April in the Kitchen – Carmelized Onion, Roast Cherry Tomatoes, and Curry on Toast

Tomato bruschetta is one of my favorite summer dishes. I serve it as a starter with drinks, or as dinner itself if there is some good fresh mozzarella or ricotta involved. Unfortunately,  tomato season is still a few months away, it lags sadly behind BBQ season. I am mentally ready for those tomatoes. I want them for a hamburger, or a fresh tomato sauce for pasta, or a caprese salad with mozzarella. But, the ones in the market are currently flavorless and mostly disappointing. Even the tomatoes at the farmer’s market were raised in a hot house. My mouth is set for the first dry farmed Early Girls from the Watsonville area. They are grown without any additional water once past the seedling stage. All the flavor is concentrated, oh my they are so good. Well, enough moaning about what I can’t have.

What is there and what can I do? Ok then, I will settle for cherry tomatoes. And roasting them both brings out the sweetness and intensifies the essence of tomato.

Here is a recipe you can serve now, with pride before an outdoor BBQ, while waiting for the first tomatoes of summer (don’t forget a glass of rose). This is an adaptation of a classic mid-summer bruschetta, made with roast cherry tomatoes. The recipe comes from the cookbook “The Fat Radish, Kitchen Diaries“.

Cherry tomato bruschetta with carmelized onions and curry sauce

Onion, Tomato, and Curry on Toast

• Olive oil
• 2 large yellow onions, thinly sliced
• 2 pints cherry tomatoes of mixed colors
• Coarse salt
• 8 thick slices of toasted country bread or sourdough
• 1/2 cup curry sauce (recipe below)
• Small handful of torn basil and cilantro leaves

1.  Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
2. Place 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a large heavy skillet set over medium-low heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until well caramelized, be patient as it could take an hour or more. Remove them to a small bowl to cool.
   

   Sliced Yellow Onions

   

   Carmelized Onions
3. Place the tomatoes in a roasting pan and coat with 2 tablespoons of oil. Roast, stirring now and then, until soft, about 20 minutes. Set aside.
   

   Roast Cherry Tomatoes

4. To serve, divide the warm onions and tomatoes over the toast. Drizzle each toast with a tablespoon of the Curry Sauce and top with fresh herbs.
5. Serve immediately.

Cherry Tomato Bruschetta

Curry Sauce

• 2 tablespoons coconut oil or olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
• 1 apple, peeled and cored, thinly sliced
• 1 (2-inch) piece of fresh ginger, pelled and minced
• 1 kaffir lime leaf (or zest and juice from a 1 lime, added at the end)
• 1-1/2 tablespoons curry powder
• 2 teaspoons turmeric
• 1 (13.5 oz) can of unsweetened coconut milk
• Coarse salt

1. Place the oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic, onion, apple, ginger, lime leaf, curry powder, and turmeric. Cook, stirring now and then, until softened, about 10 minutes.
2. Add the coconut milk, bring to a boil, then lover the heat and simmer another 10 minutes until all the vegetables are tender.
3. Remove the lime leaf and puree the sauce in a standard blender or an immersion blender. (Add the lime juice and zest if you did not have a kaffir lime leaf.)
   

   Curry Sauce

4. Season with salt.

This recipe makes quite a bit of curry sauce. I used the remainder as a sauce with a simple roast chicken. It will last for a few days in the fridge.

Cherry Tomato Bruschetta

I’m taking this to share with Angie at Fiesta Friday #64. Each week the food, recipes and pictures are more amazing!

Fiesta Friday