Tomato Salads

Tomato, Cucumber, and Feta

Earlier in the week, I wrote about all the great things I picked up over the weekend at my local farmers' markets.  I sincerely hope you guys go out and explore the markets in your area as well.  The quality of produce available at these markets will blow your mind.  Of particular note, in my opnion, are the fresh tomatoes.

Along with peaches, tomatoes have been a victim of giant agri-business.  The fact is you simply cannot sell a vine-ripened tomato in a chain grocery store.  They are far too perishable and don't travel well.  As a result, giant farms pick millions of tomatoes while they are still hard, green balls and gas them with ethylene to ripen them off the vine.  Here is a handy guide.  Artificial ripening, coupled with genetic selection for roundness, bruise tolerance, shelf life and perfectly uniform color, has resulted in nearly inedible fruit.

On the other side of the spectrum from the mass produced, hunk of crap tomato, we have beauties like the ones in the salad at the top of this post.  They're sweet, juicy, and sublime.  To my palate, a superbly constructed tomato salad, prepared with respect for the ingredients, is transcendent.  

Read on for a couple of really simple salads that, I hope, can bring you closer to nirvana.

In the picture above, we have red tomatoes, vidalia onions, and cucumbers from Georgia's Farmers Market and a yellow/orange variety I picked up at the Four Seasons Market.  The feta, a goat cheese variety, came from Caprino Royale, a little artisanal cheese maker near Waco.  I tossed in some fresh oregano and basil, and topped it off with some home-brew white wine vinegar, Texas Olive Ranch olive oil, a little cracked pepper and some fleur de sel.

Those little yellow guys up there...they're filled with sunshine that explodes in your mouth.  Honestly, I can't even describe how wonderful those tomatoes are.  I raved about them on a previous post, and I'll do it again. Quite simply, the first time I ate one of these little gems, I had a Foodie Moment.  You know, when you take a bite of something and it's like the world stops, like you've never tasted anything like it before, all the little synapses in your brain are firing, making new connections, processing a completely new experience.  These tomatoes did that to me...BOOM!  That's what they did.

My short list of Foodie Moments:

1. Braised Short Ribs at Daniel in NYC
2. Toro Sushi at Sushi Sasabune in Honolulu
3. Linguine with Crab Sauce
4. Those tomatoes
5. White truffles on fresh pasta
6. Caribbean spiny lobster that was cooked over a driftwood fire on the beach in Jamaica

Okay, so you get my point.  Anyway, the little yellow guys are also from Four Seasons Market and I just dropped in a little olive oil, balsamic vinegar (good, old stuff - spend the money and get it!), a little fluer de sel, some pepper, and a little basil.  Perfection.  See, sometimes it's not about technique or fancy preparations.  Sometimes it's just about getting out of the way and letting the ingredients shine.

Go get some fresh tomatoes, prepare them simply, and have your own Foodie Moment.