Tomato and corn dish uses last of summer vegetables

Tomatoes and the sweetest corn imaginable are everywhere right now. Red tomatoes, green, purple, yellow, orange, striped and tie-dye too. All sizes, shapes and flavors, and so many recipes to make. It was really hard to choose at the farmers market this week, because we want some of everything, and there’s only so many meals in the week.

I settled on some lovely heirloom striped green and red tomatoes that were firm and meaty. I had roasting in mind, one for each person so not too big, as well as a polenta using the corn in as many ways as possible. I also tossed in some of my abundant cherry tomatoes from my own garden.

Let’s celebrate tomato season with all its diversity. Right now, our farm stands, farmers markets, and even our own back yards, are offering up these flavorful fruits in a rainbow of colors and sizes.

The base of this dish is polenta, dressed up with the flavor of the fresh corn. Of course, in New England we called it cornmeal mush when I was growing up. Often, it was served as a porridge for breakfast, topped with maple syrup. Mom would make a large batch and pour the leftovers into a little square baking dish to firm up. The next morning, she cut it into squares and fried them in bacon grease and added an egg on top, much to our delight.

The tomatoes we grew were simple and predictable — an early show-off beefsteak, of course, cherry tomatoes, and for variety, a low-acid yellow tomato my mother loved.

When I had my own family garden, I branched out. I worked for a time for a local garden center, and our grower asked us to trial some 40 different varieties. I probably don’t need to tell you it was a year of lots of tomato sauce. We all had favorites, and a few I’ve noticed have become easier to find, such as the heirloom, open-pollinated Amish paste or brandywine.

I wanted to make something special for a recent dinner that celebrated our beautiful tomatoes, with corn as the sidekick. The polenta in my mind had corn in every way. I even used the water in which the corn boiled since its flavor enhanced the dish.

Right: Cherry tomatoes can be hard to keep up with this time of year. This season’s hot item.

The texture of the fresh corn kernels adds interest to the polenta, and you can vary how much you put in to your liking. Thus, corn four ways: cornmeal, corn water, whole kernels and garnish, an explosion of corn flavor that blends well with those lovely tomatoes.

The cornmeal I used was High Meadow Yellow from the Nitty Gritty Grain Company, grown and ground right here in town. What could be better?

Nitty Gritty produces its cornmeal in small batches. The corn is allowed to dry on the stalk, and then the whole kernels are ground, which gives the cornmeal more nutrition and flavor. Most commercial cornmeal is degermed to give it a longer shelf life, which reduces both nutrition and flavor. Industrialized food strikes again.

This is an easy dish to make, quite inexpensive this time of year, full of seasonal flavor, and it will delight your family and guests. Use any lovely tomato you have; it all works. You can even use all cherry tomatoes if your plants are being overly generous right now, as mine are.

We served this with a salad and warm whole-grain bread from the Back Door Bakery here in town. But you don’t need a crowd to have this on the menu.

Photo by Dorothy Grover-Read. Roasted tomatoes over polenta combines two of our favorite late-summer crops. You can use whatever tomato you love to adorn this creamy polenta, which bursts with extra corn flavor.

Roasted heirloom tomatoes with super corny polenta

For the polenta you will need:
4 large ears of corn
1 cup medium grind cornmeal
2 tablespoons butter or vegan butter
1/2 cup grated Parmesan, dairy or vegan

For the roasted tomatoes:
6 medium-sized tomatoes
A handful of cherry tomatoes
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon capers
2 tablespoons chopped calamata olives
basil to garnish

Make a small slit in the bottom of each tomato, leave the cherries whole but pierce with a knife. Combine the olive oil, balsamic, garlic, capers, olives, and drizzle over the tomatoes on a small baking sheet and set aside.

Put the corn on to boil covered with water and cook for 15 minutes, then remove the corn to cool. Strain the cooking water to remove any corn silk, and set aside. You will need around three cups of it for the polenta, plus a bit more for thinning, but check the cornmeal you are using for exact proportions.

Remove the corn from the cobs and reserve a cup and a half of the kernels, plus a bit to garnish. Set this aside.

To a medium saucepan, add three cups of corn water and bring back to a boil. Using a whisk, slowly add the cornmeal, then reduce the heat to a simmer and season with salt and pepper. Keep whisking to make sure you have no lumps, then switch to a wooden spoon and stir every few minutes so it doesn’t stick on the bottom of your pan.

As the polenta starts to thicken, add the reserved kernels. Depending on your polenta, the cooking should take around 30 minutes. If it starts to get really thick but the grains are still hard, add a bit more corn water to loosen, and at the end, if it needs more creaminess, add a bit more corn water. None of this is exact, it will depend on your cornmeal, so you will have to trust your instincts on this one.

Meanwhile, pop the tomato mixture in a 450-degree oven for 15 minutes, or until a very sharp knife tells you they are soft on the inside and have oozed some juice.

Once the cornmeal is ready, stir in the butter and the Parmesan and plate immediately onto a large platter. Gently arrange the tomatoes on top and drizzle all the juice from the pan over the tomatoes, this is liquid gold. Garnish with the rest of the corn kernels.

If you are feeling festive, add a basil top to each tomato and scatter some edible flowers about.

If there is any leftover polenta, place it in a little buttered baking dish and cut into squares the next morning. Delicious fried and topped with an egg.