Tomato Basil Butter: Summer Taste Year Round

This is the third summer I have grown tomato plants in front of my house. It began by accident one year when my husband and I pulled up the Yew bushes the house came with. We were planting perennial flowers from a friends garden when our neighbor said the space really needed tomatoes, and it just so happens he had 4 starts that he did not know what to do with. Well the tomato plants were so productive in the front of my house that I quickly decided to do it every year. Last year we were able to eat tomatoes year round from those plants. This year my plants are bigger then ever, more like trees then bushes. They are impressive enough that people have stopped their cars to ask me for advice on growing tomatoes. The only thing I can tell them is compost, Gardener's Supply Tomato Fertilizer, and Southern exposure.

I have been fearful of late tomato blight all summer but still optimistic, until this weekend. On Sunday another neighbor warned me that his tomatoes had late tomato blight. The very next day I went to pick tomatoes and found signs of blight. So I had to decide, what is the most important item to make with my tomatoes for the winter. What would leave the largest culinary hole if it was missing?

While I can crushed tomatoes and tomatoes in their own juice for year round consumption, that is less about the flavor impact of using home grown tomatoes and more about using local food as much as I can. However every year I make at least a quadruple batch of Tomato Basil Butter using a recipe by Ruthanna at Garden Web's cooking forum and recipe exchange. Tomato basil butter is a year round staple in my kitchen that can produce gourmet meals easily and quickly. Most often I use this butter when preparing fish. I have however been known to put some on top of rice or vegetables. I am sure that you could prepare tofu or chicken in a similar way to the fish and have wonderful results.

The balance of flavors in this butter is wonderful, the lemon provides a high flavor note while there is the familiar sweetness of the tomatoes, the bite of the garlic and the earthy sweet flavor of the fresh basil. Of course the butter does not hurt either...

Ruthanna's Tomato Basil Butter

1 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 1/2 cups peeled, seeded and chopped tomatoes (about 1 lb. if you must you can substitute canned tomatoes but do not use supermarket fresh tomatoes. Vine ripened summer tomatoes are really the best choice)

2 tsp minced garlic

1/2 cup unsalted butter softened

2 tsp grated lemon zest (I always take the lemon after, squeeze it into a small plastic container and freeze it for the next time I have a recipe that calls for the juice of 1 lemon without the zest)

1/2 tsp salt

1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup minced fresh basil

Heat the oil in a small skillet (when making a double batch I use my large non stick saute pan). Add the tomatoes and garlic and cook over medium to high heat, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes form a puree that will mound, about 10 minutes. Let cool before putting the softened butter in a bowl and then adding the tomato puree and all the remaining ingredients. Place the butter on to a sheet of wax paper or parchment and roll into a log. Wrap the log in aluminum foil and refrigerate or freeze (personally I always freeze it, I have been able to store it in the freezer for 1 year or even longer).

Fish with Tomato Basil Butter

4 fish fillets, or 1 for each person (works with salmon, flounder, tilapia, bluefish...)

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil (the measurement here is a guesstimate, I add enough to coat the bottom of the pan)

1 cup white wine (use a wine you enjoying drinking with fish, or if you don't drink use stock or water)

1 1/4 inch thick slice tomato basil butter per fish fillet

Season the fish with kosher salt and black pepper on both sides. Heat the olive oil in a large nonstick saute pan. Brown the fish on both sides over high heat, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Add the wine and bring to a boil and then turn down to a simmer. Place a piece of tomato basil butter on each fillet and cook the fish for 4 to 5 minutes per side until it flakes easily when you press it with a finger or fork. Serve at once. (alternatively you can put the butter on the fish after turning it.)

Pineapple Watermelon Avocado and Feta Salad with Basil

I spent a lot of time since I discovered the featured ingredients in this weeks battle pondering the flavor options. I decided not to do any of the standard dishes with basil and pineapple, so no pizza, fried rice, South East Asian or salsa. I briefly flirted with the idea of a basil ice cream with pineapple chunks mixed in. My boys originally loved the ice cream idea until they really heard that I said basil ice cream. Then they encouraged me to go with another idea. Even though both boys will happily eat basil right off the plant.

When my mother was still alive she used to make an excellent flank steak marinated with soy sauce, sherry and dried herbs. I have no clue what cook book that recipe was from nor do I know what the ratios are that she used. However I have been making my own variations for over 20 years now. Mine is an ever changing recipe which can change based on my current mood and what goodies I find in the fridge (there was a memorable version where I included jam that was taking up room in my fridge). When I make it I often include orange juice as one of the ingredients.

So for the first dish in battle pineapple basil I decided to make a marinated flank steak with fresh pineapple juice and basil. The only trick would be actually paying attention to and recording the ingredients and their quantities.

As an accompaniment to the steak I thought about making a green papaya salad with pineapple. However that was clearly a South East Asian inspired recipe and perhaps it is not in good form to use a blog post from a judge as a spring board. However I still liked the idea of a salad that nudges the pineapple into the savory side. So I decided on a grilled pineapple salad with feta and basil. My inspiration for this salad came from a watermelon feta salad recipe from last summers Edible Boston. I have never made it but it has been on my to try list for a while and I have really enjoyed the other recipes I have tried by its creator.

I decided to grill the pineapple to sweeten it and mellow the acidity. The original salad called for mint so I decided I would include mint with the basil in my pineapple version. When I was still talking out my ideas with another foodie friend she said I should use purple basil in the salad for looks and then let me raid her garden for the basil.

So how did the pineapple and basil dishes turn out? The flank steak was excellent, as it always is through all the permutations I have made over the years. The interesting thing was the marinade did not taste right until I added the basil. Usually I don't use either pineapple or basil in this dish but the pineapple really needed the basil to balance its acidity and sharp flavor. However I don't think the steak was any better then the other versions. Just another example of delicious flank steak.

The pineapple salad I ended up with however was just what I wanted. Although there was a small problem where I grilled the pineapple, dressed the salad and discovered that the grilled pineapple did not have the clean flavor that I wanted. To be honest I hated the taste. Happily I had not added/wasted the feta cheese yet. So at 5:30 p.m. I ran out to the store to get another pineapple, a watermelon and avocado. My neighbors who were coming over for dinner at 6 were only slightly confused to see me running off.

The end result was worth the second trip to the store and the running around crazily to get dinner on the table. The watermelon, feta and avocado all melt in your mouth but they still have different textures and ways of melting. The pineapple, the star ingredient, retains its bite and gives you something to chew and the basil really brought all the flavors together. In the final salad I did not use the mint as its inclusion also seemed off in the grilled version. The flavor was really clean and light, partially because I realized when making the grilled version that I did not want any olive oil in the dressing, only lime juice. Everyone who tried the salad loved it. For the record nobody under the age of 8 had any. But our neighbor Ada, who is 8 loved it. My children and her brother refused to even try it, that's okay, Ada ate their share.

The salad and the steak worked really wonderfully together. A nice combination of textures and flavors. I also made a potato salad that I was tempted to add basil and pineapple to. I decided that would have been overkill. My neighbors also brought over kid friendly potatoes with butter and parsley and zucchini and squash sauteed with onions. Thomas is founder and co-owner of Arethusa collective farm in the Intervale, so I consider myself lucky that they brought over a modest bowl full of zucchini instead of filling my car with 500 pounds of it. Maybe it is still early in the season for that, I must remember to keep my car locked though.

Pineapple Watermelon Avocado and Feta Salad with Basil

2 cups fresh pineapple chopped into bite sized pieces, about 1/2 to 3/4 inches

2 cups watermelon chopped into cubes about the same size as the pineapple

1 ripe Haas avocado pitted, peeled and cut into bite sized pieces

1 scallion chopped (assuming the scallion is fresh use all of it, pale and dark green)

1 Tbsp chopped fresh basil or more to taste (use purple basil if you can get it)

1 Tbsp fresh lime juice

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 cup feta crumbled

Combine all the ingredients except the feta in a serving bowl. Crumble the feta on top and serve. This salad should be served right away.

Pineapple Basil Marinated Flank Steak

1 1/2 cups fresh pineapple juice (although I am sure it would be good with frozen, but this was a competition)

1/2 cup soy sauce

3/4 cup dry sherry

1/4 cup real maple syrup

1 Tbsp crushed garlic

2 Tbsp sherry vinegar

1/4 tsp tabasco (optional, or use more if their will be no kids dining with you)

1 tsp deli mustard (dijon would also be good)

1 Tbsp packed basil

1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Freshly Ground Black Pepper to taste

1 flank steak

Combine all the marinade ingredients in a blender and blend until the basil is chopped fine. You can also use a mini food processor and the basil, oil and some of the other liquids if like me you hate cleaning your blender. Place the steak and enough marinade to cover in a non reactive dish and marinate for 2 hours. Do not marinate for too long as the pineapple juice will start to break down the meat. Preheat your grill until hot, place the meat on the grill and turn it to medium high. Grill on the first side for 3 to 5 minutes, turn over and grill until the internal temperature is 120 ° to 135 °, about 3 to 5 minutes longer. Allow to rest for 5 to 10 minutes before slicing thinly on the bias.

Extra marinade can be used to marinate chicken, pork or more steak. It can also be frozen for later use. Now if you will excuse me I am off to read Twilight. I borrowed it last week but I decided that a book that all my friends could not put down would have to wait until after Foodie Fights.