Posh nosh returns

Yesterday, while shopping at my favourite grocery store, Whole Foods, I spotted some heirloom tomatoes. I'd heard they're delicious so I decided to give them a try - and I wasn't disappointed.



The precise definition of an heirloom tomato seems to be a contentious subject, but in general, the term is applied to any open-pollinated or non-hybrid variety of tomato. While some heirloom strains are geniunely antique - some alledgedly hundreds of years old - others are more recent additions to the tomato canon and are considered heirlooms because of their rarity or simply because of their unique flavour, shape or colour. Apparently, the colour also gives a good indication of the tomato's flavour and texture too. For example, yellow and orange varieties are generally softer and sweeter, whereas the darker red and brown ones tend to be firmer and have a bit more bite. For the record, I think my favourite was one of the 'newer' heirloom varieties, the rather cool looking green zebra. If you're really interested, here's a site where you can buy seeds and find out a bit more about the different varieties available.



Anyway, to enjoy the full heirloom experience I decided to make a simple tomato salad. I chopped them into roughly one inch pieces, added some similar-sized chunks of fresh mozerella and then some shredded rocket. To top it off, I made a light dressing with olive oil, basalmic vinegar, a crushed clove of garlic, a pinch of sugar and salt and some fresh ground pepper. Quick, easy and delicious!

- Mr. Ed