Buratta Fresh Mozzarella Cheese

I have been reading about Buratta fresh mozzarella cheese for quite some time from other food blogs. I finally found some at Trader Joe's and brought some home to try. 

Here is Wikepedia's definition:  Burrata is a fresh Italian cheese, made from mozzarella and cream. The outer shell is solid mozzarella while the inside contains both mozzarella and cream, giving it an unusual, soft texture. It is also defined by some sources as an outer shell of mozzarella filled with butter or a mixture of butter and sugar. It is usually served fresh, at room temperature. The name "burrata" means "buttered" in Italian.

Let me just say, the concept and idea of it was  much more appealing to me than the cheese itself.  It was so very bland and the texture was just too mushy for my taste.  The Husband wasn't thrilled with it either.  It came in two 4 ounce balls and we still have one left.  It has a very short shelf life due to its freshness.  I was lucky to be given some beautiful Roma tomatoes (along with pears and apples) from a co-worker's garden, so another salad Caprise will be in order later in the week.  I'm glad I tried this cheese, but in the future I'll stick to the basic fresh mozzarella.

Salad Caprese, Part Four

Each year since I started my blog, I've put together some combination of my favorite summer salad, Caprese.  This year it makes its appearance as a very easy to put together appetizer I recently took to a barbeque.  I found some wonderful long toothpicks at an Asian store and simply alternated yellow and red cherry tomatoes along with a half small ball of mozzarella cheese and a basil leaf.  I combined 1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar with 1/2 cup of good olive oil and some salt and pepper to taste and drizzled if over the plate of appetizers.  It turned out to be a beautiful plate of summer!  I've also included some lovely sights from my brother and sister-in-law's wonderful yard where the barbeque was held.

Heirloom Tomato Soup

I just have to make recipes right now to use up the bounty of tomatoes coming from our garden.  With many, many days of 85-95 degree weather in the middle of September, the tomatoes have decided to ripen all at once.  The picture below is one Sunday morning's harvest.  As there are just The Gardener and The Cook  in our home, I look for recipes that will freeze for the future and this fits the bill.

This recipe comes from Lynne Rossetto Kasper's wonderful site for her radio show on PBS called The Splendid Table.  If any of you foodies out there haven't discovered her weekly hour long radio show devoted to all things good in food and wine, you must tune in.  Of course
it's available to download via podcast so there is no excuse not to listen.  It is informative, inspirational for cooks, and often amusing. 

I used all yellow heirloom tomotoes and I opted not to serve this soup with the heavy cream called for.  I wanted to savor the wonderful, pure taste of tomatoes and basil in soup form.  Very delicious!

Heirloom Tomato Soup

Extra virgin olive oil
3 medium onions, chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 large cloves garlic, minced
Pinch hot red pepper flakes
1 generous tablespoon tomato paste
2-1/2 to 3 cups chicken broth (homemade preferred, but low sodium canned works, too)
A big handful fresh basil leaves, torn
15 medium or 10 large delicious ripe tomatoes, cored and coarsely chopped (do capture their juices for the soup)
1 cup whipping cream for serving

Generously film the bottom of a 12-quart pot with olive oil. Set over medium high heat. When warm, add onions and about 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onions start to color.

Stir in the garlic, red pepper, and tomato paste. Cook 1 minute. Add broth, basil, and tomatoes. Bring to a lively simmer, cover the pot, and cook 15 to 20 minutes, or until tomatoes are softened and soup tastes fresh, but mellow. Adjust seasonings to taste.

Once soup has cooled, puree two-thirds in a blender or food processor. Rewarm or serve close to room temperature. The all-important finish is stirring a generous tablespoon of cream into each bowl.  This soup freezes well without the cream.  Serves 6-8.

Tomato Caprese, Part Three

Each year I have had this little blog of mine, I have done a recipe at the end of the summer involving a take on the Italian classic Tomato Caprese.  Year one with my sorrowful lack of knowledge about how to use my camera gave you this example.  In year two I learned how to use the vivid colors feature and the zoom lens and created this plate of goodness.

This year I must carry on the tradition but I added a twist and made a wonderful hot pasta dish with all of the components of a Tomato Caprese salad.  I must confess that not all of the tomatoes this year were from our garden but  the yellow and red ones were, as was the basil.  A most delightful and very quick to put together supper.  Here is how it's made as best as my memory serves me as I had no recipe.

Tomato Caprese Pasta

12 oz. dried pasta (choice of shape is optional)
1 container of small mozzarella balls, cut in half
1/4 cup good olive oil
2 cloves of garlic sliced finely
3-4 medium tomatoes, cut into small pieces
10-12 basil leaves, finely chopped
salt and pepper to taste

Put pot of salted water on to boil for the pasta.  Gently heat up the olive oil in a saute pan.  Add the garlic and watch carefully so it doesn't burn.  As soon as it starts to color, add the tomatoes and turn the heat down to low.  Cook the pasta.  When done, drain and put in large bowl.  Toss in the tomatoes, garlic, and oil along with the cheese and basil leaves.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Serve along with some Italian bread.  Enjoy.  Makes 4 servings.

Salad Caprese, The Sequel

This is my favorite summer time treat (besides ice cream!)  Tomatoes fresh off the vine (not ours unfortunately, this year), fresh mozarella cheese, basil and splashes of good olive oil and balsamic vinegar, seasoned to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper.  The classic Italian Salad Caprese. 

It is so simple with such a small number of ingredients yet the finished dish is ever so satisfying.  The Italians are very good at putting together recipes like this.  I have blogged this salad before here, but I'm particularly pleased with this version using heirloom tomatoes.  I just think they're gorgeous.

A Perfect Appetizer

We are harvesting the last of the beautiful tomatoes and basil from our garden and I wanted to make something different with the tomatoes. I had some puff pastry in the freezer which I have used to make apple tarts and today I made a savory tomato, goat cheese and caramelized onion tart. I remember seeing Ina Garten make something similar to this and I have to say, it's a great, elegant and easy appetizer.

There is some prep work involved like caramelizing the onions. To do this, I just sauteed the onions in olive oil, a splash of white wine and some seasoning until they were perfectly browned and caramelized. You also have to make sure your puff pastry is thawed and rolled out to about 1/8 inch thick. I cut mine into 3 inch circles using a small saucer as a guide. You also have to make a cut around the pastry at 1/4 inch around the outside edge, but be careful not to go all the way through the pastry. This allows a rim to rise above the tart as it bakes.I picked up some goat cheese that was flavored with sun dried tomatoes and basil which was a perfect addition to this tasty dish. Wouldn't this be a sophisticated first course for a sit down dinner?Tomato, Goat Cheese and Caramelized Onion Tart

(Makes 4-5)

1 sheet of puff pastry thawed and cut into 3 inch circles, scored 1/4 inch around each diameter

2 medium size tomatoes, cut into 1/4 inch thick slices

1 large onion, sliced thin

2 Tbsp. olive oil

2 Tbsp. white wine

1/2 tsp salt

1/8 tsp pepper

1/8 tsp dried Italian herbs

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded

2 ounces crumbled goat cheese

2 Tbsp shredded fresh basil leaves

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line one baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

Saute onions in olive oil and white wine until caramelized, adding salt, pepper and Italian herbs half way through their cooking time. Cut puff pastry into 3 inch circles, score and place on baking sheet. Sprinkle 1 tsp. of Parmesan cheese inside the scored circle of each tart. Add a thin layer of caramelized onions, then a sprinkle of goat cheese, then two tomato slices, then some basil and more Parmesan cheese on top. Bake for 20-25 minutes until the pastry is golden brown. Serve warm.

Perfect Specimens

The first tomatoes from our garden are perfect specimens. They are nearly flawless and such a beautiful color. These ones are called Carolina Golds. I happened to be reading Martha Stewart's blog (I'm helplessly devoted to her), and she posted this yesterday regarding her tomato plants at her New York estate. Now I know Mother Nature has total control over things like blight, but I think The Husband's green thumb is what makes our crop so successful.

Cherry-Poppin' Tomato Sauce

The Husband tore down the garden on this gorgeous Fall day and there was still an amazing quantity of produce left on the vines to deal with. The corn on the cob was blanched, thrown in ice water for a few minutes, wrapped individually in plastic wrap and then put in freezer bags for the deep freeze. These lovely ears will be enjoyed in the dead of winter and we will remember our bountiful garden in the summer of 2008.

Above: Corn fresh from the garden.
Above: Corn in their blanching bath
Above: All wrapped up and ready for the freezer

As for the many cherry tomatoes, I opted to roast those and they too will be frozen and enjoyed later in the year when we are facing day after day of gloomy weather and there won't be a decent tomato anywhere to be found. I wish I had smell-o-computer so you could all enjoy the aromas in my house right now. The garlic and spices have permeated every corner of every room and it's divine. This sauce will be so delicious mixed with a delicate angel hair pasta, a few sprigs of fresh basil and some generous shavings of Parmesan cheese. We might not be able to wait until winter to devour this creation!

Cherry-Poppin' Tomato Sauce

5 cups cherry tomatoes

4 cloves finely minced garlic

4 Tbsp. olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Italian Seasoning to taste

Chili Pepper flakes to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Wash and take stems off cherry tomatoes. Put in single layer in a baking dish. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, Italian Seasoning, chili pepper flakes and minced garlic. Pour olive oil over all of the tomatoes and gently toss with a spatula.

Bake in oven for 45 minutes. Let cool completely. Put in freezer bags or eat immediately as a sauce with pasta. This would also be good over toasted Italian or French bread slices.

Big Boys

The Big Boy tomatoes are finally ripening and we must get them picked soon as the rains have begun and Fall is definitely in the air. I picked a dozen or so of these big red beauties today and shared some of the harvest with the nice neighbor lady next door along with some basil. With the rest I decided to try my hand at a stuffed tomato to go along with tonight's pasta dinner.

I recently read this recipe and thought it sounded interesting and the nice thing was that I had all of the ingredients in my cupboards so didn't need to make a trip out for anything. It was extremely easy to put together and as it was cooking for 75 minutes, the house was filled with the perfume of garlic and onions. After cooking, they weren't the most attractive dish I've ever seen, but they are extremely flavorful and a great way to use ripe, big tomatoes from your garden or the farmers market. Give it a try.

Risotto Filled Baked Tomatoes

4 large tomatoes

1/2 cup yellow onions finely diced

1 finely minced garlic clove

Olive oil (Approximately 3 Tbsp)

1/2 cup Arborio rice

1/3 cup water

5 fresh basil leaves

salt

Seasoned bread crumbs

2 Tbsp finely grated Parmesan cheese

2 medium Yukon gold potatoes, sliced into 1/4 inch thick rounds

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Cut the tops off of the tomatoes and gently scoop out their insides, flesh, seeds and juice and put in a bowl. Chop up any of the bigger tomato flesh. Set the hollowed out tomatoes into a lightly greased baking dish.

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, warm up 2 Tbsp olive oil. Add the onions and cook until translucent. Add the garlic and saute a few seconds until you can smell it. Add the rice and saute for 2 minutes. Add the tomato juice, flesh and water and the basil leaves torn into small pieces and a pinch of salt. Stir. Reduce the heat slightly, cover the pot and simmer for 10 minutes.Spoon the rice mixture into the tomato shells. Top with a generous sprinkling of breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese which have been mixed together. Arrange the potato slices around the tomatoes. Sprinkle everything with olive oil, making sure the potatoes are well coated on both sides. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Cook for 15 minutes to allow the juices to settle then serve.