Slow Cooker Marinara Sauce

 

This is a classic homemade tomato pasta sauce recipe for the home cook which I find is one of the best sauces to have on standby in my kitchen for a quick and simple meal. Everyone needs quick dinners in their recipe repertoire, and with this sauce most of the work is already done. 

In My Tropical Kitchen, August 2025

As I write my monthly IMK post, which is more of a newsletter this time really, I am calmly enjoying the satisfaction of knowing that I have a large pot of my Tomato Marinara Sauce simmering away in the Slow Cooker, and a large saucepan of Scottish Red Lentil Soup bubbling away on the stovetop. It's been a productive morning, and an economical use of my time preparing both dishes at the same time.

Oven-Baked Ratatouille

 

Oven-baked Ratatouille is a modern interpretation of the classic stove top Niçoise dish, Ratatouille. It's roots are very firmly planted in the Provençal region of France. By baking the vegetables, and roasting the ripe tomatoes into a rich, garlicky tomato sauce, a delicious and caramelised flavour is imparted to the dish. I make this French vegetarian dish often.

Classic Slow Cooker Tomato Pasta Sauce

This is a classic homemade tomato pasta sauce recipe for the home cook which I find is one of the best sauces to have on standby in my kitchen for a quick and simple meal. Everyone needs quick dinners in their recipe repertoire, and with this sauce most of the work is already done. 

Ratatouille, a French Vegetable Stew

Ratatouille is a French vegetable stew, originating from Provence in Southern France where it was cooked as a dish for the poor. However now it is cooked because it is delicious. Starting with  beautifully fresh Mediterranean vegetables, it is the perfect dish to cook in advance or even the day before you wish to eat it. However my preference is to cook it with a delicious roast lamb shoulder or leg, and both can be timed perfectly to be completed before friends arrive for dinner. I think ratatouille is perfect for eating outside on a warm Summer's night or served as comfort food on a Winter's evening. It keeps well in the refrigerator for up to five days, and can also be eaten with chicken or fish throughout the week. 

Montpellier Mediterranee, in France

 I'm home again after 2 months in Montpellier Mediterranee, in southern France, and two weeks in Cairns in Far North Queensland at the beginning and the end of my travels. Singapore Airlines fly in and out of Cairns so I could fly out from there. Montpellier, Mediterranee, in southern France is very close to the Mediterranean coast, and is a beautiful city surrounded by many scenic areas, with a population of over 500,000. The food, and the fresh fruits and vegetables of Summer were everything that I hoped for. Over the next few weeks I'll share some of my French adventures and tales with you. 

Italian Rice Stuffed Tomatoes

This is a delicious and healthy vegetarian dish perfect for Meat Free Monday

Tomatoes are the hero of this vegetarian dish, and whether you bake these with mushrooms or roast potatoes, the latter will also measure up and absorb all of the beautiful flavours from the tomatoes. The second vegetable also keeps the tomatoes from toppling over if necessary. This was a spur of the moment meal I decided to make late one afternoon, when I felt like something really healthy and vegetable based to serve with grilled pork chops. However, this is a simple and slightly retro dish than can also be served as a  delicious Meat Free Monday dinner, accompanied by a green salad, as a side dish as part of a Sunday roast which is how I remember it, or as a light lunch with some crusty sourdough bread. These little beauties are ideal for entertaining, as they can be prepared in advance and and then popped into the oven just  before your guests arrive. They are also very patient when cooked, and will happily wait whilst the rest of the food is being prepared. The whole dish is probably best served just warm rather than hot, so that guests don't burn their mouths.

 I am slightly challenged by cooking at the moment, but becoming very used to the new kitchen in my daughter's new home. I am missing my herb garden at home, as normally I would have added some fresh oregano or basil to this dish and garnished it with fresh parsley for presentation purposes. I'm trying not to drive to the supermarket every time I need an ingredient, particularly for an unplanned dish like this one. However dried oregano seasons the brown rice stuffing beautifully, and I love the nutty flavour of the rice. We have a very good selection of dried herbs and spices in the pantry which are so useful for all kinds of dishes. As I mentioned in my last February In My Kitchen post, much of my cooking at the moment whilst we enjoy a "working holiday" in Cairns is improvisatory, making do with what I have on hand. At the time I wasn't even thinking that this "recipe" would be bloggable, however as I started preparing the tomatoes and the stuffing, my cooking mojo came on board, and  I realised that this dish would be delicious and might be blog worthy. Mr. HRK loved them, but I wasn't sure if our daughter would as she doesn't like cooked tomato generally,  particularly not if they are grilled or fried with eggs and bacon, unlike moi. However she was impressed, which was a great recommendation. The tomatoes tasted fresh and delicious and kept their shape, and the rice stuffing was full of delicious Italian flavours. 

The key to any healthy vegetarian dish is quality produce, and we had four perfectly firm and beautifully red tomatoes in our fruit bowl. These tomatoes came from Jonsson's Farm Market, a local Cairns business in the suburb of Stratford, which specialises in  providing fresh local produce, vegetables, fruit and meat, from paddock to plate. These tomatoes probably came from Mareeba, the food bowl of the Atherton Tablelands near Cairns. The quality of produce available at Jonsson's  is superior to what I have found in the supermarkets here, as some of the supermarket vegetables and fruit has by the time it has been unpacked and reshelved, endured a lot of road miles. Whilst I only used 4 tomatoes for this dish, the stuffing recipe will fill 6.

Ingredients:

Serves 6

6 large firm ripe tomatoes

3 cups cooked brown rice

1 cup grated parmesan

2 teaspoons dried oregano, or 2 tablespoons fresh basil leaves

1/2 teaspoon dried chilli flakes, if you like a little heat

2 cloves garlic finely chopped

2 teaspoons finely chopped black olives, or use capers (washed well if salted)

3 tablespoons fresh breadcrumbs

1 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Handful of cap mushrooms

Method:

Before you start preparing, preheat the oven to 180 deg. C or 350 deg. F.

I won't beat around the bush, hollowing out the tomatoes can be fiddly, but very rewarding, and this can be done well in advance when you have some time. Slice off the caps from the tomatoes, at the widest part just below the top as this will become their lid when they are baked. Remove the pulp from the inside of the tomatoes. I used a small sharp knife to carefully cut about 1 cm inside the the outer skin of the tomato, and then I spooned out the pulp. There needs to be enough tomato skin and pulp left in tact so that the tomatoes remain firm when stuffed and cooked. Chop the tomato pulp that you have removed, into small pieces.Some people remove the seeds, but I can't see the point of doing that.

Place the cooked rice in a medium sized bowl and add the chopped tomato pulp, dried oregano, chilli flakes, garlic, salt, and chopped black olives or capers. Anchovies also make a delicious addition if they suit your taste.

If the rice mixture is too moist, mix 1 tablespoon or even more fresh breadcrumbs through it, remembering though that the rice will continue to absorb some liquid and flavours during the cooking process. Spoon the rice mixture into the tomatoes, pressing down gently, piling the mixture as high as you dare. 

Now let's dress up these babies. I like to top the stuffed tomatoes with a layer of breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese, and then add their lid.

Pour a very light layer of olive oil into the baking dish. Carefully place the tomatoes in the baking dish and add the tomato lids to the top.I used a Pyrex dish which would easily hold six tomatoes, but as I only had four I packed the cap mushrooms in between the tomatoes and baked them with the tomatoes. The mushrooms were delicious, absorbed the flavours of the tomatoes,  and also kept the tomatoes in position.

If you have potatoes on hand, cut them into small chunks, bake them first, and then bake them again with the tomatoes instead of the mushrooms, or serve both separately.

Pour a little olive oil over the mushrooms and the tomatoes, sprinkle with more fresh grated parmesan cheese and ground black  pepper, and a little more dried oregano.

Cook's notes:

• The quantities I have given are suggestions only depending on what you have on hand. Hopefully all of your tomatoes will be the same size. However if they're not that doesn't matter, as this is a rustic dish. If your tomatoes are smaller, you will just need more of them.
• If you grow your own herbs that's wonderful. Use fresh parsley, basil or oregano, to season your rice, and for garnishing. The more fresh herbs the better.
• I cooked the brown rice first so that it was ready to eat, and that worked perfectly for a stuffing. 
• If you cook with rice, brown or white, during the week make some extra, and then it can be easily used for baked tomatoes later in the week.
• Did you know that rice which has been chilled in the refrigerator after cooking, and then reheated in another dish contains less calories? I'm sticking with that theory anyway.
• Leftover Stuffed Tomatoes can be stored in the refrigerator in a covered container and reheated in the oven or the microwave until just warm. Delicious.

These tomatoes will become a family favourite in no time, and you will know that you are serving a healthy and tasty dish that will accompany most food already on the table.

Happy Friday, and have a nice weekend everyone, thanks for dropping by.

Pauline

 

Shakshuka with Eggs for a Weekend Breakfast or Brunch

Shaksuka is a popular dish in Israel, although it is supposed to have originated from Tunisia in North Africa. I ordered an Italian version of this dish for breakfast, or something very close to it, in the Yarra Valley at a wonderful little Italian cafe in village Healesville, called Essenza. It is only an hour from Melbourne.

Eggplant Parmigiana

Parmigiana, yes please. Freshly picked, tender young Japanese Eggplants are the secret to the success of this recipe, particularly if it is being served up to family or guests who aren't devotees of the eggplant. I try to cook them on the same day they are picked from our garden, or if you don't grow them, they will probably be available at a Farmer's Market and should have been harvested that same morning. 

Slow cooker Tomato Sauce, Rustic Tomato Soup, and a loaf of Sourdough Bread, perfect.

Rustic Tomato Soup

 At the beginning of the week I had tomatoes galore, needing to be cooked. So this week the theme in my kitchen has been mainly about the beautiful, ripe red  tomato, and lots of them. 

Oven Roasted Tomato Sauce

Tomatoes, luscious ripe Roma tomatoes, are still in abundance thank goodness in North Queensland, but soon it will be too hot, and the season will be finished. So much of my cooking at present is about preserving what is seasonal, so that I have it either in my freezer or my pantry when those particular items become too expensive. However, at times I weaken and use those supplies, like last night when we indulged in homemade pasta and whilst I had made a delicious bolognese sauce as well, I just had to try my new Roasted Tomato sauce. I think everyone enjoyed it.

It is so easy but lots of tomatoes are required, so I think it will be a trip to the markets again to buy some more.

Dear friends do you find that you preserve excess quantities of fruit and vegetables for the future but find yourself dipping into them for convenience. I think it just makes life easy at times and takes the pressure off if guests are arriving, After all isn't that what a lot of restaurants do?

This Tomato sauce recipe is a River Cottage classic, obviously made over there with a selection of British tomatoes and this can be the mainstay of a lot of delicious meat based and vegetable cooking.

Trays and trays of tomatoes waiting to be roasted

This recipe makes about 500 ml of sauce

1.5-2 kg ripe tomatoes, larger ones halved (A selection can be used but I used all very ripe Roma tomatoes)
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
A few sprigs of thyme
A couple of sprigs of marjoram if you have it but not essential
2 tablespoons olive oil or canola oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180 deg. C. Lay the tomatoes, cut side up if halved, on a baking try. Scatter the garlic and herbs over the top, trickle over the olive oil, and season with plenty of salt and pepper.

Put the tray in the oven for about an hour, until the tomatoes are completely soft and pulpy, and starting to crinkle and caramelise on top. Yum!

Take the tomatoes out of the oven and set aside the baking tray on a cooling tray  for about half an hour or so.  Depending on the tomatoes, you may not need to rub them through a sieve with a wooden spoon, or use a traditional mouli. I found that my tomatoes just popped out of their skins making it easy to simply process the tomato pulp into a sauce.

Bolognese Meat Sauce recipe

Homemade pasta recipe

Spice up your life with Spicy Tomato Relish

Tomatoes are such a staple and very plentiful and quite well priced up here at the moment and I couldn't imagine life without them, could you? I still had some tomatoes that I bought at Merinda near Bowen, on the way home from Cairns which really needed to be used. I have always loved my Mum's easy tomato relish recipe, but just recently I have been enjoying relishes with a a bit more zing and heat to them, especially when eating cheesy vegetable muffins or vegetable fritters or glazed meats.

GIGANTES or Giant Beans

Greece is on my travel list for the future, however if I can't go there right now, the next best thing is to cook a very typical dish that is eaten in Greece. This is a variation of a recipe from Epirus in Northern Greece where they grow plenty of the giant butter beans called Gigantes, which over there they cook with fresh tomatoes and all kinds of wild greens, and of course lots of olive oil. Sometimes sausages are also added which sounds like a great idea to me, the dish becomes a meal in one. Gigantes means Giants, which gives the name to this dish of giant Greek Lima Beans, and is pronounced yee-gahn-dess. So that is my first Greek word that I have learnt before we travel to Greece. Most of the Greek words I learn will probably centre around food and eating out at restaurants. Isn't that generally the way though?

This dish will feed a crowd and more, and is also a great way of using up fresh tomatoes if you have an abundance. The tinned variety can easily be substituted with fresh tomatoes and I added some fresh oregano from my garden to the tomato sauce as well. Lots of fresh Italian parsley came from the morning Farmer's Market as mine hasn't matured yet.

I would also suggest with this recipe that if you like lots of tomato sauce just double the quantity and use less chicken stock as there will be lots of beans.

GIGANTES

Ingredients:

½ kg dried lima or butter beans, or Gigantes if you can find them

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 cups celery, finely chopped

1 red capsicum, finely chopped

1 medium carrot, cut into cubes

1 410g can of crushed tomatoes

2 onions, finely sliced

2 cloves of garlic

1 tbsp. tomato paste

2 bay leaves

Fresh oregano

1 pinch of chilli flakes (optional)

1 tsp. Hungarian sweet paprika

1 cup Italian parsley, chopped

1 tsp. sugar

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

1 Litre chicken stock (you may not need all of this)

 Feta cheese

Method:

1. Soak the beans overnight covered well in water which will plump them up. Drain the beans and rinse them again.
2. Fill a large saucepan with cold water, and add the beans. Don’t add any salt to the water the beans are boiled in or it will toughen them up. Bring the beans to a boil, simmer for 10 minutes then discard the water. Rinse the beans again.
3. Put the beans back into the same saucepan, and fill with cold water again. The water should be about 2 inches above the beans. Add the bay leaves, celery, capsicum, and carrot, then bring to the boil. When it is bubbling, turn down the heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes.
4. Whilst the beans and vegetables are cooking, cook the tomato sauce. Sauté the onion and garlic in a deep frypan. Add the chilli flakes, tomato paste and crushed tomatoes and paprika. Cook for 5 minutes.
5. Preheat the oven to 180 deg. C. Using a ladle, pour the beans into a baking dish and then add the tomato sauce, salt, pepper and sugar. Mix carefully and thoroughly. Add the chicken stock. The mixture should not be like soup but should not be dry either. Bake for 35 minutes, making sure the beans are cooked.
6. Crumble feta cheese over the top.
7. Sprinkle with fresh chopped parsley, noting that the amount of the parsley depends on the quantity of the beans.
8. Then pour a little bit of extra virgin olive oil over the top.

 Do you enjoy Greek food, and if so what is your favourite dish? Do you enjoy cooking with beans?

Sweet cherry tomato sausage tray bake

Sweet Cherry Tomato Sausage Tray Bake

Thank you Jamie Oliver for the idea to cook another amazing tray bake dish. Using robust herbs like thyme, rosemary and bay leaf, lots of cherry tomatoes, and the best Italian pork sausages you can buy, or any flavoursome sausages really, you end up with an intense combination of caramelised gooey tomato flavours and roasted sausage. Who doesn't love eating sausages?

Ingredients:

2 kg lovely ripe  cherry tomatoes, or mixed colours if possible
2 sprigs fresh thyme
2 sprigs fresh rosemary
2 sprigs fresh bay leaf
1 tablespoon dried oregano, or more if using fresh
3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
12 Italian pork sausages
extra virgin olive oil
balsamic vinegar
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper

Let's cook:

Preheat your oven to 190 deg. C. Use a roasting tray large enough to accommodate all of your tomatoes in one snug fitting layer. Put in all the tomatoes, herb sprigs, oregano, garlic and sausages.

Drizzle well with extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Toss all the ingredients together, and then move the sausages to the top. Place the tray into the oven for half an hour. After this time, give the tray a shake and turn the sausages over. Put back into the oven for 15 to 30 minutes, depending on how sticky and well cooked you like your sausages. The longer you cook the dish, the more caramelised your tomatoes will be. Delicious!

You should have an intense, tomatoey sauce by now. If you think your tomato sauce is a little too thin, lift out the sausages, and place the tray on the stove hotplate and cook it down to the required consistency. When it is quite thick, add the sausages back in. Keep warm in the oven until you are ready to eat.

Check your seasoning and add more salt or pepper.

Serve with crusty bread, mashed potato, rice or polenta. Add a green salad and a glass of wine and you will think you are in heaven.

Jamie says any leftovers, if there are any, should be chopped up the next day, and added to some penne or rigatoni to make a wonderful chunky pasta dish. Great idea!

Best wishes

Pauline

Oven Roasted Ratatouille

This Ratatouille is a very versatile vegetarian dish, which enhances the traditional style, stove top ratatouille which I have usually cooked, by baking the vegetables, and roasting the tomatoes, introducing a delicious, roasted, and caramelised flavour to the dish. 

Honey Roasted Cherry Tomatoes

This is such a simple recipe, and although tomatoes are officially out of season at present, I just managed to buy some beautiful cherry tomatoes at the supermarket  at a reduced price because they had passed the use by date, however were still in excellent condition. This recipe is taken from the River Cottage Veg Everyday cookery book, and whilst I am not vegetarian, we are reducing our meat consumption to what it was, and a dish like this marries beautifully with risotto, grilled or roasted vegetables, or just to quote Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, "piled on toast with a sprinkling of flaky sea salt on top." Perfect. So simple and so delicious. The original recipe uses 1 tablespoon of honey, however I think this could even be reduced to 1/2 tablespoon if you prefer things a little less sweet like me. This depends on how sweet your tomatoes are as well.

Ingredients:
500g cherry tomatoes
2 garlic cloves
1 tablespoon clear honey
3 tablespoons olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method:
Preheat the oven to 190 deg. C/Gas Mark 5. Lightly oil a a medium roasting dish or pie dish. Halve the tomatoes and place them, cut side up, in the dish. Ensure they fit snugly with little or no space between them.

Crush the garlic with a pinch of salt, then beat it with the honey, olive oil and a good grinding of pepper. Because I had quite large organic garlic cloves from nearby Eungella, I mashed them up in my pestle and mortar with the salt and mixed the rest of the ingredients in the bowl.

Spoon the gooey, garlicky mixture over the cherry tomatoes.

Roast for about 30 minutes, until juicy and bubbling.

Divine.

Vintage Tomato Soup

Mr. DIY, often talks fondly about his Mum's homemade tomato soup he used to enjoy as a child on cold Winter's nights in Toowoomba. We were given some beautiful Roma tomatoes from Bowen on the weekend, by our Frequent Traveller and good friend Paul, and I found this recipe for tomato soup in my Maggie Beer's Harvest book., one of my favourites. Apparently the Toowoomba version had milk added, which I couldn't quite come at this time, and had more tomato chunks throughout, however the flavour with the addition of white pepper is apparently just like his Mother Jessie used to make. What a success and such comfort food on a cold night with sourdough toast!

Ingredients:

6 medium tomatoes, very ripe yet firm (Bowen Roma tomatoes work very well)
1 kg onions, thinly sliced (preferably brown onions)
1/3 cup (80ml) extra virgin oil, plus extra to serve
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
sea salt flakes
white pepper
1/2 teaspoon sugar (optional), or to taste
1/2 cup (125ml) Maggie Beer verjuice or dry white wine
1 litre boiling water
4 slices  good bread, slightly stale

Process: 

Cut the core out of the tomatoes. This soup is meant to be on the rustic side so there is no need to peel or seed them.Cut each tomato into halves, quarters then eighths.Cook the onions over a low heat in a heavy-based saucepan for about 10 minutes using a wooden spoon until they are nice and golden and very soft. Add the garlic and salt to the pan and cook for 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes and the sugar, which will enhance the flavour of the tomatoes and give a boost if they are not in perfect condition.

Cook for 10 minutes and then add the verjuice and water. I only added half the water so that it would be nice and thick, and the water can be eliminated  completely for a superior soup which won't go as far. This can then also be used as a pasta topping.

Add plenty of white pepper to taste. (This is the secret ingredient.) Simmer, covered for 45 minutes before serving. Drizzle a little olive oil over each slice of bread and place a slice in each serving bowl. (This is optional depending on the occasion.)

Ladle the soup over the bread and enjoy. Add fresh herbs if you would like them, however the soup is delicious without them.

Semi sundried tomatoes infused with rosemary

In March I wrote a post about growing Amish Paste tomatoes. I was expecting to harvest from our bushes within 80 days, and only about a month later than expected,  the harvest has started. Because of their low moisture content, lack of seeds, meaty like flesh, and extraordinary flavour, semi dried tomatoes are the first "cooked" product I am attempting with these. I know that sun-dried tomatoes were thrown into every conceivable dish during the early 1990's, however I think that semi dried tomatoes are still a force to be reckoned with because of their unique flavour.

 The Amish Paste tomato bushes have never been spectacular to look at and had a very understated start as young plants. Like the Amish who first grew them on a large scale, the species isn't about external appearances, it is about the bountiful yield and the end product as the tomatoes are plentiful, perfectly formed, and  larger than the roma or egg  tomato.

I have cooked two batches of the Amish semi dried tomatoes, and Mr. DIY, my Man of the House, was so taken with the flavour of the first batch cooked slowly in the kitchen oven, that he decided to help and factor in some improvements with the cooking process of the second batch. These were cooked slowly in the BBQ which must have a hood, and which I thought was probably a good idea as it frees up the kitchen oven for other projects and takes the heat out of the kitchen in the summer months. However, still a little bit nervous about venturing out of my kitchen on such an important mission, the preparation began.

I experimented with the first batch, cooking one tray with the addition of fresh herbs and one without to see if this makes any difference to the quality of their preservation. I will  store some in the frig, some in my dark pantry cupboard, and some in the freezer for quality control as I also live in a hot, humid part of the world in summer. Maggie Beer says they will last in the frig for weeks. I am hoping that the couple of bottles stored in my pantry will last longer. Dipping them in Maggie Beer's Verjuice or Red Cider Vinegar before bottling increases the acidification process slightly and will increase their shelf life. However, tomatoes are very acidic anyway.

Ingredients:
2 kilos Amish Paste or Roma ripened tomatoes (these must be good quality without blemishes)
Fresh rosemary stalks or fresh thyme
Verjuice or Red Cider Vinegar (Verjuice isn't as strong in flavour as Red Cider Vinegar)
Salt
Sterilised bottles
Extra Virgin Oil
Lots of time whilst they cook (2 hours at least)

Method:
1.Wash tomatoes, dry, and cut in halves.

2.Scrape out the seeds and discard if you wish. (However, I have dried the seeds between sheets of recycled serviettes in a warm area of the house, which can then be used for future planting as they are such good tomatoes, and it saves buying seedlings next time.)

3.Salt the cut tomatoes, with only as much salt as you would normally use for eating, and press them for 30 minutes between layers of  absorbent kitchen wrap, with a  heavy layer of books and pans on top to squeeze out excess moisture. My second batch of tomatoes destined for the BBQ were pressed by Mr. DYI between large pieces of board and kitchen wrap clamped together, in his shed, with quality cleanliness controls in place of course. Much more moisture was removed this way. His inventions are priceless.

4.Sprinkle the tomatoes lightly with chopped rosemary or thyme. The second batch cooked in the BBQ oven was sprinkled with chopped rosemary and the rosemary stalks placed on the trays to further infuse the tomatoes with the smell of rosemary.

5.Place the pressed tomatoes in the oven or in the BBQ on racks so that the air can circulate freely around them and cook slowly at 150 deg. C for 2 hours or until all of the moisture has disappeared, the tomatoes are reduced in size, and the edges are firm and wrinkled. Some tomatoes will cook faster than others, so after an hour keep an eye on them. It helps to open the door slightly in the kitchen oven for the last hour to allow the moisture to escape. If you would like to eat the tomatoes straight away or within the next few days cooking them at 180 deg. C for a shorter time will caramelise them beautifully.

The smell of the tomatoes cooking in the BBQ, combined with the heady aroma of the rosemary was sensational reminding me of cold wintry nights spent in log cabins with the wood fires burning. That was a bonus. The subtle smell of rosemary is still perceptible in the house a day later.

Halved tomatoes cooking at 150 deg. in the outdoor BBQ infusing with rosemary.

Semi dried tomatoes straight out of the BBQ oven

Remove the tomatoes from the oven, leave on racks to cool and dry, before bottling.

Dip the semi dried tomatoes quickly in Verjuice or Red Cider Vinegar to increase the acidification process, and bottle in clean sterilised jars, covered in Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Pack the tomatoes down tightly, and ensure the top layer of tomatoes is completely covered with oil and that the oil doesn't touch the lid of the bottle.

Enjoy with fresh goats cheese and some good crusty homemade bread or bruschetta.

If you have had success with cooking semi dried tomatoes I would love to hear from you and have you tried any interesting variations with cooking them?

State of Origin Pizza BBQ style

Click here for recipe:

Maroon is our favorite color tonight, it's State of Origin , Mr. HRK is excited and dinner is his choice. It's kind of like Make it like a Man.  Well, it is actually traditional for us to make pizzas on State of Origin night, and he has excelled himself. They must be cooked in the BBQ oven, and the dough is thin and crispy, perfect. This is partly due to a gift I bought him recently, a pizza tray with holes in the base and slightly elevated. My homemade passata topping provides an aromatic and flavoursome addition. A glass of red or rather maroon wine, a nice Pinot Noir and we are set for the game.

Our BBQ has been utilised in a variety of ways today. Mr. HRK has roasted his coffee beans to perfection in his homemade coffee roasting drum. I chargrilled some of our homegrown eggplants, blackened the skins, in preparation for making my Baba Ganoush. This was followed by the pizza.

Pizza dough recipe:

400g (14oz/2 2/3 cups) plain flour
14 g (1/2 oz/1 tablespoon) dried yeast
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
250ml (9 fl oz/1 cup) lukewarm water
3 teaspoons olive oil

1. Place the flour, yeast, sugar and salt in a bowl and make a well in the centre. Combine the water and olive oil and add to the flour mixture. Use a wooden spoon and then your hands to  mix a dough.
2. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 5 minutes or until smooth and elastic.
3. Place the dough in an oiled bowl and turn to coat lightly in the oil. Cover loosely with a clean, slightly damp tea towel or plastic wrap and set aside in a warm, draught-free place for 1 hour or until doubled in size.
4. Knock back the dough by punching your fist into the centre of the dough. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 2-3 minutes or until smooth and elastic. Use immediately as directed.

Add your favourite toppings to the pizza. Allow approximately 10 minutes cooking time in the BBQ with the hood down. As you can see there is a lot meat on this pizza because it's football tonight. However add lots of other toppings such as capsicum and mushrooms if you wish.

TIP:

For a crispy base, sprinkle grated mozzarella cheese over the base first, then add your homemade aromatic passata or bought tomato sauce and place in blobs over the cheese. 

Then add the remainder of your favourite toppings, remembering simple is best with pizza, including lots of home grown oregano and basil and you are on your way to the traditional Pizza Margherita.

(The dough recipe is taken from "Make me pizza", published by Murdoch books.

Variations to the dough:

Wholemeal pizza dough:

Replace the plain flour with 400g (14 oz/2 2/3 cups) wholemeal flour and add an extra 50 ml (1 1/2 fl oz ) lukewarm water

Rosemary pizza dough:

After kneading in step 2, add 2 teaspoons very finely chopped rosemary and knead for another 1 minute to incorporate.

Parmesan pizza dough:

After kneading in step 2, add 40 g (1 1/2 oz) finely freshly grated parmesan cheese and knead for another 1 minute to incorporate.

Warm wishes, 

Pauline

Tomato Relish Passata

Bowen tomatoes are a must if you are travelling north. This recipe is adapted from my Tomato Relish recipe, to become a thick passata suitable for pizza bases and bolognese sauce or other Italian dishes.  I was just given some ripening and cheaply priced Bowen tomatoes by our friend Paul,  who bought them from a roadside stall just near Bowen.  After ripening in my kitchen, they cooked up beautifully.

Ingredients:

3 kgs tomatoes
4 large onions
1 clove garlic
1 chilli (according to your taste)
1-2 cups sugar (according to your taste)
1 tablsp. curry powder (optional)
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
2 cups red wine vinegar or other good quality vinegar
3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil and oregano

Method:

Quarter the tomatoes and chop the onions and chilli finely.
Crush the garlic.
Add all of the ingredients to a large pot and bring to the boil.
Reduce to a simmer for 2 hours and reduce the mixture by a quarter. Cook longer if needed.
Place a teaspoon of the mixture in a small bowl, allow to cool and taste it, and then season with salt and pepper or add other ingredients according to taste.

Allow to cool slightly and fill your warm sterilised bottles.