The Perfect Recipes for the Perfect Tomato

"When people ask me what I remember most about my childhood summers in New Jersey, the first thing that comes to mind is the heat. It is branded on my psyche.

But the next thing is tomatoes. People may wilt under a New Jersey summer. But New Jersey's state 'vegetable' thrives...

You're talkin' tomato, you're talkin' state pride. Tomatoes are arguably but by no means certifiably, among the few things new Jersey residents can be universally proud of.

Our corn's pretty darn good too." ...from Bayshore Summer by Pete Dunne

Our soil is sandy and won't hold water worth a darn. Our summer temperatures are HHH...hazy, hot and humid. Take all that, add a tomato seed and in a couple of months you will have what is arguably the best tomato in the world, the Jersey tomato. Oh, I am sure you think your state produces a fine tomato and maybe you even have a few very respectable plants growing in your backyard, but take my word for it. The true Jersey tomato is the best in the world.By true Jersey tomato I mean one that is not grown to transport long distances. Not one picked green so they can travel. No, one grown on a smaller farm, ideally bought at a roadside stand. Warm and red and ripe. A tomato that smelled like a tomato. Juicy and acidic and yet sweet.

I know this because my grandmother told me this as a child and she was a world class tomato critic. My grandfather taught me how to cook scrapple correctly and my grandmother taught me about tomatoes.
It was a well rounded childhood.

As a child, I would spent the summer in Atlantic City with my grandparents and my Aunt Mary and there were two things my grandmother's summer revolved around. The appearance of the first tomatoes and the appearance of Breyers Peach Ice Cream. She loved ice cream, but peach, which Breyers only made when the peaches came ripe, was the pinnacle of the ice cream year and she and I would search the Acme (pronounced Ack-A-Me down da' shore) supermarket freezer, watching, waiting for it.

But the tomato...that was her first love.
There was a little grocery store nearby that we would go to and they would have the best vine, ripe, fresh from the farm tomatoes. My grandmother would take them home, rinse them and place them on the windowsill until lunchtime. Never, never, never in the refrigerator, a mortal sin for a tomato.

Now here is the recipe. Note it carefully.
Ready?

Take a tomato, slice with a very sharp knife.
Add salt and pepper.
Eat.

Now...often my grandmother would take the next step.
Her idea of the perfect sandwich.

Repeat above.Slice..salt..pepper.

Put sliced tomato on a slice of white bread.
Add mayo..Hellmann's of course...to other slice of bread.
Place slices together.
Cut sandwich in half.
Eat.

And then if you want the pinnacle of the Tomato World, we will take the final step. The perfect lunch or dinner. The BLT.

Slice tomato, once again.
You did get enough tomatoes to start with, right??
Salt..pepper..again.
Take two slices of nice white bread.
Place in toaster.
Toast.
Do not over toast.
Remove from toaster and put mayo on toast.
Add several slices of crispy, slightly greasy, delicious bacon.
Top with slices of beautiful, Jersey tomato.
Volume of bacon and tomato should be about equal, in my opinion, or leaning toward the tomato.
Add one leaf of crisp romaine lettuce, for crunch.
Ok, maybe two.
Eat!

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This is my contribution this to this week's Weekend Cooking.
"Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book (novel, nonfiction) reviews, cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, fabulous quotations, photographs. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend."
Be sure to check out the other entries this week. As always, hosted by Beth Fish Reads.

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