Know when to fold 'em

As I didn't follow this maxim last night, I had one too many cocktails and felt like a complete space cadet this morning. Oh me, I'm just not as young as I once was. After I dropped J off at school, I hauled it to the gym to sweat it out, then chugged some Chia seed drink and took a shower. I have definitely found that when you don't feel mah-velous, it really helps to look as mah-velous as you can (to very roughly paraphrase Billy Crystal). Thusly, I styled my hair! Put on a real outfit! Earrings! Mascara! It's helping. Now I simply feel a bit vague... I do know to fold 'em, however, when it comes to winter tomatoes. Folks, winter tomatoes are not good. They are mushy, pale and wan and really have no redeeming qualities. BUT if you're grooving for a taste of pomodori, there is one way to get the most out of them, and that is to oven-dry them. The best variety for this is the plum, or Roma, tomato. Wash, slice in half lengthwise, drizzle with a bit of olive oil, and slow-roast, cut side up, in a very low-heat oven, 200° or 225° for many hours, until the halves are sunken and puckered. The flesh will dry out a bit, the flavor will have concentrated, and the smell? Well, you just might recognize it as tomato!

You can toss a few garlic cloves on them too, if you want to go that direction. Either way, these make a tasty treat, on their own, on toast as a winter bruschetta, drizzled with toasted breadcrumbs and parsley, and so on. I've got mine in the oven now!