Using the Bounty: Tomatoes

In my last post I mentioned the Bountiful Baskets we got on Saturday. When I ordered, I got a few add-ons to the conventional basket: the Mexican, the Agua Fresca, and the organic Beefsteak tomatoes. Fifteen pounds of what I was expecting to be large, red, fragrant tomatoes.  No such luck. They were small and pale-ish. I was disappointed.

Turns out, I needn’t have been. By Sunday morning, they were a bit redder, so I thought I’d take a chance and whip up a Caprese salad to take to Mother’s Day lunch with Greg’s family. I cut the first one, took a little taste, and was pleasantly surprised that they were, indeed, flavorful. The salad was well-received and only about a quarter of it came home with us. Greg made homemade pizzas for supper, so I used that leftover salad to make a margherita pizza.

A little garlic olive oil on the crust, instead of sauce, then fresh tomato slices, fresh mozzarella slices, and some fresh basil. Greg took it out to the grill for a few minutes, then I popped it under the broiler in the oven to brown up the cheese…

Oh my, it was delicious. The crisp was crusty on the bottom and edge, but the pizza was light and flavorful. And check out this cheese pull:

I love when the cheese is like that! I also love that we were able to use up the leftover Caprese salad right away in such a delicious manner. The heat brought out even more flavor in those tomatoes.

I see a blt with avocado in my future, and a tomato and avocado salad for supper one night. Perhaps a batch of sauce as well?

What would you do with them? I’m open to suggestions!