Tomato Salad with Chick Peas, Feta and Peas

You know all those people whose gardens are loaded with so many tomatoes that they can’t possibly use them all and so give them away?

I’m not one of them. Gardening is not one of my strong points. I get tomatoes from handouts from friends and at Farmer’s Markets.

Still, whether you grow them or buy them, end-of-summer tomatoes are sensational. Sweet, juicy, tasting of earth and sun. Like a real tomato.

I used some of my friends’ tomatoes in salads over the past week. We liked this one in particular.                                                                                                              

Tomato Salad with Chick Peas, Feta and Peas

• 3 large tomatoes, chopped

• 1 cup cooked chick peas (canned is fine)

• 1 cup thawed, frozen peas

• 1 cup crumbled feta cheese

• 3 thick scallions, chopped

• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint

• 1/2 teaspoon zatar

• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar

Place the tomatoes, chick peas, peas, cheese, scallions, mint and zatar in a bowl. Toss the ingredients to distribute them evenly. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Pour in the olive oil and toss the ingredients again. Pour in the wine vinegar, toss and place the salad in a serving bowl. Let rest for about 10 minutes before serving.

Makes 6 servings

Tomato Salad with Spices and Herbs

I’m almost there. My first home grown tomatoes in years and years. I used to plant them, but then the deer and rabbits and other wild creatures in the neighborhood would decide to have a feast of the stuff, tomatoes, leaves, flowers and all. So I stopped planting.

I decided to give it another try. A small garden only: tomatoes, basil and mint.

This year a cute brown rabbit did get to the basil, but so far the tomatoes are intact.

I moved the basil to the top of my grill where the rabbit couldn’t get to it, and that’s a pain in the neck when I want to grill something for dinner, which is often during the summer. But the basil does seem to be coming back, although not yet thriving.

If you ever have the chance to eat a fresh-picked tomatoes, do not pass it up. The fruit is sweet, juicy, natural.

It makes you feel better about the earth. 

Fresh garden tomatoes are best plain. But if you have enough, you can cut them into a summer salad:                                                                                                                                                                                                                             

Tomato Salad with Spices and Herbs

3 cups halved cherry tomatoes

1 tablespoon chopped chives

1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil

1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Cut up the tomatoes and place them in a bowl. Add the chives, basil and mint and toss ingredients to distribute them evenly. Pour in the olive oil and wine vinegar and toss ingredients. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Toss ingredients. Let rest for about 15 minutes before serving.

Makes 4-6 servings

Poached Figs with Apricot and Cinnamon Sauce

Remember a couple of weeks ago I mentioned that I bought some fantastically delicious peaches at Costco? Well, this week I saw a boxful of fabulous-looking, velvety-skinned figs that were so picture perfect that I had to buy them.

Mostly we ate them out of hand. I cut some up for my morning yogurt. I ate one or two garnished with crumbled blue cheese.

The rest? I poached them, reduced the sauce until it was nice and thick, set the fruit up in a pretty plate, added a dab of whipped cream and a sprinkle of chopped toasted almonds and VOILA! a fancy dessert.

So easy.

Here’s the recipe:

Poached Figs with Apricot and Cinnamon Sauce

• 1 cup apricot nectar

• 1 cup water

• 1/4 cup honey

• 1 cinnamon stick, about 3-inches long

• 2 strips orange peel, each about 2-inches long

• 12 large fresh figs

• 1 cup whipped cream

• finely chopped toasted almonds

  Combine the apricot nectar, water, honey, cinnamon stick and orange peel in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring the liquid to a boil, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes. Add the figs and simmer for about 8-10 minutes or until the figs are tender but not overly soft. Remove the pan from the heat. Remove the figs to a dish and let cool. Remove and discard the cinnamon stick and orange peel from the pan. Boil the liquid over high heat for about 5 minutes or until syrupy. Let cool. Spoon some of the cooled syrup onto 6 dessert plates. Cut the figs in half and place 4 halves on each of the plates. Spoon a dollop of whipped cream on top of each fig half. Scatter the nuts over the figs.

Makes 6 servings