21 Recipes Using Juicy Summer Tomatoes
This summer I threw a tomato party built entirely around peak-season heirloom tomatoes in every color and variety I could find, served every way I knew how to serve them. I grew up in New Jersey, the Garden State, eating ripe seasonal tomatoes from the garden and surrounding farms that tasted nothing like anything you’d find in a grocery store. That early education in what a truly great tomato can taste like has shaped the way I cook.
Here’s what years of tomato eating has taught me: when summer tomatoes are at their peak, the best cooking can be the simplest cooking. From no-cook tomato sandwiches to salads and ways to preserve their flavor, these 21 summer tomato recipes honor the flavor. These recipes include everything you need to make the most of the best tomatoes of the year before the season is gone.
All About Summer Tomatoes
Tomatoes are in season from May to October. While they are best fresh, many varieties are kept in refrigerators and sold throughout the year. New Jersey, where I grew up is known as the “garden state” for a reason. Fresh, juicy tomatoes in all shapes and sizes are sold at farm stands throughout the state.
Tips for Buying Tomatoes
- Look for give. Buy tomatoes that are firm with a slight give when slight pressure is applies.
- Avoid blemishes.Avoid tomatoes with dark spots and marks or blemishes on them.
- Smell test. Tomatoes should smell sweet and earthy. If they don’t smell like much, chances are they won’t taste like much.
- Shape. Irregular shapes are ok!! Some of the best tasting heirloom tomatoes look imperfect but taste amazing.
Types of Tomatoes
Heirloom tomatoes
With their superior flavor, heirloom tomatoes come from seeds passed down and are typically at least 50 years old. Look for a variety of colors. In fact, I always recommend salting tomatoes or marinating them before adding them to sandwiches.
Cherry tomatoes
Cherry tomatoes are a small, juicy variety of tomato with a thicker skin. They are also much sweeter than other varieties of tomatoes.
Beefsteak tomatoes
They are one of the largest varieties of tomato, perfect size for the smashed burger patties. They also have numerous small seed compartments distributed throughout the tomato making them juicy but not watery.
Green tomatoes
Green tomatoes are actually unripe tomatoes! They are picked early and are much more firm and dense than ripe tomatoes and also have a tangy flavor. Sometimes they are picked before they ripen. However, many green tomatoes are ones that did not ripen by the end of the season. Green tomatoes have a slightly tart, acidic flavor. Their firm, almost crisp texture is often compared to green apples. Since they aren’t juicy like other tomatoes, they are perfect for frying.
Recipes Using Summer Tomatoes
From no-cook sandwiches and fresh salads with creamy burrata to roasted tomato pasta sauces and slow-cooked confit, these versatile fruits shine in everything from light lunches to effortless al fresco dinners.
Apps
- Bruschetta – Diced tomatoes marinated in an olive oil and balsamic mixture served over crostini.
- Cherry Tomato “Naked Bruschetta” Crostini – I like to think of this as “naked bruschetta ” because the cherry tomatoes are so juicy and flavorful you don’t need any other flavors, they just enhance the flavors that are already there.
- Heirloom Tomato, Prosciutto and Burrata with Garlic-Basil Oil – This salad combines some of my favorite ingredients into one dish: sliced heirloom tomato – a fresh and vibrant summer staple – blends well with salty prosciutto, creamy burrata and crusty grilled bread.
- Pico de Gallo – I love pico de gallo because it is typically a very mild salsa and it is made with all fresh ingredients.
- Heirloom Tomato, Avocado and Burrata Tartines – The slices of tomato pair perfectly with creamy burrata, slices of avocado, grilled bread, and watercress for a fresh summer appetizer.
- Fried Green Tomatoes with Comeback Sauce – Slices of green tomato are tossed in buttermilk and fried in a flour and cornmeal batter to crunchy golden-brown perfection and then paired with the Southern favorite, Mississippi “comeback sauce”.
Salads
- Heirloom Tomato Caprese Salad with Grilled Bread Use fresh, ripe heirloom tomatoes, good-quality extra-virgin olive oil and aged balsamic if possible.
- Peach and Tomato Mozzarella Salad with Crispy Prosciutto – Slices of sweet peaches paired with juicy ripe tomatoes, fresh mozzarella and crispy, salty broiled prosciutto over wild arugula with a fresh basil vinaigrette.
- Heirloom Tomato & Grilled Veggie Salad with Burrata & Basil Vinaigrette – This summery salad is filled with grilled chicken thighs, squash and tomato with herby basil vinaigrette topped off with creamy burrata over a bed of lettuce.
- Summer Panzanella Salad – Juice from salted tomatoes is whisked into a simple vinaigrette of white wine vinegar, extra-virgin olive oil, Dijon mustard and red pepper flakes and then served with tomatoes, mozzarella, basil and shaved zucchini in this Tuscan-style salad.
- Wedge Salad with Buttermilk Herb Dressing – The reasoning behind the name of this retro-inspired salad is fairly self-explanatory – a head of crisp iceberg lettuce is cut into quarters or wedges and then topped with a homemade creamy buttermilk herb dressing, crumbled bacon bits, tomatoes and blue cheese.
- Tomato Salad with Tomato Buttermilk Dressing – Quartered tomatoes are served in a tangy, creamy tomato buttermilk dressing topped with buttered breadcrumbs and chives. This unique and refreshing recipe is bursting with summer flavor.
Sandwiches
- Heirloom Tomato and Mozzarella Caprese Sandwich – Caprese sandwich with ciabatta bread with fresh pesto, sun dried tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, heirloom tomatoes and sweet balsamic glaze.
- BLT with Spicy Mayo and Avocado – I’ve stepped up this classic recipe of a bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwich with the addition of spicy mayo, spread on the toasted bread, and slices of creamy avocado.
- BLT Bagel with Hatch Chili Cream Cheese – Hatch peppers are in season starting in August through the end of September and their short seasonality leads to high demand meaning that I have to take advantage of the availability of these coveted peppers while I can. This cream cheese pairs so well with juicy tomatoes on a good NY bagel.
- The Best Simple Tomato Sandwich – When tomatoes are this flavorful and juicy all you need is some mayo, herbs, good bread (and my secret, sunflower seeds!). I can’t stop making this no-cook sandwich all summer long.
Entrées (Pizza, Pasta, etc.)
- Sungold Tomato Pizza – The summer pizza worth making — sungold confit tomato sauce, fresh basil, and melted cheese on the crispiest homemade crust you’ve ever made.
- Confit Tomato Pizza with Burrata – This chewy thin crust pizza is served topped with sweet and caramelized cherry tomatoes, roasted garlic, creamy burrata and then garnished with basil.
- Tomato Corn Pasta with Bacon Cream Sauce – For this summer pasta, bacon is cooked in a pan and then the rendered bacon fat is used as a flavorful and rich base which is then emulsified into the cream sauce packed with sweet corn kernels and heirloom tomatoes.
- Confit Tomato Risotto – This version of risotto is filled with cherry tomatoes and garlic slowly simmered in olive oil. As the tomatoes cook and break down, the oil is similarly flavored.
- Creamy Tomato Bacon Pasta – In this creamy pasta, onions and garlic are sautéed in bacon fat and served with red pepper flakes, fresh chopped tomatoes, creme fraiche and salty bacon tossed with wide, flat pappardelle noodles.
- Chorizo Goat Cheese Burger with Tomato Chow Chow – I like this burger because it has a balance of spice from the chorizo, creaminess from the goat cheese, sweet from the tomato chow chow and acid from the pickled pepperoncini.
- Heirloom Tomato Galette with Ricotta and Caramelized Onion – Summer heirloom tomatoes paired with caramelized onions and ricotta cheese wrapped in pastry dough for a savory pie.
- Roasted Cod with Tomatoes and Corn – The cherry tomatoes and kernels of corn are first cooked in the pan before the fish is nestled in and roasted creating a built-in sauce in this one-pan meal that’s buttery, bright, and full of flavor.
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