Make these when you need a starting point that you can easily build and riff from. Obviously any and every tomato is better during peak tomato season which is why it’s included in the list of Low Impact Summer Meals but I make this all year long, using it for lots of dishes. Don’t want to turn on the oven? Roast them on the grill along side whatever protein or grilled veggies you’re doing. Don’t have a grill? You can braise them on the stovetop as well. It might take a bit longer and I haven’t done them that way but (mostly) anything is possible.
This recipe is enough for two separate meals that feed our family of four and easily scales to suit you and yours.
Jammy Tomatoes
24 ounces cherry or grape tomatoes
1 bunch or about 8 green onions, green and whites includes, sliced on a bias in 2 inch pieces
8 cloves garlic, peeled and left whole
1/2 cup olive oil
Salt
Pepper
Red pepper flakes (optional)
A note on herbs and variations-
I am intentionally leaving out herbs during the cooking process because you will want to decide what avenue you’re going to take with these tomatoes and what you want to use them for. I also don’t always add herbs during the cooking process but thyme and oregano sprigs are usually a good choice. You can roast them all on a 9 x 13 unless you want to make two fairly different dishes that don’t necessarily have the same flavor profile. For example, if I wanted to make this recipe to use for the White Beans with Jammy Tomatoes as-is but I wanted to swap the orzo for couscous in the Jammy Tomato Orzo and add preserved lemons and maybe some saffron, I wouldn’t use basil for all of the tomatoes.
Following me?
Think in advance a bit and if you’re like, “I refuse and I’m making everything as listed because I need true Low Lift” simply disregard all this. My point is that you can really treat this as a base to go a million different ways so keep that in your back pocket.
Preheat the oven to 400
Combine all the ingredients in a 9x13 pan. If 1/2 a cup of oil feels like a lot it’s A. for a lot of servings B. the oil with the tomato juice creates a sauce, so keep that in mind.
Roast the tomatoes for 40-ish minutes, stirring and flipping them every 15 minutes or so. They’re done when most of them have all burst and they have some color on them. Once they’ve cooled for about ten minutes, mash the garlic cloves and even the tomatoes with the back of a fork.
Literally, that’s it. I know that not listing the salt and pepper measurements to a T can be frustrating for some folks so take a pinch with all four fingers instead of a “pinch” using your thumb and index finger. Do that twice and you can adjust later if you need to. Start with 4-8 cranks of fresh cracked pepper. This is why tasting your food as you’re cooking is wildly important as you can always add more.
Tada! You’ve just made the vehicle for 2 separate meals.