Fresh from the garden or farmer’s market, ripe tomatoes are simmered with celery, onions, green peppers, and a handful of aromatic herbs.
Ingredients :
1 pound ripe tomatoes
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 rib celery finely diced
¼ cup diced green bell pepper
¼ cup finely diced onion
1 clove garlic minced
¼ teaspoon dried basil
¼ teaspoon salt or to taste
¼ teaspoon granulated sugar
Directions :
Prepare a large bowl of ice water. Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil. Cut a small 'X' in the bottom of the tomatoes and drop them into the boiling water, let cook 30 seconds. With a slotted spoon, transfer the tomatoes to the ice water to cool.
Once cool, peel the skins off the tomatoes and discard. Core the tomatoes and cut into chunks.
In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the celery, bell pepper, onion, and garlic. Cook for 3 minutes or until the onion is tender. Add the tomatoes, basil, salt, and sugar.
Cover and reduce the heat to low. Let the tomatoes stew until tender, stirring occasionally, about 35 minutes.
