1 sm Roasted eggplant
4 lg Ripe tomatoes; diced
1 sm Red onion; minced
6 cl Garlic; minced
3 tb Red wine vinegar
3 tb Olive oil
Chopped fresh basil
Salt & cayenne pepper *
* When I made this recipe I subbed fresh ground black
pepper for the cayenne and added a seeded, minced
green serrano for a more subtle heat and flavour - UDD
Roasting the eggplant: Turn on a gas burner and lay whole
eggplant directly on the burner. Yes, directly on the
flame. Turn frequently as the skin blackens, until the
outside skin of the whole eggplant is thoroughly charred.
Remove from heat and allow eggplant to cool. Scrape burnt
skin off the meat of the eggplant. It can be quite soft
and a little messy, so this is best done in a clean sink.
Dice roasted eggplant and put in a medium-sized bowl. Add
tomatoes and remaining ingredients. Toss well. Add salt
and pepper to taste.
Notes: There was considerable discussion of the many
varieties of heirloom tomatoes. Pardon me for preaching to
the choir as I digress for a moment. After WW II, due to
improved transportation, there became a need to develop
tomatoes that would stand mechanical harvesting, green
harvesting, long shipment, etc., and still have a good
appearance as well as a long shelf life. These goals were
met but flavor was not a major consideration and was
largely lost. The result has been a tough skinned fruit
that tends to taste much like the cardboard boxes in which
it is shipped. We all know that home-grown hybrid tomatoes
taste much better than the supermarket cardboard
charlatans.
A sample of the names of heirloom varieties: Abe Lincoln -
Don Podollia's Strain, Akers West Virginia, Amish Paste,
Anna Russian, Aunt Ruby's German Green, Black Plum, Blue
Ridge Mountain, Box Car Willie... Taps, The 1884, Tropic,
Urbanite and Yellow Plum.
This fresh tomato salsa was delightful. The predominant
flavor is a hint of the red wine vinegar but there is
enough cayenne to produce a subtle lingering of heat. In
addition to a red tomato, Tanya used yellow pear tomatoes
in the salsa and the salad.
Roasted eggplant takes on a smoky flavor. The charred skin
is easy to remove. One could also use a balsamic vinegar
in this recipe. The balance of flavors will depend on the
vinegar used and the acidity/sweetness of the tomato
varieties. Add whatever seasoning you like. Could add a
jalapeno and perhaps some sugar if the tomatoes are high
in acidity.
The salsa was served with blue and yellow chips.
This was the last in the series of summer cooking classes
at Tanya's Soup Kitchen in Old Town. The theme was "From
the Garden".
