Drunken Tomatoes

I was invited to a BBQ/house-warming party and wanted to bring something fun to eat. Obviously the stars of the BBQ were going to be the meats. I was pretty sure that our hosts had that covered more than adequately, so I opted for an appetizer.

Gourmet magazine recently featured editor-in-chief Ruth Reichl's favorite recipes of the month. One of them was a recipe for Vodka-Spiked Cherry Tomatoes with Pepper Salt. I was instantly enamoured with the photo of colorful, peeled cherry tomatoes dredged in coarsely ground black pepper and kosher salt. Plus they were described as follows:

"These tender, potent little orbs make a splendid Bloody Mary–esque addition to a beach-blanket picnic or a fancy cocktail party, and they tend to disappear in no time flat."

Peeling the tomatoes took some time but it was not at all difficult to do after blanching them. They were well-received at the party and I think by the end of the evening, only a couple were left in the bowl.

Someone asked me if the tomatoes I used were campari. (Under the influence of the party buzz, the only thing that popped into my head was the Campari aperitif, which I enjoy on the rocks. So, my response was an informative "duh, I don't know".) I looked up the website of the Ontario grower -- Mastronardi/Sunset Produce -- that my tomatoes came from. It looks like their "Tomato Medley" package is a mix of their specialty varieties: campari, champagne cocktail, grape, heirloom, etc. They certainly make a strong case for locally grown produce.