By now we all know that the Mediterranean diet is the healthiest and cheapest way to eat here in Spain and the tomato is one the diet´s staple ingredients.
Apart from using tomatoes in salad most families who have their own little vegetable patch in the country grow the plum tomatoes in order to bottle them. These bottled tomatoes, apart from making wonderful sauces and soups, form the basis of the delicious Murcian tomato salad.
Gazpacho, a cold summer soup, is a cheap and simple way of use over ripe tomatoes, cucumber, and green peppers which are all cheap at this time of the year. Keep a jug in the fridge and serve with ice. It makes a lovely light lunch when you feel to tool hot to cook or eat a meal.
Another alternative is homemade tomato juice with celery and Tabasco: so delicious it difficult to believe there is no alcohol in it and tastes even better with a spot of vodka, lemon juice and Lea and Perrins for your Standard Bloody Mary.
Simple tomato salads are served here in Calasparra with sliced garlic, salt and olive oil or simply with olive oil, salt and fresh basil leaves. However, you can buy Feta cheese in the town now and diced tomatoes and cucumber with fresh oregano, olive oil and slices of feta cheese make a nutritious Greek Salad, perfect for a lunchtime snack.
PRESERVING PLUM TOMATOES
Select plum tomatoes which are ripe and have no blemishes. Cover with boiling water for a few minute, skin and remove hard core.
Prepare the jars by washing in warm, soapy water, rinse and place in the over for 10 minutes on a low gas.
Fill the jars to the top while they are still warm, tap gently with a fork or tap the jar gently on the work top to remove the air. Screw on top and then place in a large saucepan to boil for 20 minutes.
Most local people have an outside gas ring and a large saucepan, which you can buy locally. They put up to 20 jars in a large string or net bag, for easy removable, and boil them all together. If you are conserving a large quantity of tomatoes it may be worth the outlay. However, if you only have a couple of jars you can use an ordinary large pan on your cooker.
Take out and allow the jars to cool before labeling.
MURCIAN TOMATO SALAD
You will need:
Jar of tomatoes in conserve
Black olives
I white salad onion
Garlic
Olive Oil
Fresh basil
Black pepper
Hard boiled eggs
Tinned tuna in olive oil
Salt
Method
Slice the onions thinly and chop the garlic. Hard boil one egg per person.
Put the tomatoes in a large soup bowl or serving dish and slice roughly. Add finely slice onion and garlic. Break basil leaves with your hands and add to salad. Add black pepper and salt to taste. Add olive oil to taste and top with tinned tuna, approximately one small tin per two people. Decorate with quarters of sliced hard boiled egg and black olives.
HOMEMADE TOMATO JUICE
You will need:
8 to 10 mature tomatoes, chopped
1 cup of chopped celery
1 cup of chopped onion
Black pepper
Salt
10 to 12 drops of Tabasco
Method
Place all the ingredients in a large pan and simmer until you have a soup. It takes about 25 minutes. Pass the mixture through a sieve or “chino” (type of hand mincer used locally) and pour into a jug. Serve very chilled.
GAZPACHO – COLD TOMATO SOUP
1 kilo red mature tomatoes
I green pepper
Small cucumber
2 cloves of garlic
Half a wine glass of olive oil
Lemon juice
Fresh basil/mint or both
Freshly ground black pepper
Juice of one lemon
You can either peel the tomatoes, for a smoother soup, or simply wash them and chop them with their skins for a chunkier soup. Peel cucumber and chop pepper and garlic. Put all the ingredients, except the oil, in a liquidizer and mix until smooth. When smooth add oil gradually and mix again. Serve very, very cold.
Garnish with chopped onion, small pieces of mature tomato, chopped green pepper and hard boiled egg and homemade croutons.
