I’m happy to report that Food Network’s Summer Fest is back! In the whirring speed of these summer weeks, I missed last week’s zucchini theme, despite the fact that I adore zucchini in sandwiches, curries, pastas, and more. The week before, you may have caught my Summer Fest plum week post about Grandma Esther’s Plum Cake, which keeps so well in the fridge we’re just polishing it off two weeks later.
Today, it’s tomatoes. From cherry tomatoes that taste like candy to meaty red-green heirlooms that need nothing more than a squirt of olive oil and some flaky salt, I can’t get enough of the vegetable that’s really a fruit.
There are a billion tomato recipes on BGSK. I’ll point you to just a few of them. Soon, there will be one more: I’m excited to be working on a recipe for homemade sundried tomatoes, one of my all-time favorite foods.
Another one of those all-time favorites? Raw tomato sauce for pasta. The original no-cook tomato sauce contains just a very few ingredients, and it’s one of my go-to dinners come July and August. Diced tomatoes marinate in lots of olive oil, garlic, salt and some herbs before enveloping hot pasta in the sauce they’ve developed. Perfection.
To that formula, I’ve added a couple of twists today: handfuls of arugula, cubes of avocado, and morsels of fresh wild salmon. A punch of fresh lemon juice helps the ingredients entwine with the pasta, and ta-da, a healthful and original tomato-y dinner is born.
Never miss a recipe or tip: subscribe to the weekly Big Girls, Small Kitchen newsletter, and find me on facebook and twitter. Best of all, buy the book
!
**Recipe**
Salmon Spaghetti with Plum Tomatoes and Avocado
Serves 2, likely with leftovers
This method for cooking salmon comes from Amanda Hesser’s Essential New York Times Cookbook, and it’s genius. Oh, and, I call this Salmon Spaghetti for the alliteration, but I really used fresh linguine.
Ingredients
1/2 pound wild salmon, skin removed, cut into around 2-inch pieces
1/4 cup best quality olive oil, plus more for brushing the salmon
6 Roma or other plum-sized tomatoes, chopped (about 1 cup)
1 clove garlic, minced with 1/4 teaspoon salt
big handful arugula, chopped
juice from half a lemon
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 pound linguine, preferably fresh
1 avocado, cut in cubes
Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add a bunch of salt.
Preheat the oven to 300°F. Place the salmon pieces on a baking sheet brushed with some olive oil. Brush the salmon with olive oil as well. Sprinkle with salt. Cook for 10 minutes, until the salmon is just barely cooked.
While the salmon is cooking, combine the tomatoes, garlic, salt, 1/4 cup olive oil, and lemon juice in a mixing bowl big enough to hold the pasta. Add the arugula, and mix.
Cook the pasta in the salted water according to package directions - just a couple of minutes if it’s fresh. Drain the pasta and immediately add it to the bowl with the vegetables. Toss to wilt the arugula and combine the pasta with the veggies. Now add the avocado and salmon and very gently fold them in to the pasta, trying not to break up the salmon or smush the avocado too much. Serve immediately.
**Summer Fest**
I’ve teamed up with Food Network and a host of other great bloggers to bring you Summer Fest, a season-long celebration of summer produce. Follow the links below to check out what everyone else has cooked up with their tomatoes!
Cooking With Elise: Fresh Tomato Sauce
Jeanette’s Healthy Living: Tomato Gazpacho Salsa
Napa Farmhouse 1885: Tomato Cobbler Anyone?
Virtually Homemade: Spaghetti With Tomatoes, Prosciutto and Fresh Corn
What’s Gaby Cooking: Chicken Kebabs With Romesco Sauce
Big Girls, Small Kitchen: Salmon Spaghetti With Plum Tomatoes and Avocado
Chez Us: Easy Tomato Tart
Made By Michelle: Tomato and Pesto Pizza
Ingredients, Inc.: Lighter Fried Green Tomatoes
Delicious Lean: Creamy Light Tuna Salad Stuffed Tomatoes
Daily*Dishin: Spicy Tomato-Tomatillo Chicken Tenders
From My Corner of Saratoga: Tomato Jam
Dishin & Dishes: Tomato Zucchini Frittata
And Love It Too: Roasted Garlic, Basil and Tomato Paleo Tart
Healthy Eats: The Fresh-for-Once Tomato
Feed Me Phoebe: Roasted Fresh Tomato Puttanesca Sauce
Sweet Life Bake: Pico de Gallo
Zaika Zabardast: Grilled Tofu and Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto Sandwich
Thursday Night Dinner: Tomato and Watermelon Salad
Cooking Channel: How to Prepare Summer Tomatoes
FN Dish: Tomatoes Go Beyond Salads
