It would be difficult to pick a single best taste of summer. But somewhere in the list of contenders would have to be these golden cherry tomatoes, ripe from the vine. I’ve been plucking them by the fistful for the last three weeks and tossing them into salads; whole wheat pasta with pesto and walnuts; and even scrambled eggs. (Add fresh thyme and oregano from the garden, thinly sliced garlic, cracked pepper, and coarse grey sea salt to your eggs and cherry tomatoes, and it may just be the best brunch you’ve ever tasted.)
As hard as these little ‘maters are to top, even more amazing have been the fabulous heirloom tomatoes I’ve been buying at Sobsey’s Produce (right). Any dish they go into is immediately kicked up a notch or two (or ten). My favorite: the Cherokee Purple tomatoes, which are said to have originated with the Cherokee people. Rich and earthy, these purple orbs have now become my definition of what a tomato should taste like.