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Oven Dried Country Tomatoes

These are a sweet and plump version of what usually comes in jars labelled sun-dried tomatoes and which, in my opinion can often taste disappointing.

This recipe shows how to make them yourself but beware! It is important to get good, ripe plum tomatoes; the little Dutch waterballs just won’t work. I often put them into the oven for the last hour with the Sunday roast. The flavour of the meat infuses into the tomatoes imparting a wonderful savoury flavour. Use with great effect on top of pizzas, or in salads. For an almost instant pasta sauce, sauté sliced garlic cloves in a glug of olive oil and add in the oven dried tomatoes with some chopped cooked ham. Finish with a scattering of Parmesan shavings and a dribble of my herb oil (page 00).

Sprinkle an even layer of sea salt and basil leaves on a baking sheet. Cut the tomatoes in half and arrange on top, cut side up. Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour and then leave to cool completely.

Transfer the oven dried tomatoes to a sterilised Kilner jar (page 00), discarding the sea salt and basil leave and pour over enough olive oil to cover the tomatoes completely. Otherwise transfer to a bowl, cover with cling film and chill until needed. these will keep happily like this for up to two weeks in the fridge.