An Open Apology Letter to my Tomato Plants

It's sad, isn't it. When I look at you, I want to cry. I'm sure if you saw yourselves in a mirror, you'd want to cry, too. Your withered, dry, unproductive state is enough to make anyone run to the closest Farmer's Market and search for the best homegrown tomatoes one can find.  I have to agree.   I know, I know, I made promises I couldn't keep....

• You were planted a little late in the season. Okay, a probably more than just a little late...I'm going to say late May.
• I failed at protecting you from the elements. Okay, it's been 100 degrees for the last 43 days in a row-nobody could protect you from the elements.
• On occasion, I neglected to hydrate you properly. Okay, I traveled more this summer than I have in years and didn't create a watering program for you in my absence. My bad. 

I did, however, do a few things right for you.

• You often were the target of Labrador urination attempts-but I was able to direct the elimination process elsewhere.
• Stakes-I couldn't wait to stake you guys and you did beautifully-for a while.
• Little hands and fingers found your leaves quite interesting and I spent quite a but of time redirecting those hands away from your precious harvest. (by precious, I mean SIX total tomatoes from 3 plants)

And while we're on that topic, seriously? SIX total tomatoes all year? You were so promising-with your little flowers that bloomed-just waiting for a burst of tomatoes to appear-that never did.  And those that I did harvest tasted...tasteless. What a disappointment! We were even poised with the video as we took our first-and last-bite. It tasted like nothing. 

Sorry, I digress.

So, tomato plants #'s 1-3,  I apologize for not taking better care of you this summer. Had Dallas not experienced its most severe heat wave on record, perhaps we would have had a fighting chance.

While I won't be needing any of the 25-things-to-do-with-fresh-tomatoes lists, I encourage those of you who had banner tomato crops this year to make sauce,  eat them like apples ans share with others.  Oh, I'm available to take them off your hands, too.

Oppressive Heat and An Abundance of Tomatoes

After tending to my precious patio tomato plants all summer, I harvested my one and only ripe tomato today. I came in from the sweltering heat completely deflated. At first glance, it looked deformed, malnourished and far from beautiful. At second glance, it looked exactly the same. I hesitated to take a bite, and much to my chagrin, it was sweet, juicy and delicious! So came my inspiration for today's post-a recipe for gazpacho. Inspiration comes from many places and for this recipe, it actually came from more than my one little tomato. Actually, I have my colleagues Wendy Jo Peterson, Penny Wilson and Ellie Krieger to thank today. Wendy sent this pictures of her recent harvest which nearly brought me to tears. (I was so jealous) Penny then posted on her Facebook status that in honor of the 100 degree heat (she's in Houston), she made Ellie's recipe for Gazpacho with Shrimp from her book, So Easy. With it being a steamy sweat box here in airless Dallas, this was a perfect combination for my own concoction for my Oppressive Heat Gazpacho recipe. Yes, yes, I had to go to the grocery store to get more tomatoes...but it was no bother, believe me. They blast the AC in the grocery store to the point it feels like the arctic. Nice and refreshing.

Oppressive Heat Gazpacho

1 quart Mr. and Mrs. T's Bold and Spicy Bloody Mary Mix (can use any brand of tomato juice or Bloody Mary mix-low sodium version is best)
1/2 white onion, rough chop
1 1/2 English cucumber, peeled and rough chop
1 large red bell pepper, seeded, cored and roughly chopped
1 large yellow or orange pepper, seeded, cored and roughly chopped
1 pound tomatoes, rough chop
2 Tablespoons olive oil
3 Tablespoons red wine vinegar (or to taste)
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Salt (if using low sodium version of Bloody Mary Mix or Tomato Juice), to taste
1/2 pound cooked shrimp
1/2 avocado for garnish

In a heavy duty blender or food processor, combine 1/2 of the onion, 1/2 of the cucumber, 1/2 of each of the peppers, 1/2 of the tomatoes and 1/2 of the Bloody Mary Mix. Blend until well blended and there are no chunks of vegetables in the soup. Pour into stock pot or very large container for storage. Repeat. Once all vegetables have been blended, add olive oil, red wine vinegar, pepper and salt (if using). Stir very well until combined. For service, pour into bowls and garnish with chopped or whole shrimp and slices or chunks of avocado.

If you want it spicier, add a few drops of hot sauce!

Makes 4 servings.