Project: Oven Dried Grape Tomatoes

Does this happen to anyone else? You pick up some produce, like say, a $5 pint of organic grape tomatoes, only to accidentally hide them behind something like a big canister of flour. I found these tomatoes late last night when I was cleaning the kitchen, and they had already started to wrinkle. I knew they wouldn't last the night, and I really couldn't bear to know I had wasted not only the food, but the money.


So, I sliced them in half and placed them, cut side down, on an aluminum foil wrapped cookie sheet. Then I sprinkled them with a little salt and put them in my oven, set on the lowest temperature possible (170 degrees). One thing I love about my oven the the timer, which you can set to turn off the oven after the time is reached. So, I set it on 6 hours and happily went to bed.


This morning, the tomatoes were shriveled and very fragrant. I let them cool completely and then packed them in a jar, covered with some very good olive oil. I really can't wait to make some pasta with them, or toss them on a salad.