Ok, this dish didn't actually come out of my kitchen. This photo is from a recent Outstanding in the Field dinner that we attended, prepared by Justin Severino. This soup was described on the menu as "savory watermelon soup & proscuitto with charred San Marzano tomatoes, goat cheese & mint." I don't know what all was in that soup, but it was delicious. I didn't find it especially watermelony - I could taste carrots, and some warm wintery spices - nutmeg maybe? Cream. Whatever he put in it, it was good.
The bowls were brought to the tables with only the garnish, and then the soup was poured in place from pitchers. Because the table was very long, I got a few minutes to inspect that charred tomato before my bowl was filled with soup. It was soft and slightly mushy from the heat of the grill, but still held together. Aromatic - rich warm tomato smell with the slight zing of the char. When I finally got to taste it, it had a richness that balanced the sweetness of the soup perfectly.
Someone a bit down the table from me asked how the tomatoes were prepared, and if I remember correctly, they had had their skins pierced, then were dropped in boiling water to loosen. Once the skins were removed, they were quickly roasted on a hot grill - just enough to char the sugars, but not enough to cook them through. I imagine that only certain varieties of tomatoes would hold up to this treatment, and indeed, San Marzano tomatoes are plum-type heirloom tomato that have a thick flesh and strong flavor, similar to the more common Roma tomatoes but with a stronger flavor.
None of the tomatoes from our garden would really work for this recipe, but I did find an alternate roasted tomato recipe in my new copy of A Year in My Kitchen by Skye Gyngell (of Petersham Nursery outside of London, which I haven't yet visited, but dream of). This is a gorgeous cookbook. The pictures alone make my mouth water, and reading through the recipes I'm overwhelmed by not knowing where to start - I want to try all of them! I need to cook for my friend Vince from this book, just to prove to him that English food can be exquisite, too. There's a chilled almond soup recipe that reminds me of a meal we shared at a favorite local restauant this spring that I think I'll start with. Right, roasted tomatoes. I got distracted there.
Skye roasts her tomatoes similarly to the oven-drying method I used for my little Juliets from the garden, but recommends a larger paste tomato, adds a bit of sugar and shortens the oven time so they are still moist, not fully dried. For her method, halve plum tomatoes lengthwise and place on a cookie sheet cut side up. Mix together equal quantities of superfine sugar, sea salt and freshly ground black pepper and sprinkle over the cut surface of the tomatoes. In a 100-degree oven, roast undisturbed for 3-4 hours "until they shrivel up - their pointy ends turning up like Turkish slippers."
You can see more pictures from this Outstanding in the Field dinner at my Flickr page.
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