It’s time to face the cold hard truth: tomato season won’t be here for much longer. That is, unless my freezer has anything to say about it! Out of all the summer vegetables (or is it fruit?), I think tomatoes are the ones I mourn the most when the season is over. There’s nothing worse than a flavourless winter tomato with it’s pale flesh and icy, dry appearance.
In the meantime, I’m trying to convince Eric it’s a good idea to buy the fifty-some-odd-pound bushel of tomatoes I saw at the market last week. He just can’t see the vision yet. I have visions of pasta sauces, pesto, salsa, and tomato jam dancing in my head…
To celebrate the tomato, I’ve compiled a list of my 10 favourite recipes to date.
Get ‘em while you can!
1. Roasted Tomato Basil Pesto
This pesto is bursting with seasonal flavours and nutrients. It’s also quite low in oil thanks to the roasted tomatoes adding body and flavour. I left the almonds chopped and it adds a nice texture that is great mixed into pasta or spread on a toasted sandwich.
2. Easy Tomato Basil Cream Pasta
Creamy, flavourful, and downright irresistible…no one will be able to tell there isn’t any cream in this pasta!
3. Vegan Tortilla Soup
A wonderful soup to transition from end of summer into Fall. It packs a bounty of summer flavours, with a warming comfort for those cooler summer evenings. We added a handful of vegan cheese, chopped avocado, tortilla strips, and green onion on top to really round out this hearty and filling dish.
4. Gazpacho
Still too hot for soup? Try my favourite Gazpacho. After testing a few versions, this one is hands down my favourite.
5. Basil Scalloped Tomatoes and Croutons
One of my favourite casseroles. Fresh basil and in season tomatoes are key here. One thing I love about this recipe is the short ingredient list…it was so easy!
6. Tomato Walnut Basil Pasta
This hearty pasta sauce is so healthy it hurts. Walnuts, spinach, tomatoes, garlic, basil, oh my!
7. Sundried Tomato Cheezy Kale Chips
Like nachos, only better. Satisfy your every chip craving with these cheezy and crispy kale chips!
8. Creamy Roasted Tomato Garlic Coconut Soup
This tomato soup is anything but traditional, boring, or bland and it’s definitely one of the best homemade soups I’ve made to date. The light coconut milk is a great way to add a luxurious creaminess, pairing well with the heat from the garam masala and adding a nice contrast to the rustic quality of the roasted vegetables. See why it’s received so many rave reviews.
9. Easy Roasted Tomato Pizza with Cashew Cheeze
Easy as tortilla pie! This pizza features irresistible roasted tomatoes and a creamy basil cashew cheeze sauce.
10. Lightened Up Sundried Tomato Basil Pasta
This lightened up pesto has just a few tablespoons of olive oil, but I promise you won’t know the difference . The sundried tomatoes, walnuts, and basil create an extremely flavourful pesto that goes wonderfully with pasta, sandwiches or wraps, or mixed into some grilled vegetables. Can’t have nuts? Just leave them out. The addition was more of an afterthought than a main ingredient.
September Challenge
I’m doing another challenge for the month of September – Operation Hydrate! I’m not always mindful of drinking enough water and so far this challenge is keeping me on track.
– Drink 2 glasses of water upon rising before any other fluids or food.
– Drink 6 glasses of water throughout the rest of the day.
These amounts are not set in stone – it really depends on how much exercise I do and what my needs are on that day. Really, I’m just being mindful of my water intake and making sure I start the day off with lots of water. I never thought I’d say this, but it’s actually energizing! Feel free to join me in this challenge, keeping in mind your water needs will vary. You can also do the lemon with warm water thing if you like too, but I’ve just been drinking filtered H2o.
And if you’d like to read about my August challenge results – see my page for the recap. It looks like September is also going to be a fear-conquering month with the promise of zip lining, suspension bridge dangling, and cliff walking.
I’m so sad tomato season is ending :(
Man, I’m not even wearing socks but a pair just got knocked off my shelf! Can’t wait to try tomato coconut soup and gazpacho, thanks for sharing!
Angela I love your blog! It has inspired me to create my own! I have made so many of your recipes, including these tomato ones, and they all turned out delicious! During the winter I use dehydrated tomato slices to make pestos and to add to pizza. All you have to do is soak them in some water to liven them up again.
Everything looks so incredibly delicious. I want it all! Mouthwatering photos.
I made the Creamy Roasted Tomato Garlic Coconut Soup last night – it took forever but it was worth it. The soup is amazing. Thanks for posting it!
Saw that you’ll be addressing rehydration this month…NOTHING better (or better for you) than chia!! Long distance runners have been using them forever!! Spread the word! So versatile and oh, the chocolate peanut butter pudding…YUM!
That is so true! bring on the chia water!
All of these recipes look amazing! Can’t wait to figure out which one to make first!!
& I will definitely be joining you with the hydration challenge! I’ve been slacking with my water drinking!!
i made the tomato walnut sauce last night but left the walnuts out as my daughter has a nut allergy. instead i pureed a can of white kidney beans and added it to the sauce. It was delicious :-)
Ohh, I’ve been bummed about all the garden tomatoes I’ve been letting go to waste–NO LONGER. I want to make all of these and squeeze the last out of my tomato plants :)
These all sound so good. I’m trying to be more aware of my water intake too. I’m terrible about staying hydrated.
Angela,
I have been a reader of yours for a number of months now, but have never written before. I first found you when I was looking for vegan and gluten free cooking. Dairy and eggs bother me and my husband has some eating difficulties too. Anyway, everything I tried was delicious and I was hooked. Now my friend and mother-in-law both read you too. I missed your August challenge, however, and just read it through today. It was so helpful to me to hear that you and others get anxious just like I do. Anxiety is my biggest daily struggle, I see a therapist also, and it was just so encouraging to read. I want to thank you for your wonderful blog and I look forward to reading more!
Hey Emily! Thank you so much for your comment. Im so happy to hear that you are enjoying the blog & the challenge too!
Bring on the soup season! I am saving these recipes for the fall and can’t wait to make my way through the list. Great idea to put everything together in one place!
Oh my goodness- too many fabulous recipes to choose from! I would love to try them all out! :)
You have just given me a severe craving for tomatoes. Hehe. ;)
Made the roasted tomato basil pesto last night for dinner, using basil from our garden! It was wonderful, and a new addition to the weekly rotation! I used mini quinoa shells for the pasta, and added fresh buffalo mozzerella to please my cheese loving husband! It was a great midweek treat!
Finished the night with salt and vinegar chick peas as a tv snack!
Thanks for your wonderful recipes!
So glad to hear that Susan!
Hi Angela! I have a special request – wondering if you have or could share a recipe for homemade tomato sauce. I have a bountiful harvest of ripe tomatoes and would love to make and freeze some tomato sauce and pizza sauce. I like your roasted sauce but am looking for a cleaner flavor. Any suggestions would be much appreciated!
I find it rediculous for you to so boldly state that nothing is worse than a flavourless winter tomato. Sure winter tomatos are not as flavorful as their summer counterparts, but to imply that they are worse than the Holocaust, AIDS, rape, world hunger, etc etc is just not correct.
All these looking great. I like to eat tomato cream pasta. I read your article very carefully and written in my notebook. I will be definitely try this recipe at my home. This recipe is my family favorite meal. Thank you so much to sharing the post. To Know More: http://bit.ly/1VcL9Nl
I made the roasted tomato basil pesto last night for dinner, using basil from our garden! It was wonderful, and a new addition to my weekly rotation! I used mini quinoa shells for the pasta. It was a great midweek treat!
Hi Malin, I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe. That’s great that you grow your own basil – it must be so nice to always have fresh on hand!