Peak season for tomatoes

Despite the drought, Wine Country chefs and farmers say the 2014 tomato crop includes some of the best tomatoes they’ve had in years, including “heirloom” varieties.

From Berkeley Tie Dye and Early Girl to Paul Robeson, Indigo Jewel, Cool Chocolate Pear and literally thousands of other specialized heirloom breeds, it’s that time of year when gardens and markets are overflowing with summer’s favorite fruit (or vegetable, depending on how botanically precise you want to be).

“They’re just epic right now,” said Daniel Kedan, chef-owner of Backyard Restaurant in Forestville. “The flavor, the texture. … The weather has been just perfect, and this last week even better,” he said.

What is the difference between an heirloom and any other tomato? It’s all about the flavor and the history.

“With heirlooms, there is less fruit per plant, more sugar and (the breed) has to be more than 50 years old,” said Katie Magnuson of Soda Rock Farms, a local name synonymous with great tomatoes. Her father, Dan Magnuson, was among the first to bring back to market these historic breeds of tomatoes that tasted as good as they looked, with brilliant colors and irregular shapes.

“It’s definitely the peak in Northern California. We’re working our patooties off, up to 100 hours a week,” she said. In the last few weeks, the hot micro-climate of the Alexander Valley near Healdsburg is yielding up to 1,000 pounds of heirloom tomatoes a day, picked by hand. But even after 15 years of picking and eating varieties like Marble Stripe, Pink Brandywine and Hillbilly, Magnuson is still a fan of a simple summer sandwich of fresh French bread, mayonnaise, and a meaty tomato fresh from the garden. “I like to just keep it simple,” she said.

In celebration of all thing tomatoes, Kendall-Jackson Wine Center will hold its 18th annual Heirloom Tomato Festival on Saturday, featuring more than 150 varieties of heirloom tomatoes grown in their own culinary gardens. Chef Matthew Lowe, who gains much of his culinary inspiration from the K-J Culinary Gardens, likens heirloom tomatoes to heirloom jewelry.

“They’re called heirloom for a reason,” he said. “They’re like heirloom jewelry that can be handed down from generation to generation. They’re precious,” Lowe added. Among the events at the festival is a tomato-inspired chef cook-off, more than 50 restaurants serving up tomato dishes, tomato tasting and grower’s awards.

“Every year we discover more and more varieties,” Lowe said. “Somehow these tomatoes know when they’ll be on our stage, and they show it.”

One recent K-J award winner was Healdsburg chef and farmer Jeff Mall of Zin Restaurant. Last year, he took home a blue ribbon for his Orestimba Orange, named for his family’s tomato ranch in the Central Valley.

“My father was a tomato farmer,” said Mall, who created the hybrid orange tomato in honor of his family. “It’s the most unique heirloom tomato in Sonoma County and I’m not shy about saying it,” said Mall on his Twitter feed.

Mall’s favorite ways to use tomatoes: Fried green tomatoes using the unripe fruit at the end of the growing season, or pickled “chow chow,” a smorgasbord of late-summer vegetables mixed with vinegar.

Like so many garden veggies, tomatoes do tend to overwhelm gardeners and farmers alike with their abundance - which means canning, pickling, saucing and jamming the leftovers.

“We took nearly 4,000 pounds that would normally go to compost from a local farm and are creating jam, Bloody Mary mix, and jarred sauce,” said Backyard’s Kedan.

Patricia Greer, of Waterhorse Ridge Jams in Cazadero, said she’s currently processing more than 100 pounds of her own tomatoes for tomato jam and bottled bruschetta. “There is just so much sugar and yumminess,” she said of this year’s crop. She’s also roasting tomatoes for salsa that she’ll sell throughout the fall.

But no matter what you do with this season’s crop, remember one thing: “There really isn’t any bad way to eat a tomato,” Mall said.

Bucatini with bacon & basil

From Jeff Mall, Zin Restaurant and Wine Bar

2 oz. diced good bacon

4 oz. bucatini pasta

½ cup diced yellow onion

1 clove garlic sliced

3 cups mixed chopped tomatoes

½ cup fresh basil leaves chopped

- Pinch red pepper flake

Start pot of water boiling with salt. While water is coming to a boil. Render bacon until crispy in large skillet. Drain off ? of the fat. Add the onion and garlic, cook until soft. Add chopped tomatoes, bring to boil. Reduce to simmer.

Just under-cook pasta. Add to bacon-tomato mix to finish cooking. Season with salt and pepper.

Toss with the fresh basil just before serving. Top with Parmesan or dry jack cheese.

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Tomatoes at the height of the season add classic summer flavor to this salad. The cashews in the puree add richness while the nutritional yeast adds complexity and umami. We use local seaweed from Strong Arm Farms in the vinaigrette of this vegan and gluten-free tomato salad.

Heirloom Tomatoes, Avocado, Sesame Cashew Puree, Nori

From Kendall-Jackson Vineyard Estates

1 large red heirloom tomato, sliced into wedges

1 medium yellow heirloom tomato, sliced into wedges

24 cherry tomatoes, cut in half

2 avocados, large diced

- Kosher salt, to taste

- Cashew puree, recipe below

- Broken seaweed vinaigrette, recipe below

8 sheets nori, julienne

- Crunchy sea salt, for finishing

Just prior to serving, place tomatoes in a bowl and toss with olive oil and salt. In a separate bowl, gently toss avocado with olive oil and salt.

Spread a spoonful of cashew puree on the bottom of each serving plate. Place the tomatoes and avocados on top. Gently whisk vinaigrette again and drizzle over the top. Sprinkle with sea salt.

Cashew Puree

2 cups cashews, soaked in water for 1 hour and drained

1 Tbsp. nutritional yeast

1½ lemons, juiced

1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

In a blender add cashews, nutritional yeast, water and lemon juice and puree. Slowly add oils and blend until very creamy. Salt to taste.

Broken Seaweed Vinaigrette

1 tsp. sea palm seaweed

¼ cup champagne vinegar

Pulse seaweed in the spice grinder until it becomes a powder. Hydrate with champagne vinegar and slowly whisk in olive oil. Season with salt.

You can reach Heather Irwin at 521-8544 or heather.irwin@pressdemocrat.com.