Eggplant and tomato pasta sauce is a deliciously different recipe to try if you are fortunate to have a good supply of eggplants from your garden (or from the markets). 1.5kg tomatoes 2 eggplants (or aubergine) 2 onions, finely chopped 3-4 cloves garlic, chopped Pinch dried chilli (this is worth adding to give the recipe a lift even if you are not a big chilli fan) Olive Oil 3 sundried tomatoes, finely chopped Splash of wine (whatever you have, optional) Pasta Cut a cross in the … [Read more...]
Easy Tomato Puree Recipe
In this post I share my mother's fabulous tip for how to make a really easy tomato puree, and lots of ideas for using all those tomatoes from your garden. At peak tomato season you often get to a point when you've just got too many tomatoes to keep up with the preserving. You can freeze tomatoes whole - just put them whole into freezer bags (see Freezing Vegetables). This is very quick and easy, but if you have lots of tomatoes then there may not be enough room in the freezer for them … [Read more...]
Crispy Eggplant Sliders
If you are lucky enough to have a good crop of eggplant growing in your garden, then these crispy eggplant sliders make a great simple but tasty meat-free meal. Eggplant (or aubergine), sliced into 1cm rounds 1-2 eggs depending on how many sliders or burgers you are making Sea salt, freshly ground black pepper 1 clove garlic, crushed Panko breadcrumbs (you can use ordinary breadcrumbs but these make the eggplant deliciously crispy) Olive oil Wholemeal seeded bread rolls, … [Read more...]
Tomato Kasundi Recipe
This tomato kasundi recipe is perfect to make with the summer glut of tomatoes that is in full swing at the moment. I'm always on the lookout for different recipes to try and especially ones that take me back to my travels. Tomato kasundi is an Indian condiment - I'm not sure if it classifies as a chutney or a tomato sauce but its rich, spicy, deliciousness is a wonderful accompaniment to a multitude of dishes. Use it with curries, samosas and naan bread, stir it through potatoes or to pep up a … [Read more...]
Tomato and Peach Relish Recipe
Recently I have been trying some variations on my favourite preserves. This tomato and peach relish recipe was a good option as my tomatoes were very slow to ripen this year so using peaches to bulk it out meant that I could make my relish while I was home on a long weekend. 1.5 kg tomatoes, peeled and chopped 1 kg peaches, stoned, peeled and chopped 500g onions, peeled and chopped 2.5 cups brown sugar 1.5 cups vinegar 1 cup sultanas 2 tbsp grated fresh ginger 2 tsp crushed garlic 2 … [Read more...]
Slow Roasted Tomatoes
I love making slow roasted tomatoes when the glut of tomatoes begins in summer. They are so full of flavour and last well in the fridge for up to a week if they get a chance. You can add them to a salad, or serve them as a vegetable (hot or cold) - perfect with barbeques or with eggs for breakfast. Cut your tomatoes in half and put them on an oven tray. I like to line my tray with tin foil to make clean up easier. Sprinkle with salt and sugar - I use less than 1 tsp of each across 12 … [Read more...]
Green Tomato Chutney
This recipe is a great way to use the green tomatoes that are invariably still left on your plants when you want to remove them to plant the winter vegetables. Or, as was the case for me this year, wanting to tidy up the garden before I went on my latest travels. You can scale the recipe up or down depending on how many tomatoes you have. The original recipe started with 5lbs (2 1/4 kg) - I have scaled it down to 1 kg of tomatoes, which gave me 10 of the 190ml jars I regularly use. 1 kg … [Read more...]
Chickpea Ratatouille
Traditional Ratatouille is a famous French vegetable stew made in autumn when the main ingredients (eggplant, zucchini/courgette, capsicum, tomatoes) are plentiful. Purists would make it exactly to the traditional recipe but there are many variations now that people call ratatouille, even versions baked in the oven rather than as a stew. I like to stay true to the original vegetable stew concept but add whatever vegetables I happen to have, such as green beans. Some recipes sauté the … [Read more...]
Tomato Relish
I use the good old Edmonds Cookbook recipe for this delicious tomato relish and am always amazed at how many 'rave reviews' and recipe requests I get. This is the cookbook owned by just about every New Zealander and covers a good range of basic recipes for all occasions. It is regularly updated though so perhaps not all recipes stand the test of time. My cookbook was printed in 1983 but the 100th year edition was published in 2008. We wait and wait for the tomato season to begin, eagerly … [Read more...]
Pruning tomatoes?
This year I had to prune my tomatoes! And I'm not talking about nipping out a few laterals to keep them under control, but full scale pruning. I'm generally not very good with pinching out the laterals anyway and in the past have just put in a few more posts to support the 'branches' and as long as I kept watering I have got bumper harvests. Pruning is not something you usually hear about in relation to growing tomatoes but a very wet December followed by (finally) some nice warm summer … [Read more...]