Italian Style Garden Tomato Salad

Lisa Chodosh

This salad is best prepared when garden tomatoes are at their peak. It can also be used as a topping for bruschetta. Try topping a grilled chicken breast with a few leaves of fresh arugula and some heaping spoonfuls of the salad - it makes a quick, light and summery dinner.

Food Editor’s Note: This is delicious - it was gobbled up by our staff (and my husband had three servings!). If you are using this as a topping for bruschetta, you might want to cut up the tomatoes in smaller pieces.

Ingredients

3 pounds tomatoes, garden fresh or hothouse
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 small sweet onion, like Vidalia, Walla Walla or Maui
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons fresh oregano, or 1 tablespoon dried
3 tablespoons fresh basil, or 1 tablespoon dried
4 grinds black pepper

Wash and dry tomatoes. Cut into 1-inch chunks and place in serving bowl. Sprinkle tomatoes with kosher salt. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature until juices have started to run, about half an hour.

Cut sweet onion in rough 1/2-inch squares. Toss with tomato. Sprinkle salad with red wine vinegar and olive oil. Toss to blend.

Wash fresh oregano and basil, dry and chop coarsely. Add to salad. If fresh herbs aren’t available, substitute dried herbs. Grind fresh black pepper over salad. Let marinate until flavors blend, about another half hour. Serve salad at room temperature.

Serves 6

Lisa Chodosh grew up in Wayland and is now a Manhattan-based restaurant consultant who regularly cooks for crowds. She can be reached at lchodosh@pipeline.com.