Two wonderful tomato recipes - one for winter, one for summer.

Oven-Roasted Canned Tomatoes

2 - 28 ounce cans peeled whole tomatoes, drained, halved and seeded (I like home grown, Hunts, Red Gold or Muir Glen)

1/2 to 2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil

14 large fresh basil leaves, torn

2 - 4 inch branches fresh rosemary

1/2 medium red onion, cut into 1/4 inch dice

5 large cloves garlic, coarsely chopped

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Spread the tomatoes out in a large shallow pan (a half-sheet pan works well) and sprinkle with the remaining ingredients, turning to coat them with oil.

Bake 2 1/4 to 2 1/2 hours, basting and turning the tomatoes several times. They're done when their color deepens to dark scarlet and they taste mellow and rich. Don't let them brown, or allow the garlic to brown, as it will turn bitter.

Transfer the tomatoes and their oil to a glass bowl. Let them mellow, uncovered, at room temperature up to 6 hours.

Refrigerate up to 4 days or freeze in sealed plastic containers up to 3 months.

Serve at room temperature.

These tomatoes are wonderful tossed with pasta, in salads, or served as bruschetta.

Oven-Candied Summer Tomatoes

2 to 2 1/2 pounds flavorful ripe medium-sized tomatoes (don't use plum unless they are extremely flavorful)

1 cup robust extra-virgin olive oil

Kosher salt

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Core the tomatoes and halve vertically. Do not seed. Leave small tomatoes in halves; cut slightly larger tomatoes into 4 wedges; medium ones into 6; and large into 8. Arrange the tomato wedges cut side up, about 1/2 to 1 inch apart, in a large shallow metal pan (a half-sheet pan works well). Coat the tomatoes with the oil and sprinkle with salt.

Bake 30 minutes, then lower the heat to 350 degrees and bake another 30 minutes. Turn the heat down to 300 degrees and bake 30 more minutes, or until the edges are slightly darkened. If the edges are not yet colored after the last 30 minutes, turn the heat down to 250 degrees and bake another 10 to 15 minutes.

Remove the tomatoes from the oven. Cool 20 minutes. Transfer to a shallow glass dish and pour their oil over them. Let them mellow, uncovered, at room temperature up to 6 hours.

Layer the tomatoes in a storage container, pouring their oil over them, and refrigerate up to 6 days. Or freeze the tomatoes in their oil in sealed plastic containers up to 3 months.

Serve at room temperature.

These tomatoes can be substituted when sun-dried tomatoes are called for, and are delicious served as bruschetta.

Easy Mexican Bean Sidedish

Pinto Beans with Cilantro, Bacon and Tequila

2 - 16 oz cans pinto beans (use their sauce, or if preferred an equal amount of chicken stock)

4 thick slices bacon, cut into 1/2 inch pieces (use more if you only have thin sliced)

1 small white onion, diced into 1/4 inch pieces

Fresh green chili to taste (appx 2 serranos or 1 jalapeno), stemmed, seeded and sliced

Salt, appx 3/4 tsp

1 1/2 Tbsp tequila (a little more to taste if you'd like)

1/4 cup roughly chopped cilantro

In a medium skillet, fry the bacon, stirring regularly, until crisp. With a slotted spoon, remove the bacon, leaving behind as much of the drippings as possible. Pour off all but about 2 tablespoons of the drippings and return the pan to medium heat. Add the onion and chiles and fry until deep golden brown, being careful not to burn, about 10 minutes. Scrape the onion/chili mixture into the beans and their sauce/chicken stock and season with salt. Simmer, stirring occasionally, for 20 - 30 minutes to blend flavors.

If the beans seem quite soupy, boil over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, till a nice thick consistency (or, puree a bit of the beans in a blender, returning them to the pot to thicken the broth).

Just before serving, stir in the tequila and cilantro, then serve with crumbled bacon.

Turkey Brine

Turkey Brine

We are all so busy with all the Thanksgiving prep, so believe it or not the simple route to a great bird is the simplest brine. #1 and #2 are that and yield a tender and succulent turkey.

BUT if you are roasting a kosher or self-basting turkey, you DO NOT need to brine it; it has already been injected with sodium.

Turkey Brine #1

4 - 8 hour brine

Dissolve 1 cup salt/gallon water

12 - 14 hour brine

Dissolve 1/2 cup salt/gallon water

Two gallons of water is sufficient for most birds; larger birds may require three gallons.

A nifty way to dissolve the salt - place salt in a large pot, add about a quart of the water, heat on very low flame till salt dissolves. Add more water if needed to dissolve the salt (use as little as possible so you don't have to waste time letting the brine cool before adding your turkey). Add the remaining cold water.

Make sure the brine is cool, then place the turkey and brine in a large plastic bag and/or bucket. Refrigerate. Brine the required hours as above.

Rinse turkey well before roasting.

I have NEVER been disappointed with this simple brining method.

Turkey Brine #2

Same as above, but add 1 cup sugar/gallon to the 4 - 8 hour brine, 1/2 cup sugar/gallon to the 12 - 14 hour brine.

Turkey Brine #3

I've used variations on this, and honestly my palate is not sophisticated enough to tell if there is a big difference. You might. You can omit one or more of the ingredients if they're not in your pantry, or add other herbs and spices you enjoy, and still come up with a great combo for the brine. Again, if your bird is kosher or self-basting, it has already been injected with sodium, so brining is redundant. The salt to water ratio remains the same as in the basic brine.

1 Tbsp mustard seed, whole

1 star anise, whole

1/4 cup black peppercorns, whole

1 large cinnamon stick, broken into pieces

12 juniper berries, whole

Toast the above in a heavy bottom stock pot till they emit a fragrant aroma.

Add 1 1/2 gallons water and the following:

3 cups kosher salt

1 1/2 cup light brown sugar

2 onions, roughly chopped

1 head garlic, cut in half across bulb

1 bunch parsley

1 bunch thyme

6 sprigs rosemary

3 oranges, halved

2 lemons, halved

Place the brine on a medium-low heat until the salt and sugar dissolve. Add 1 1/2 gallons water. Let cool, then place the turkey and brine in a large plastic bag and/or a bucket. Refrigerate 8 hours. Rinse turkey well before roasting.