Still with Sophie Grigson today but a little further back in time.
Sophie’s Table was published in 1990 (although the nautical stripy T shirt and hair styling of the cover photo sing 1980s Bananarama).
Eggs and Fish feature today. I don’t connect fish and tomatoes (even a fish finger sandwich seems better suited to mayo) but am slowly being brought round.
This sauce for grilled, fried or poached fish reads like a summer wake up call. Maltese Tomato and Caper Sauce. Onion, garlic, olive oil base with peeled and seeded fresh tomatoes and tomato paste. Brought to life with the zing of capers, fresh mint, lemon juice plus zest.
For grilled meats or hot pasta – Raw Tomato Sauce. Onion, skinned and seeded tomatoes, garlic and basil leaves; all finely chopped and mixed with olive oil and lemon juice.
Whiting and Tomato Gratin is a little more homely. Whiting fillets, finely chopped shallots, skinned and roughly chopped tomatoes and thyme, laid in an oven proof dish and covered with double cream and grated cheddar, before going to bubble and brown in the oven.
Far from home comes Tomato Bredy, a Cape Malay recipe from South Africa. Cooked for 3 hours this is a stew made with equal parts (1kg each) onion, skinned and chopped tomatoes and oxtail and flavoured with bay leaves, chillies, cinnamon sticks and garlic.
Too exotic? I prefer stirring a Tomato Risotto into being. Along with stuffed tomatoes (and there’s an overlap) I think tomato and rice is a good kitchen duo to work with this year.
My forensic examination of the stuffed tomato detects a 3 way split:
- Use only the tomato shell (& lid)
- Use the shell (& lid) and some of the flesh, chopped up as part of the filling
- Cut the tomatoes in half horizontally and pile the stuffing/topping onto each tomato half before baking
Here Baked Tomatoes are the latter. A mix of breadcrumbs, parmesan, thyme or marjoram dotted with butter make a crunchy topping.
Similarly simple but rich – Tomato Polonnaises. Finely chopped shallot sautéed in butter. Add halved tomatoes, cook and pour in some double cream. Like the shirt of the Incredible Hulk, I can see torn hunks of crusty bread mopping up the tomatoey cream juices.
As I can for Huevos A La Flamenca. First sautéed and simmer a fiesta of onion, garlic, parsley, ham, tomatoes (skinned and chopped), green beans, chorizo, peas and paprika. Once cooked, this happy mix is transferred to an ovenproof dish, eggs cracked over the top and the whole dish cooked in the oven.
Or if that has too many notes try Baked Eggs with Tomato and Mozzarella. A mix of cubed Mozzarella, skinned and seeded chopped tomatoes, finely chopped shallots, marjoram and olive oil put into an oven proof dish. Again as a bed for cracked eggs, with the whole dish cooked in the oven but this time in a bain-marie.
( And in an odd twist of music inspired synchronicity, the book also contains a recipe for Bananes Gratinees. Bananas gently fried in butter , sprinkled with paprika and baked in the oven with a breadcrumb and grated cheddar topping. Could have this have been the tousled trio’s top tour rider dish ?)
