What you should be doing with your Sungolds

If you've been reading Em-i-lis for at least a year, you might know that I adore tomatoes. Raw, in sandwiches and tarts, with peaches, in savory jams, cooked into beautiful sauces for pasta, canned for later use. 

Basically, I'm Forrest Gump's shrimpin' friend, Bubba, or Christopher Guest's nut-aficionado character in Best In Show, with tomatoes.

As an aside, y'all have to watch this clip. Sends me to the floor in peals of laughter every.damn.time. Harlan Pepper, god bless you. HAH!

But back to Sungolds. Possibly, they are my favorite tomato. At the least, they are my favorite small type. I love their golden orange hue, their perfect sweet tang and the way you can eat them hand over fist and never tire.

all delicious, but the bright orange Sungolds are my favorite.

Several summers back, I was heavily into anchovy-garlic anything and one evening cooked some Sungolds over low heat with anchovies, garlic, capers, parsley and olive oil. The sauce ingredients melted together in the most divine, sticky, unctuous way, and the tomatoes broke down just enough to add pleasurably to the mix but also maintain a distinct texture and standing. 

lusty sungold love

Lusty Sungold Love was born, and I have found that the very best way to enjoy this dish is spooned atop toasted baguette slathered with fresh ricotta. Each bite makes you pause. Maybe you'll close your eyes or sigh a small, contented "aah." And then you'll reach for another slice of bread, the bowl of ricotta and the spoon dunked in the lusty tomatoes. And you'll start again and enjoy it just the same.

Stunning sauce

Remember those yellow Roma tomatoes I bought last Sunday at the farmers market? They have been sitting quietly on my counter since, golden orbs just waiting to be put to good use. After a busy yet productive morning out, I came home for some midday R&R. I baked a loaf of pumpkin bread, a recipe I got from a foodie friend, Liz Larkin, aka the Pound Ridge Scone Lady (she's NY-based; I know her via Food52). She's an excellent baker -her Royal Wedding Scones are to die for- so though I've not made or even tasted this lovely loaf before, I know it won't disappoint. While that cooled, I enjoyed a quick lunch and then got to making a slow-cooked tomato sauce with my golden Romas and the last of my Sungolds. Olive oil, garlic, kosher salt and the tomatoes. It's as simple as that yet simply magnificent. Look at this color. And the taste? I closed my eyes and sighed. Last but not least, I didn't even bother peeling the tomatoes first though certainly you could. The peels fall away as the tomato flesh melts into silky sauciness, so I just spoon them out as I find them.