You Should Make Tiny Tomato Toast
Ever since I interviewed food journalist Alicia Kennedy about her daily eating habits , I’ve been looking forward to tomato toast – clearly a summer treat that doesn’t seem available in mid-February. Big and juicy tomatoes are out of season right now, but tiny tomatoes (like cherry or grapes) are juicy, sweet, easy to find all year round, and luckily for me, they make amazing tomato toast.
Like its large tomato cousins, Tiny Tomato Toast is a vibrant, fun dish perfect to breathe life into a cold gray morning or rainy lunch break. You can do this simply – with grated tomatoes, olive oil and salt flakes – or you can grate the tomatoes on some creamy substrate: cream cheese, Lubna , whipped cottage cheese or avocado. I prefer the creamy layer to be fairly thin; you need just enough so that a hydrophobic layer forms between the tomatoes and the toast so that the juice of the first does not seep into the bread and make it wet.
As for the filling, there is usually enough salt, but recently I got carried away with chili oil , air-fried ginger and green onions . Lemon zest, zaatar, sumac, any bagel dressing , your favorite vinegar, and very finely grated cheese are all viable options; just remember that tomatoes are the star. Leave room for them to shine.
The only downside to grating tiny tomatoes is that it’s the least to hold on to while grating, but I – a very awkward person – had no trouble whatsoever. Grasp the fruit by one end of the oblong body (or grasp the stem, if present), then rub it over the toast, letting the seeds, gel, and juicy pulp fall until you have a small piece of crushed skin and flesh. Also toss this on toast. (Be sure to use a large-hole grater, not a microplane.) Add seasoning and any finishing touches you need and swallow.