around town - water mill	« life & style
Added: September 2, 2008, 11:20 am	Share    Print    Email

It is a fruit or vegetable? When it comes to tomatoes, that's the eternal debate but it always ends the same, deliciously, especially if you've picked up some of the East End's finest, picked fresh early on a sunny day from any number of local farmstands.

Galette of White Peaches and Tomatoes

When looking for the 'perfect' tomato look for great color that is slightly firm as they will ripen sitting on a windowsill in the sun for a day or so. Size, shape, and color is up to you, and you can find great variety these days with colors ranging from red, yellow, orange, green, and even striped. I tend to look for something that will make my everyday menu extraordinary.

Yellow tomatoes, thick slices of fresh mozzarella cheese, and salty prosciutto drizzled with a little balsamic vinegar and olive oil is truly delicious for lunch. Green tomato and pineapple salsa with corn chips is a tasty snack, sweet and tangy - it's a true crowd pleaser. Large tomatoes make tasty cups when filled with lobster salad. Tiny grape tomatoes are another great snack sprinkled with salt and pepper. Easy and inexpensive and packed with vitamins and antioxidants, tomatoes are a truly super vegetable (or fruit).

Recently I came across a most beautiful book written by Amy Goldberg, "The Heirloom Tomato: From Garden To Table." A complete guide to everything you ever wanted to know, and were surprised to discover, about the tomato. From expert gardening tips such as using only lukewarm water on seeds and seedlings to a selection of mouthwatering recipes - classics like gazpacho, fried green tomatoes, and ketchup as well as nouvelle creations such as baked black cod with tomato butter and a galette of white peaches and tomatoes - Goldman covers all the bases in a manner that's both authoritative and down to earth.

Here's one of my favorite recipes from "The Heirloom Tomato: From Garden To Table" that combines two of this season's most delicious finds - tomatoes and peaches.

Galette of White Peaches and Tomatoes
Yield: Eight Portions

Crust:
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons sugar
½ teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) cold butter cut into ¼ inch cubes
4 tablespoons ice water

Filling:
4 medium-sized white or yellow peaches, peeled
6 small white peach (or light yellow) tomatoes
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons sugar
4 ½ tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons melted butter

Put it all together:

 • Make the crust. Place the flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor and pulse to combine. Add four tablespoons of the butter (1/2 stick) and pulse until pieces are the size of pennies. Add remaining butter and pulse for two seconds. Remove to lightly floured work surface. Press the mass together with your hands quickly to combine and gather into a ball. Cover in plastic wrap and press into a flat disc. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. (Dough can be frozen for up to one month).

 • After the dough rests use a pastry mat and rolling pin to create a 1/8-inch thick crust. Place the dough on a Silpat-lined pan and refrigerate while preparing the tomatoes and peaches.

 • Slice the peaches and tomatoes into ¼-inch slices.

 • Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

 • Mix together flour and sugar and scatter on the dough leaving a one-inch border free of flour.

 • Lay the peaches in concentric circles around the dough still leaving a one-inch border. For every three slices of peaches add one slice of tomato. Sprinkle with four tablespoons of sugar.

 • Fold the one-inch border over the fruit in a scalloped edge. Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with remaining one-half tablespoon of sugar.

 • Bake until the crust is golden and the fruit is tender, about 35 minutes. Brush the fruit with any juices that may have run over and slide the tart to a rack to cool. Enjoy warm or room temperature.

Pick up delicious tomatoes and peaches in Water Mill at the Green Thumb Organic market on Montauk Highway and on the North Fork at Sang Lee Farms on Route 48 in Cutchogue. You can find copies of "The Heirloom Tomato: From Garden To Table" by Amy Goldman at bookstores across the Hamptons.