Photo: Sweet Tomato "Conserva" Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ripe plum tomatoes
- 3 cups water
- 2 cups sugar
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 6 whole allspice berries
- 8 to 12 ounces firm, salty cheese, such as queso fresco, feta, or ricotta salata, cut into 1/4-inch slices
Directions
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Have ready, a bowl of ice water and a spider or slotted spoon. With a paring knife, cut the stems out of the tomatoes and cut an X in the opposite end. Slip the tomatoes into the boiling water and leave them until the skin around the X starts to loosen, 30 seconds to 1 minute. With the spider, scoop the tomatoes into the ice water. When cool enough to handle, slip the skins off the tomatoes and cut the tomatoes in half lengthwise. Scoop out and discard the seeds. Set the seeded tomato halves aside.
Bring 3 cups water, the sugar, cinnamon, and allspice to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat. Adjust the heat to the lowest setting and let steep for 20 minutes.
Add the tomatoes, and continue to simmer on low heat until the syrup has thickened about another 20 minutes. Cool, then chill. Remove allspice berries and cinnamon sticks. Serve the tomatoes in a compote dish or small bowl, accompanied by the sliced cheese.
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By dasstein2004_47...
Rush City, MN
on February 13, 2012
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Can someone help me why the tomatoes are in this recipe? The consistency turned out the way I would expect but it was so sweet that only a hint of the cinnammon was detected. The tomatoes were just there, something to wrap the sweet jell around. Decreasing the sugar would not help it will still be too sweet. The tomatoes should be cut into bite size pieces. The slippery half tomato was hard to cut. The liquid thickened after it was removed from the heat.
By cartwright33_11...
Lexington, KY
on April 21, 2009
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I thought this desert was excellent. I did use an extra 1/2 stick of cinnamon more the recipe called for. I like the taste of cinnamon and a lot. I decreased the sugar to 1 1/2 to 1/3/4 cups, cannot remember the exact amount and it had just the right sweetness. It would probably be fine with the whole 2 cups. I did not cook till thick. I just simmered for 20 minutes and removed the tomatoes to cool in a bowl, discarded the liquid and removed the cloves and cinnamon sticks. My family really liked this dish.
By jalma3
Jackson Heights, NY
on February 15, 2009
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From Judi, Jackson Heights, NY
I wanted to make this dish as I had never heard of tomatoes being served as dessert.
I am not sure what I did wrong and am hoping the other reviewer will let me know.
I followed the recipe to the letter. Except to the point at the end when it states to steep the liquid another 20 minutes after adding the tomatoes until the syrup thickens. Well, my syrup took two hours to thicken!
Before that time, it was just tomatoes floating in water.
Is the end result supposed to have the consistency and sweetness of jam?
I served the conserva with cheese and crackers using the conserva as a topping. Firstly we tried queso blanco which does not cut into the sweetness of the conserva at all. (I was told in the store that queso fresco and queso blanco were the same.
Secondly we used feta chesse which made a remarkable difference. The saltiness of the feta cuts into the sweetness of the conserva making it edible.
Otherwise it was like sticking a spoon into a jam jar.
I had told my guests that I was making something that they would not be able to name the main ingredient. And I was right. No one guessed tomato and all were surprised. But the end product was way too sweet for our taste buds.
I hope this episode is repeated so I can see how Daisy makes it.
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