Tada! My first slicing tomato for the year. Almost two weeks late(r than last year), but still perfect. This was a Black Prince — I made a sandwich with hummus, tomato, and feta on Woman’s Bread. The tomato was pretty sweet, as were the cranberries in the bread, while the feta was (of course) salty — it was a flavour combination I would have despised just a few years ago, but it’s something I enjoy these days.
I heard about green tomato pie the other day (p’raps on Splendid Table?), and I’m definitely going to try that in the fall, when I always wind up with a bushel of tomatoes that have no chance of ripening. Apparently you make it just like an apple pie; a quick search produces a zillion recipes, so I’ll have fun finding the one that sounds best.
And maybe this year, since I have nine tomato plants (and only one of me), I might try making tomato jam. Mayyyybe. I’m not entirely sure I’m on board with that one. Ketchup first, maybe, jam later. For the moment, I’m pretty happy with simple tomato sandwiches!
I don’t think of myself as a ‘serious’ tomato grower (you know the type), but then I think about how much care I give my plants, how I’m a total heirloom snob, the fact that I have seven different varieties (three of my plants are homestarted Brandywines — there’s actually a tenth tomato plant that’s a Brandywine volunteer from last year, but I don’t think it’ll grow fast enough to produce any fruit), the way I keep a mental tally of the varieties I’ve tried and their best uses… and I think I could at least be on the road to being serious about tomatoes. Plus, some of my plants are almost taller than I am now, so that’s got to count for something!
Oh, let’s not kid ourselves. You’re a total heirloom tomato snob, and you deserve to be! Enjoy your delish looking tomato, and I hope you have many more! The green tomato pie sounds divine!