Friday, August 2, 2013

Sun Gold Tomato Pesto Pizza

A vegan, nut-, and gluten free Sun Gold cherry tomato pesto sauce that is great as an appetizer or dip, a pizza sauce, or pasta sauce.  It freezes well, too.

http://www.farmfreshfeasts.com/2013/08/sun-gold-tomato-pesto-pizza.html


One of the near-guarantees, if you're in a summer Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) or farm share subscription, is a lot of tomatoes.  Quite possibly more than you can cope with in a week.  This week, for example, I got four quarts of tomatoes.  Four!  I had a quart of cherry tomatoes, 2 quarts of slicing tomatoes, and a quart of heirloom tomatoes.  (And I'm the only human around who likes to eat raw tomatoes.)

http://www.farmfreshfeasts.com/2013/08/sun-gold-tomato-pesto-pizza.html
However, I'm not the only household member who's thrilled that Sun Gold season is upon us.
Some people like to gobble up cherry tomatoes like candy.  Others like their tomatoes cooked, never raw.  Still others grow into almost liking tomatoes.  I recall I first tried a summer tomato sandwich, as a non-raw-tomato-eating adult, thanks to a food writer at The Washington Post--her description of the flavors sounded so good that, even though I wasn't a fan of raw tomatoes, I toasted some bread, grabbed the mayo, salt and pepper, sliced a tomato from the garden and discovered a wonderful taste sensation.  That still remains my favorite way to enjoy tomatoes in the summertime.

What choice do I have other than to Deal With All these quarts of tomatoes?  Next week will bring a new box, and sooner or later my own tomatoes will ripen.  I've got to get these tomatoes put up.  
If you're curious, I slow-roasted most of the slicing tomatoes overnight, following Alanna's excellent tutorial, and I put up 4 half pints of heirloom tomato & cashew pesto in the freezer, then I gave a couple of slicers to my neighbor, and the pigs and I snacked on the rest of the cherry tomatoes.  I'm all set.  This week.  I'm lucky they'll just keep coming until frost.
Since I used primarily slicing tomatoes when I made and put up Heather's Fresh Tomato Pesto, I decided to use the Sun Gold cherry tomatoes and my kitchen scale to provide a metric weight-based recipe for this delicious sauce.  I noticed that I needed less oil for these juicy summer tomatoes than I needed for the late season tomatoes.  I threw the sauce on a pizza, so I could get this ever-so-seasonal post up for Friday Night Pizza Night. For real--the dishes are still in the sink, this recipe is that fresh!  You'll be reading it while I'm still cleaning up the mess and the kids are fighting over the leftovers.

http://www.farmfreshfeasts.com/2013/08/sun-gold-tomato-pesto-pizza.html

Even though my tomato plants are laden with large green tomatoes (oh my, stay tuned for my Green Tomato Bacon Jam recipe next month, it rocks), the other garden plants are ripening just fine.  I used entirely basil in this pesto, because I've got a raised bed full (as you can see, I need to make the kids weed again), and my daughter picked a couple of banana peppers for the non-cheese pizza.  We put up 4 quarts of refrigerator kosher dills today, but no pickled peppers on this pizza--just fresh banana peppers, pepperoni, and anchovies because I may as well make a pizza exactly like I want to eat.

NOTE:  I created this recipe to be gluten free through my choice of ingredients. Check labels to confirm that your products are also gluten free. Good sources for determining that your products are gluten free can be found here:

Sun Gold Tomato Pesto, a recipe by weight, makes enough for 2 pizzas plus 1/2 cup extra

300 grams Sun Gold cherry tomatoes (about 2 cups)
60 grams salted sunflower seeds (please note that my store brand pictured may contain gluten, other brands are GF) (about 1/2 cup)
50 grams basil leaves (about 1/2 cup really tightly packed)
1 large clover garlic
1 teaspoon salt (forgot to weigh that one)
25 grams olive oil 

Put tomatoes, sunflower seeds, basil, garlic and salt in a food processor.  Pulse to get them chopped up, the whir for a moment.  Scrape down sides, the process on low, adding the olive oil in a stream.  Scrape sides one more time, then process on high until fully blended.  This may discolor, so if you're not planning on using it right away put a piece of plastic film directly onto the surface, or just stir in the darker part when you serve.  You can freeze this in freezer safe jars or zip top bags. I've had mine in the freezer 6 months just fine--just pour off any water that separates when you're thawing it.


http://www.farmfreshfeasts.com/2013/08/sun-gold-tomato-pesto-pizza.html


http://www.farmfreshfeasts.com/2013/08/sun-gold-tomato-pesto-pizza.html

Sun Gold Tomato Pesto Pizza

1/2 recipe above Sun Gold Tomato Pesto
1 pound pizza dough of your choice (see my Pizza Primer for a dough recipe, tips, tricks, and hints)
3/4 cup sliced fresh mozzarella
1/3 cup shredded Italian blend cheese
Optional toppings:  1/2 cup chopped banana peppers, 1/4 cup sliced pepperoni, as many little fishies as you desire

Preheat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.  If you've got a pizza stone, place it in the oven to preheat as well.  If not, use a cookie sheet.  On an oiled piece of parchment, stretch out your dough into the shape that floats your boat today.  Spread between 2/3 cup and 1 cup (160 ml to 240 ml) of Sun Gold tomato pesto across dough.  Top with sliced mozzarella and any optional toppings you choose.  Scatter shredded cheese over top.  Bake for 5 minutes, then shimmy out the parchment paper from under the crust, and bake an additional 3-8 minutes until the cheese is browned and bubbly.  Cool on a rack 5 minutes, then slice and serve.

This post is shared with the From The Farm Blog Hop,  the Clever Chicks Blog Hop, Tasty TuesdaysMostly Homemade MondaysWednesday Fresh Foods Link UpWhat's Cooking Wednesday, and What's In The Box where Heather, creator of the original Cherry Tomato Pesto that sparked this riff, hosts a wonderful weekly CSA link up.

http://www.farmfreshfeasts.com/2013/08/sun-gold-tomato-pesto-pizza.html

20 comments:

  1. I would love to get 4 quarts of ripe tomatoes!!! Jealous :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Alyssa,
      That's the thing about a farm share--feast or famine. We got tons of greens in the spring, now it's tons of tomatoes, in the fall, winter squash. I'm so glad I've figured out how to put up the excess so we can enjoy it year round, though nothing beats a fresh ripe tomato simply sliced, little salt and pepper . . .
      Thanks!

      Delete
  2. Fingers crossed that I'll be getting so many tomatoes from my farm share in the coming weeks. I've been getting lots of basil lately though, and I love the idea of throwing in some dried tomatoes to add extra flavor. Yum!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Annemarie,
      Come to think of it, I don't think I've found a way I don't like to eat tomatoes. I like raw, cooked, dried, roasted.

      I feel the same way about tuna.

      I hope you get a bunch of tomatoes!

      Delete
  3. I tell you, if I loved closer to you I would let you make me pizza all the time.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Marlene,
      I'd be delighted to share pizza with you--that way I could play more, and not worry about the leftovers!

      Delete
  4. Great recipe. You're the second person this week who recommends tomatoes in pesto, so I really need to try it. But, I'm all ears when I heard the green tomato bacon jam! Can't wait!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You can be the third time charm for tomato pesto!
      (I read about kale pesto more than 3 times but I have yet to make it. Kale in hummus is as far as I've gotten)
      According to Google Trends, October is the time that green tomato recipes are most often searched, so I'll throw my recipe up in September, ok! Enjoy your tomatoes red and ripe, and when you start to get sick of them, I'll have a suggestion.
      Thanks!

      Delete
  5. Kirsten, this pizza needs to make it to my menu!! This sounds incredible!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kate,
      You'll want to lick the food processor clean, fair warning! This tomato pesto is really yummy!

      Delete
  6. We actually don't get enough tomatoes in our farm share. Not sure why, but it's disappointing. We usually get one big beefsteak tomato every week and then occasionally we'll get a pint of cherry tomatoes. I'm able to eat these no problem, although maybe in September I'll have had enough. I doubt it though since I barely touch a tomato in winter time.
    Anyways, we scored a bunch of tomatoes from the in-laws garden (mine has yet to produce a tomato, although I am eagerly awaiting their arrival) so I made a batch of your (inspired by Heather's) tomato pesto Friday night. It is breaka da mouth good; like liquid bruschetta. After licking the scraper clean, I bagged and tagged it. Now I just need to get more tomatoes....patience right?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Meghan,
      It's delicious, isn't it! I'm so glad Heather posted the recipe to get me inspired.
      I'm positive all of my tomatoes are waiting until I leave to ripen (watched pots never boil) but I'm sure eventually they will. Otherwise I'll be making a whole ton of Green Tomato Bacon Jam. No complaints here with that prospect, but I'd like to get some sauce put up as well.

      Thanks!

      Delete
  7. We're not growing tomatoes this year, but last summer we had a couple of Sun Gold plants in the garden. I never managed to collect enough for a dish like this, because we ate most of them while still standing in garden right after harvesting. They are so sweet, like candy, and we couldn't resist!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lydia,
      We have a Sun Gold tomato plant that reappears each year in our strawberry patch, and the nearest I can figure is that it came from the composting pigs, as we never planted a tomato there and there was nothing edible--to humans--growing in our backyard when we moved in.
      The plant's descendants are flowering right now, giving us even more tomatoes above and beyond the farm share and the plants I deliberately planted.
      I love to eat Sun Golds, and sugar snap peas, right in the garden. I usually don't get enough of the peas to do anything with anyway. This spring my harvest was 2 pea pods. I think 3 or 4 pea plants sprouted, too . . . darn varmints!
      Thanks!

      Delete
  8. This sound yummy! I only like my tomatoes cooked, not raw.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Melanie,
      I used to prefer mine cooked, but a talented food writer got me interested to try a BLT and once I did, history.
      However, there are so many endless ways to cook tomatoes that I love exploring the possibilities.

      Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  9. Looks gorgeous! Thanks for the shout out :) So glad you enjoy this recipe.

    Thanks for sharing and linking up!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Heather,
      Few recipes have been as life-changing as your cherry tomato pesto recipe.
      Thanks for hosting!

      Delete
  10. Great recipe! I just made 3 batches to use up our last big pick...made 6 freezer jam sized containers that I put up in our deep freeze. Will be great to share with our gluten, nut and/or dairy free friends. Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Marge,
      Thank you so much for letting me know~I'm glad to know I'm not the only one with a stash of tomato pesto in the freezer! We'll have fun in the winter, won't we?

      Delete