I was so intrigued by this recipe I had to cook it! The natural sweetness of the scorched tomatoes is enhanced by the honey and orange flower water, but it also has a savoury edge. Wolfert suggests serving it atop a little couscous, or with some grilled flatbread – both of which would be delicious. I served this with bite sized sausage rolls when we had mates over for drinks. This preserve gave the sausage rolls a sophisticated twist.
Makes 1 ½ – 2 cups
2 pounds (approximately 1 kg) red ripe Roma or other tomatoes
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 ½ tablespoons honey, preferably wildflower honey
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon (I used half a quill of cinnamon, not ground, and pulled it out of the tomatoes just before serving)
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 teaspoon orange flower water
1 to 2 teaspoons sesame seeds
1. Preheat the oven to 450˚F (approximately 220˚C) Arrange tomatoes on a baking sheet and roast turning occasionally, until charred and soft, about 1 hour. Let cool, then peel, core, seed and coarsely chop to make about 1 ½ – 2 cups (do not use a food processor).
2. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet (frying pan) until shimmering. Add the tomatoes and cook over moderately high heat, stirring frequently, until all the liquid has evaporated and the tomatoes are sizzling and beginning to brown, about 8 minutes.
3. Add the honey, cinnamon, and salt and pepper to taste. Cook for a minute to bring up the flavours. Remove from the heat and let cool. Add the orange flower water and correct the seasoning adding more cinnamon if desired. Serve in a flat bowl, garnished with a topping of sesame seeds.
Paula Wolfert’s book was not written in conjunction with Slow Food, yet it bears close ties to the ideals the movement propounds. She has collated authentic recipes from North Africa to Spain, France and Italy that sing the praises of slow cooking. She notes these are recipes for the passionate cook but they are not difficult to replicate, just time consuming (the only real difficulty lies in the conversion into metric).