Hope on Remand life after college

Roasted Tomato Caprese – Review

In addition to my job and other hobbies, I very much enjoy cooking and baking.  So, I may occasionally share or review a recipe.  Some of these are good for quick dinners after a long day; others, like this one, require a little more effort.  This recipe comes from Ina Garten, otherwise known as the Barefoot Contessa.  I saw a small portion of her "Oven Rules" episode, which features this recipe, and later looked it up on the Food Network site.

While this take on tomato and mozzarella caprese salad does require a lot of time, most of it is "inactive" - the tomatoes are easy to prepare, but they do need to sit in the oven for quite some time.  The full recipe can be found here: Roasted Tomato Caprese Salad.

I halved this recipe, as I was only cooking for three people and four plum tomatoes per person is a lot when it's just an appetizer.  Usually I follow a recipe to the letter the first time I cook with it, and then make adjustments accordingly, however I did make one immediate adjustment: because I couldn't find six good looking, similarly sized plum tomatoes, I cut the larger tomatoes into thirds, lengthwise.

A sheet pan or jelly roll pan is definitely necessary for this recipe - or anything with high enough sides that the oil/vinegar and tomato juices won't leak off the pan and onto the oven floor.  I found that roasting the tomatoes at 275 took less than two hours in my oven - I pulled them twenty minutes early.  I let the tomatoes cool, sliced some mozzarella, and arranged everything on a plate.  I shredded a few basil leaves and topped the dish, then served.

While this was delicious, there are some changes I would make for next time:

1. I would use smaller, more equally sized tomatoes if possible.
2. I would mix all of the ingredients used on the tomatoes, then pour that over the tomatoes for a more even covering.
3. It may be a good idea to experiment with temperatures and cooking time, as the whole process did take just over two hours.  This is delicious, but currently not a "weeknight dish".