Slow-Roasted Cherry Tomatoes

In the last couple of weeks my tomato plants have been producing tons of cherry tomatoes. Last summer I discovered the best way to use up an excess of cherry tomatoes: slow roast them. Chop them in half, throw them in a baking pan with olive oil, garlic, herbs, and salt, and they shrink up and become incredibly sweet when baked at a low heat. If you’ve never had them you’re in for a treat.

Slow-Roasted Cherry Tomatoes

From Smitten Kitchen

Cherry or grape tomatoes
Whole gloves of garlic, unpeeled
Olive oil
Herbs such as thyme or rosemary (optional)

Preheat oven to 225°F. Halve each cherry or grape tomato crosswise. Arrange on a parchment-lined baking sheet cut-side up, along with the cloves of garlic. Drizzle or spray with olive oil, just enough to make the tomatoes glisten. Sprinkle a bit of salt and pepper and the coarsely-torn herbs onto the tomatoes. Bake the tomatoes in the oven for about three hours, checking them after two hours. You want them to be shriveled and dry, but with a little juice left inside. The time will vary based on the size of your tomatoes.
Either use them right away or let them cool and keep them in the fridge. Remove the skin from the garlic and enjoy with the tomatoes.

I eat these with cheese on crackers, but I’ve also had them in a sandwich, in salads, and on pizza. They’d also be great in a pasta dish or even in a salsa. Basically use them anywhere you’d use fresh or sun-dried tomatoes.