Overabundance!!!

One of my most favorite things about summer is a nice super ripe red tomato. Nothing compares to fresh tomatoes during the summer. Growing up in a largely Italian household tomatoes were a staple at almost every meal - fresh tomatoes in our morning omelettes, plates of cut up thick tomato slices drizzled with olive oil sea salt, pepper and fresh basil and oregano with lunch and of course fresh tomato sauce with roasted garlic.

So far this summer i have already eaten my weight in fresh tomatoes. Between my brothers garden and many friends garden every day i have been given tomatoes and now have quite an overabundance!!!!!

Some fun facts about tomatoes:

1. Tomatoes are actually a fruit - more accurately part of the berry family and not a vegetable!!!

The Supreme Court in 1893 actually declared it a vegetable because it is typically eaten with lunch or dinner!!!

2.Tomatoes are actually the world's most popular fruit - the second is bananas followed by watermelons!!

3. Tomatoes are very high in lycopene - this is what gives them their bright red hue - its the lycopene that helps prevent many forms of cancer.

4. A horn worm can eat an entire tomato plant b

y itself in one day!!!!

5. Americans eat an average of 80 pounds of tomatoes each year!!

Sunday night i decided to make my favorite - fire roasted tomato and garlic sauce which i served over whole wheat linguine and fresh spinach topped with roasted asparagus - here's the recipe - simple and easy!!

Take super red, ripe tomatoes and chop into chunks - i like my sauce chunky - take tomatoes and place in aluminum tin and and drizzle extra-virgin olive oil, fresh ground sea salt, crushed red pepper flakes and sprinkle of sugar. Toss and place on barbecue and roast for 30 minutes - you could also do in oven - while tomatoes cook take fresh bulb of garlic and slice off thin layer of the top to expose garlic - next drizzle with olive oil = wrap in aluminum foil and roast till soft. Once tomatoes have cooked combine garlic with tomatoes and add lots of freshly chopped basil and oregano!!!! Serve over favorite pasta, grain or even pizza!!!

What are your most favorite ways to enjoy tomatoes????? Would love to hear all your ideas!!!

xoxo aimee