Seeing Red At The Farmers’ Markets

From Alejandra Owens. You can find her on Twitter at @frijolita or at her food blog, One Bite At A Time.

I know. You think I’m talking about the heat. But I’m talking about tomatoes. We are slowly rolling into the peak of tomato season here in DC and we’ll all be better for it. Cherry tomatoes, Romas, Heirlooms, Beefsteaks, Red Slicers — you name it they’re out there or they will be soon!

Some quick business before we dive right in: FreshFarm Markets (Dupont is one of them) would like you to take a survey about their newsletter, if you receive it. Looks like they want to make sure you actually find it useful!

Tomatoes By the Boxfull

Also: Let’s say you’re going tomato crazy (you canners, I know you’re out there) and you want to buy the juicy reds in bulk, Robin Shuster of 14 & U Farmers Market has a sale for you! Garner’s Produce is starting their annual sale on 25-pound boxes of field tomatoes. The perfect Primo Reds are $20 a box and the second is $15 a box (that’s 60 to 80 cents a pound!). Email to reserve your box(es) and mention which market will be your pickup (14th and U or Bloomingdale market on Sunday) to [email protected]

Sliced, Diced, Roasted, Canned, Grilled

What to do with a 25 pound box of tomatoes? Well, my favorite preparations include:

• Juicy and raw, eaten like an apple.
• Sliced thickly with equally thick slices of creamy mozzarella and a sprinkle of salt and pepper.
• Diced and marinated with garlic, basil and olive oil for bruschetta.
• Roasted, low and slow in an oven, nearly dried up, with a tart bite.
• Crushed and canned so I can eat them in January.
• Grilled and pulverized with jalapenos for a smokey salsa.

Green tomatillos, garlic, shallots and onions are all out in strength and my oh my if they just aren’t the perfect companion to tomatoes!

Also to be found out there are berries of every sort and every color. Black, red, blue, golden  are all still in season and make a wonderful companion to the quickly going out of season stone fruits like apricots (last week at Dupont) and peaches in a crostata.

So, Borderstanis, will you be braving the heat to hit the markets this weekend? I will! Holler at me on Twitter!