The Oven Roasted Tomato, or Sun Dried's Younger Brother

Now, where were we? You know, before that little Banana, Raspberry & Nutella Sandwich interrupted us. Right, I was making bold promises to tell you about the roasted tomato side dish for my Spicy Hake in a Lemon Butter "Sauce". From what I can tell, these roasted tomatoes are just a few minutes shy of being officially sun (re:oven) dried, which makes them a little chewier, a little more concentrated, and - in my opinion - a whole lot more interesting. Regular tomatoes tend to bore me, particularly raw ones, and while I enjoy eating them in smaller, more disguised amounts, this was the first time I really wanted to bite into one on its own. Plus, they could not be easier to make or much healthier, as far as roasting vegetables to death goes.

I'll keep this short and sweet (ish), especially because I don't have any pretty pictures to draw you in, hook, line and sinker. I could have reposted the one from the fish recipe, so if you'd like to see these tomatoes in action, head right on over (to the link above). They add a nice, vibrant color to the plate, so if my wordy blatherings don't convince you to make them, maybe that other picture will.

Roasted Tomatoes, courtesy of Marth Stewart herself!
Yield: 3-4, depending on how many ravenous tomato lovers you have in your midst
The Ingredients

6 plum tomatoes, halved lengthwise (I quartered mine, all lengthwise)
3/4 tsp. dried tarragon (I didn't have this, so I substituted 3/4 tsp. dried oregano and a sprinkling of dried lemon peel)
pinch of sugar
coarse salt and ground pepper (pretty sure I omitted the salt, or used it very sparingly - trust me, you don't need it, or at the very least, much of it)

The Method
1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees, positioning the racks in the upper and lower thirds.
2. Arrange the tomatoes on a baking sheet (I lined mine with aluminum) cut side up, giving them enough space so they don't steam each other while cooking. A couple of centimeters should be good.
3. Sprinkle with the olive oil and all of the spices/herbs (all of the ingredients), and then toss to coat. (I found this to be a little awkward on the baking sheet; next time, I might prepare the tomatoes in a bowl and transfer them to the baking sheet only after they were fully flavored and coated. Plus, the tomatoes stuck a little to the foil for me, and tossing them in a bowl with the oil may help with that, too.)
4. Roast in the oven on the lower rack until tender for 20-25 minutes.

And that's it! I'd love to say with confidence that leaving them in for 30-40 minutes would give you wonderful sundried tomatoes, but I have no basis for that presumption. I would hate to be responsible for you setting your oven on fire or - even worse! - ruining an otherwise perfectly good side dish because of my unfounded ideas. Still, if you're curious (and brave), give it a try and let me know! One of these days I'll get around to researching it a little bit.

For right now, I'm working on a good recipe (that the family will approve of and eat) for Monday night, since I'd like to cook dinner but our oven has recently passed on to the big oven-and-stove home in the sky. By the time the new one is installed, we'll have gone a week without an oven or stove.

All I have to say is, thank god for this heat wave! I don't know what I'd do if I were forced to eat cold cuts and barbeque in the dead of winter. Do you have any suggestions for stove-and-oven-less meals - preferably ones that picky eaters would eat? I would love to try out this pesto-and-portobello sandwich that I have a recipe saved for, but I can just see the faces of some of my family members now...