'Tis The Tomato

I had the most delicious tomato salad the other day at Houstons on Park Avenue. Despite an embarrassing culinary faux pas, I do believe I have resurrected the error and have become a better person for it. The backstory on the culinary calamity has everything to do with my inexperience with alcohol and perhaps a little to do with my limited knowledge on the various varieties of tomatoes. I am, what I consider, to be a beer and wine girl. I often have cravings for a good margarita, but have never really developed the know how on vodka, gin and other types of alcohol (Campari included). Cognizant that this is a fatal flaw in NYC, I have managed to survive and have not lost any friends over it.

Back to my tomato salad... So the salad de jour at Houstons was Campari tomatoes with fresh basil. Instantly intrigued, I ordered thinking the tomatoes were marinated in Campari and this would be the backdoor into expanding my alcohol repertoire. Despite my anticipation, the tomatoes tasted nothing like alcohol. They were, and this must be emphasized, the best tasting tomatoes I have ever had!! They were cut in half, drizzled with the best extra virgin olive oil, and sprinkled with coarse sea salt and black pepper. A fresh basil leaf was delicately placed on each tomato half. The tomatoes were perfectly ripe and juicy.

Still believing I was eating Campari marinated tomatoes, I began planning my next meal, which would of course include this delightful salad. The next day I googled "Campari and tomatoes" hoping to get some cooking tips when I discovered my culinary faux pas. I was mortified by my discovery and had it not been for the discovery occurring in the privacy of my own office, I might have died. To my utter astonishment, the salad I had at Houstons consisted of campari tomatoes - not tomatoes marinated in Campari. I feel obligated to share with you all my discovery. A campari tomato is a new variety of tomato. It is a perfectly round, roughly the size of a golf ball and deep in a red color. For more information, I suggest visiting www. eatcamparitomatoes.com. Take a look for campari tomatoes in a store near you!!

To my relief, I have completely recovered from this mishap and have a new outlook on life. The next drink I order will be a Campari and soda and my tomato basil salads will be forever made with campari tomatoes!

'Tis the Tomato! Until next time!

PS and NEWS FLASH: All across the North and South Forks of Long Island, field ripened tomatoes are being picked this week. Big, fat, juicy field tomatoes, they are among the very best tomatoes on the East Coast, and they are ready on your favorite farm stands.
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