There are certain meals that don’t need a recipe.
They simply need a season.
A season where ripeness triumphs and simplicity matters.
A tomato sandwich is just that kind of meal.
Every August, you will find beautiful tomatoes sitting on my counter. Often, they’re heirloom tomatoes, but not always. The only requirement is they’re large, beautiful, and fragrant.
On a quiet afternoon, I slice one of those tomatoes thickly and retrieve beautiful bread from the pantry. Sometimes sourdough, sometimes a loaf of my favorite whole wheat bread.
All that’s needed is a spread of mayonnaise, thickly sliced tomatoes, and a generous sprinkling of salt and freshly cracked pepper.
And that’s lunch. Simple and easy, the essence of late summer.
This is a meal I dream about in the dead of winter. Or when the first cherry blossoms appear in the spring. Knowing that soon, the timing will be exactly right, the flavor at its peak, for that August Tomato Sandwich.
An Everyday Kind of Summer
As I roam garden aisles or meander through farmers’ market tents brimming with summer’s produce, I’m often reminded that the foods we remember most aren’t always the elaborate ones.
And meals don’t always need to be either.
My fondest summer food moments almost always include corn eaten straight from the cob, berries in the refrigerator, peaches over the sink, and a tomato sandwich made at noon because lunch suddenly seems necessary.
Those moments are the ordinary days of summer.
What are your favorite summer moments?
A Few More Simple Tomato Favorites
If your kitchen counter looks anything like mine this week, here are a few more recipes you may want to try.
Fresh Tomato Salsa
When tomatoes are truly ripe, fresh salsa is an easy way to let them shine. Whether for a backyard BBQ, a simple meal on the patio, or even for afternoon tea. Here’s how I use this recipe for a teatime moment in August:
This salsa is made with fresh tomatoes, peppers, onions, citrus, garlic, and fresh herbs and comes together in about 10 minutes. I love to have a bowl in the refrigerator for quick snacks, chips, taco night, or grilled dinners.
5 Minute Marinated Tomatoes
This little recipe is the one I make most often in my summer kitchen. Tomatoes are tossed with olive oil, lemon juice or vinegar, along with garlic, fresh herbs, and finally, a sprinkling of sea salt. I let the flavors mingle in the refrigerator until ready to use.
Serve alongside dinner, spoon over toast (or crostini), top bowl meals or salads, or just enjoy straight from the dish. They go with almost everything!
Chicken Thighs with Tomatoes & Zucchini
It’s difficult to find an August dinner served at my house without tomatoes in some form. This dinner is exactly the kind of meal this season calls for.
Chicken thighs cook with zucchini, cherry tomatoes (or Sungold tomatoes), garlic, butter, and fresh herbs in one skillet. And it’s ready in about 25 minutes. Add rice, couscous, or some crusty Italian bread, and dinner is served!
Marcella Hazan’s World Famous Tomato Sauce
And then, there is this tomato sauce.
It isn’t dependent on a basket of garden tomatoes; it relies on canned Italian tomatoes, but it belongs to any conversation about tomatoes and simple summer recipes.
Three ingredients: tomatoes, onion, and butter.
That’s essentially it.
And oh my, is it memorable. A slowly simmered sauce becomes something far greater than its three-ingredient beginning. And it remains one of the most loved tomato recipes on 31Daily. Every time I make it, I remember that good cooking doesn’t always require more.
Before August Slips Away
There is still plenty of summer ahead.
While I can’t say I’m not quite ready for pumpkins and apples, and the first chilly evening of fall, because one peek in my dining room would tell a different story.
But I am still thoroughly enjoying these summer days and the ripe tomatoes on the kitchen counter. Not the perfect ones, not the most beautiful I can find. I’m loving the enormous ones that require two hands to slice. The juicy kind that drips and gets messy.
And the little cherry tomatoes that disappear from the bowl every time someone walks through the kitchen.
The kind of tomato that’s perfectly designed for nothing more ambitious than two slices of bread and flaky sea salt.
I hope you find at least one day this month to enjoy a simple tomato sandwich.
With love,
Stephanie
31Daily | At the Table
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