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11.12.12 Winter tomato, pomodorini harvest
We selected two types of pomodorini appesi — Italian winter or hanging tomatoes — to grow this season. The Aprile, named after the masseria in Puglia where the seeds came from, are now in their second...
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Spongano: Maritati con Pomodorini e Rucola (Wedding Pasta with Winter...
During our week cooking in Spongano, it was just a short stroll from the door of our kitchen to il fruttivendolo. Towards the rear of the shop, past the taralli biscuits and dried fave, a large array...
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Smoky Tomato and Bacon Chowder
“All chowders were born of necessity. They were invented by humble working people, who made them with local, inexpensive ingredients from the sea or the land.” — Jasper White, “50 Chowders” Most think...
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2.12.13 Winter tomatoes / pomodorini in February
It’s mid-February and we’re down to four trays of the pomodorini or winter tomatoes remaining in storage. The red Aprile were harvested in September, the yellow-orange Ponderosa in early October,...
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3.11.13 Garden beginnings, Part 1
It didn’t seem insane at the time. The way we figured it, you have to start someplace. It was 2008, and, with inspiration from Skippy’s Vegetable Garden, we set up two raised beds and began a...
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4.8.13 Spring Seedlings + Winter Tomatoes
Spring is taking its time arriving, the early occurrence of Easter a false start to the season. There’s very little to forage from the garden, though we found a sprouting onion in storage that we’re...
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4.24.13 Storage Tomatoes + 5 Links
Our Italian winter tomatoes — pomodorini appesi — made it through late-April, when we finished up the last of them. Until then, we’d been enjoying them roasted on pizza, sautéed for pasta, tossed into...
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7.1.13 Days of Vegetables and Roses
A thick hedge of rosa rugosas borders two sides of our vegetable garden. They were already here when we moved in, and, though they’re not thought of as companions, are excellent at attracting natural...
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8.5.13 Mid-Summer Harvest
The beginning of August marks the midpoint between the summer solstice and fall equinox. Known as Lammas or Lughnasa, this is the time when harvesting begins in earnest. Above: Costata Romanesco...
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8.12.13 Hands in the dirt, head in the sun, heart with nature
“The glory of gardening: hands in the dirt, head in the sun, heart with nature. To nurture a garden is to feed not just on the body, but the soul.” — Alfred Austin Spring planting has long given way...
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Cucumber Gazpacho with Shrimp, Basil and Lime
This week’s burst of August heat calls for a bowlful of cool Cucumber Gazpacho topped with a salad garnish of Northern shrimp, basil and lime. Serving as a base, the gazpacho easily adapts to what’s...
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Tiella — Tomato, Potato and Summer Squash Casserole
Tiella from Puglia — Tomatoes, summer squash, sweet onion and potatoes layered with breadcrumbs, pecorino and herbs, then baked until everything’s tender and melds. There are as many ways to make this...
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Putting Up: Tomatoes — Crushed & Sauced
For some, security is having enough jars of strawberry jam, for others it’s having a root cellar full of potatoes. For us, it’s having enough canned tomatoes to fill an entire shelf in the pantry....
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9.9.13 Winter Tomatoes: Pomodorino del Piennolo, Aprile & Ponderosa
It seems fitting on the two-year anniversary of Diary of a Tomato that we return to how it all started, growing winter tomatoes. There are many reasons not to grow tomatoes in Maine. The temperatures...
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Canning it Forward
We take back what we said about growing tomatoes in Maine. After promising to help can for an overwhelmed neighbor, this beautiful basketful was just delivered filled with Amish paste, Rose de Berne,...
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Roasted Ratatouille
A late summer harvest of tomatoes, eggplant, summer squash, sweet peppers and onions were roasted up in individual batches, then gently mixed together, and stashed in the freezer as part of our winter...
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10.7.13 Picky Eaters
There’s very little worse than coming into the garden and finding that deer have been foraging around. The garden gate was left open overnight and, by the looks of things, they took full advantage of...
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Putting Up: Sweet Cherry Tomato Pickles
We made Sweet Cherry Tomato Pickles for the first time last year, and they quickly became a favorite. Juicy, tangy and bite-sized, they’re easy to serve as is or blended together for a quick...
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10.21.13 Pomodorini, Potatoes, and Priscilla Apples
As an Italian friend once remarked, it’s better to have green tomatoes than no tomatoes. With temperatures dipping into the 30′s ahead, it was time to bring in the pomodorini, or winter tomatoes,...
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Christmas Lima Bean Stew
These aren’t the Lima beans we know from childhood, the much-maligned subject of many a dinnertime battle. If you should chance upon Christmas Limas at the farmers’ market, put aside all...
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