burst. Remove from the oven and set aside.

To make the torn, toasty bread:

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Tear your loaf into 2 - 3" pieces onto a sheet pan and drizzle with olive oil. Watching closely, bake in the oven about 10 minutes until the edges begin to brown and crisp. Remove from the oven and serve immediately. We love to spoon the confit into a bowl and set on a cheese board with the crispy bread scattered around, and a small bowl of Maldon Sea Salt on the side.

VARIATIONS & IDEAS:

Add goat or feta cheese to the platter or mix chunks directly into the confit before serving.
For a fresher more summery spin, finish the cooled confit with a drizzle of Basil EVOO.
This technique can also be applied to a variety of vegetables including garlic, onions, leeks, chilies and even eggplant.
When you have eaten all your tomato confit please save any leftover tomato and garlic-infused olive oil and juices for another use. This flavor-infused oil is like liquid gold! Add it to soups or toss it with pasta and cheese!
Tomato Confit can be made several days to 2 weeks in advance and stored in an airtight container in the fridge. When ready to use, remove from the fridge and allow to come to room temperature or warm slightly in the oven.

Recipes and photos all by the talented Kim Pawell at Something New for Dinner. She's a big believer of the importance of home-cooked nutritious meals, and sitting down around the dinner table together. She created SNFD as a place to share the dinner recipes that she's prepared for her family for the last 25 years. Kim is also a wall art photographer and donates 10% of profits to World Central Kitchen. Check out her website for more!