Our second pick for our Instagram Giveaway with Chronicle Books this week is Gjelina, a cookbook capturing the flavors of Venice Beach with its recipes for trout, roasted kale and pizza with spinach, feta and garlic confit! Pair this baby with a Razor Clam apron and you're ready to whip up some truly Southern California fare for your friends. We picked an amazing Cherry Tomato Confit as the recipe today. We even made it last week for staff meal. Enjoy!
Cherry Tomato Confit
Makes 4 cups [800 G]
This confit is somewhat luxurious and takes a bit of extra effort to produce, but the little pearls of tomato flesh are sweeter and more delicate than our regular Tomato Confit. We spoon these over grilled vegetables or fish. Try them in Grilled Summer Squash, Za’atar & Cherry Tomato Confit.
2 pt [760 g] Sun Gold cherry tomatoes, stemmed
2 cups [480 ml] extra-virgin olive oil, plus more as needed
4 garlic cloves, smashed
½ cup [15 g] basil leaves
1 tsp kosher salt
3 fresh thyme sprigs
Preheat the oven to 350°F [180°C]. Bring a large pot of water to boil over high heat. Prepare an ice-water bath by filling a large bowl with ice water.
Use a paring knife to score a small X in the bottom of each tomato. Plunge the tomatoes into the boiling water for 20 seconds, and immediately transfer them to the ice-water bath. Work in batches, if necessary, until all the tomatoes have been blanched.
When the cherry tomatoes are cool, remove them from the water. With your fingers, gently slip the tomatoes out of their skins and place them in a single layer in a baking dish. Pour the olive oil over the tomatoes and add the garlic, basil, salt, and thyme. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes, or until the oil is hot but the tomatoes remain vibrant and whole. Let cool completely.
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks, completely covered with olive oil to prevent air from reaching them.
You'll catch us making this confit all summer! Putting it on pretty much everything. Because why not?!