Cherry Tomato Confit

Had I known earlier that confit of cherry tomatoes is so good, I would have made it and often. The tomato confit is slightly sweet and has intense tomato flavor with a hint of garlic and herbs. I just love it on top of slices of freshly baked crusty bread or pasta.

I found a recipe for Italian clam soup with added tomatoes but instead of making soup I topped a few steamed clams with the cherry tomato confit and had them for lunch with a few slices of bread smeared with the oil and garlic from the confit. What a wonderful delicious lunch I had.

Cherry Tomato Confit
2 pounds assorted cherry and grape tomatoes
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
3 skin-on garlic cloves
1 sprig fresh thyme
1 sprig fresh basil
1 sprig Italian parsley
1 teaspoon sea salt
½ teaspoon sugar

• Boil 5 cups of water; add tomatoes and leave for 1 minute until the skin breaks. Remove and peel tomatoes. Leave whole or slice in half.
• Place 2 tablespoons olive oil in a medium baking pan or skillet, place tomatoes in one layer; add garlic cloves and herbs. Drizzle the remaining olive oil all over. Sprinkle with salt and sugar. 
• Bake in a preheated 250°F oven for 2½ hours. 
• Transfer into a sterilized jar and spoon all the olive oil remaining in the pan into the jar. 
• Discard herbs. Use the garlic for toast or discard, if preferred.   

I prefer to roast garlic whole and unpeeled rather than slicing them for a less harsh garlic flavor. I sometimes mash it and incorporate into the sauce after cooking.

steamed clams topped with cherry tomato confit