sun-dried tomato dip & herb pita chips

Christmas Eve is my absolute favorite day of the year. I love Christmastime in general, and Christmas Eve includes a little of all of my favorite holiday activities. Last-minute presents are wrapped while listening to Gene Autry croon classic Christmas tunes, food for the annual Christmas Eve party is prepared, and family and friends attend the children's program at church and then gather at our house for a party.

Thankfully, even though the house is a remodeling mess and our holiday season was abruptly turned on its head a few days before Christmas, this year was no exception. I got up early to go grocery shopping at my two favorite stores within an hour's drive and then returned home to wrap presents. (I think it's quite possible that I get more enjoyment out of looking at a beautifully wrapped present than most people get out of opening one.) The new kitchen floor, though only halfway through the total installation process, was safe for us to walk on, so I helped Mom set up tables and chairs in there and then prepared the pot of Christmas Eve Clam Chowder and left it to bubble away while I went over to Grandma's house to make the sun-dried tomato dip and herb pita chips.

I had a little bit of help putting this appetizer together. The eldest of my blonde-haired trio of cousins did an excellent job de-stemming the thyme leaves, sprinkling them evenly over the chips, and helping me taste test the dip and adjust the seasoning accordingly. (Oh, how it delights me to have an eager helper in the kitchen!) We both agreed that these two recipes are definite keepers, which made me particularly happy because it meant that my quest to find a delicious dip that didn't rely on cream cheese, sour cream, or mayo was successful. (Ahem...my apologies to everyone who obligingly tried last year's unsuccessful first attempt....) The dip was, literally, finger-licking good and I had to swat people away from the pita chips so there would be some left for the party. I would suggest making a double batch of both if you intend to serve more than 5 or 6 people.

Oh, the other thing I love about Christmas Eve is writing my letter to Santa. For a reason totally unknown to me, Mom groaned and rolled her eyes when she saw me composing this year's letter. Oh well; it didn't seem to prevent Santa from writing back....

Sun-Dried Tomato Dip
Adapted from Canapes by Eric Truille & Victoria Bashford-Snell, via Sher at What Did You Eat?
Yields about 1 1/2 cups

1 14-ounce can of cannellini beans, drained
12 sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil, drained
3 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon oregano
4 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
Salt and pepper

Place all the ingredients in a food processor and pulse until smooth. Salt and pepper to taste.* Store in an airtight container and chill before serving.

* I used about 2 rounded teaspoons of kosher salt.

Herb Pita Chips
Adapted from Canapes by Eric Truille & Victoria Bashford-Snell, via Sher at What Did You Eat?
Yield varies based on strip size

2 garlic cloves, minced
6 tablespoons olive oil
4 pita bread rounds (white, wheat, or both)
2 tablespoons of fresh thyme
Kosher or sea salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Mix the garlic and oil together. Cut the pita rounds into strips, separate each strip into two pieces, and place on a baking sheet. Brush the strips with the garlic oil and sprinkle with the salt and thyme. Bake until strips are golden brown, about 10-15 minutes. Store in an airtight container.


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rugelach (for grandpa)

Do you ever think about where your hands have been? Sure, they go everywhere you go, but have you really thought about the unique -- and often overlooked -- role they play? In the last week or so, my hands have been on an amazing journey. They touched things in four different time zones within four days. They exchanged currency for bags of presents, were intertwined with the hands of one of my closest friends, baked dozens of cookies, lit a candle at Notre Dame's grotto, and embraced a former professor.

Like most journeys, however, this one was not without obstacles and trying times. Amid the present wrapping and tree decorating, my hands found themselves in some unexpected and rather undesirable places. They rested on the arm of my recently deceased grandfather, gripped the handles of his casket, and clutched the sides of a music stand -- secretly squeezing a bracelet he once gave me -- as I sang him one last song during the funeral service. None are places I would have wished to be at holiday time, but the upside is that because it happened at Christmas, I was home to take part.

This isn't exactly the post I had planned for these cookies, but c'est la vie. Dad loved the rugelach -- he declared them the best cookies I had ever made and couldn't walk past the cookie table without sneaking a few, which is a good indicator that Grandpa would have loved them, too. In fact, everyone thought these cookies were fantastic except Mom, who abhors any dessert with "those black things that look like bugs" (currants). To each his or her own, I suppose, but Mom is in the minority here and I think the disappearing act the rugelach pulled only 4 days after I arrived will attest to that.

[Rugelach aren't difficult to prepare, but you have to work quite quickly with the disk of dough to keep it from becoming too soft and sticky to roll. Also, don't make the same mistake I did by wrapping the dough in parchment paper instead of plastic wrap. Even well-chilled dough doesn't pull cleanly from parchment.]

Rugelach
Adapted from Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook
Yields about 4 dozen cookies

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon plus 1 pinch of salt
1 whole egg, lightly beaten
3 egg yolks (keep these separate from the whole egg)
2 1/3 cups flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups (4 ounces) walnut pieces
Pinch of ground cinnamon
1 cup apricot jam
2 cups currants

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and cream cheese on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. Add 1/2 cup sugar and 1/4 teaspoon of salt and beat until combined. Add the egg yolks one at a time, beating well after each. With the mixer on low, beat in the flour to combine and then mix in the vanilla.

Divide the dough into 3 equal pieces, shape each into flattened disks, and wrap each in plastic. Refrigerate at least 1 hour or overnight.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. In a food processor, pulse together the walnuts, remaining 1/4 cup sugar, cinnamon, and pinch of salt until finely ground. Set aside.

On a lightly floured work surface, roll out one disk of dough into a 10" round about 1/4" thick. Brush the top with jam and sprinkle with a third of the walnut mixture and a third of the currants. Using a pizza cutter, cut the round into wedges and roll up each wedge (beginning with the outside edge) to enclose the filling. Place the cookies on a parchment-lined baking sheet and brush them with the lightly beaten whole egg. Bake until cookies are golden brown, about 20-25 minutes, and then remove to a wire rack to cool. Repeat with remaining disks of dough.

Cookies can be stored in an airtight container for about 1 week.

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sugar drop cookies

I love sprinkles. I don't particularly care to eat them, but I love to collect them and decorate with them. And I think it could be argued that nowhere do sprinkles look better than on a beautiful Christmas sugar cookie. Lovely indeed, but I hardly ever make them because I just hate to roll dough. However, the fine folks at the Joy of Cooking, apparently quite aware of the existence of people like me, created a dropped sugar cookie -- all the sugar cookie, sprinkly fun without any of the rolling or icing required.

In addition to eschewing the dough rolling, these cookies are super quick to make, so I think this recipe would be an especially good one to try with kids. I don't care for the sprinkles I put on mine (though they look pretty...), but I love the texture and taste of the cookies: slightly chewy with a faint cinnamon flavor. If you follow the size and shaping recommendations in the recipe, the cookies will be tiny -- about the size of a half dollar. I thought this was nice because I could fit a bunch of them on the baking sheet at once. Plus, I like a lot of contrast on my cookie platters, so these cookies were a great (and colorful) addition.

Sugar Drop Cookies
Joy of Cooking
Yields about 6 dozen cookies

2 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon or 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup cooking oil
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Sift together the flour, baking soda, salt, and spice in a medium bowl and set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat together the sugar and oil until blended. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing thoroughly after each. Add the vanilla and beat until well combined. Add the flour mixture and beat well.

Shape the cookies into 1/2" balls (I used a 1" scoop, pinched the dough in half with my fingers, and then rolled each half into a ball) and roll them in granulated sugar or sprinkles. Place the cookies 1" apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake until the cookies no longer look sticky, about 10-12 minutes. Cool on the baking sheet for 1 minute and then remove to a wire rack. Store cookies in an airtight container.

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oatmeal-raisin cookies

It was 2:30 a.m. on Saturday morning and I was standing in the middle of my living room staring at two open suitcases and two very heavy carry-on bags. My ride to the airport would be here in just over an hour, and I had to get an entire week's worth of baking into my luggage. Sure, I thought about shipping it all, but what if the packages don't arrive on time? What if a postal employee accidentally steps on my box? And, most importantly, what if I die standing in the world's longest post office line? There would be no Christmas cookies this year!

So I traded all those fears for the one worry that I wouldn't be able to travel with it all. Bleary-eyed and tired, I stood there. Had I gotten it all? Was I all ready to go?

Fruitcakes? Check.
Chocolate chip, oatmeal, and sugar cookies? Check.
Ginger snaps and rugelach? Check.
Clothes and heavy coats? Check.
Underwear? Whoops!

Sometimes my priorities get a little mixed up. However, I was delighted to find -- after adding the appropriate undergarments, of course -- that I still had room in my bags for a few extra items. A normal person might fill that space with another sweater or two, but not me. I might need my Microplane grater while I'm home. And what about my whisk? Heaven only knows where mom's was stashed when the remodeling began. I better put that in, too.

So I set off at 4:00 a.m. with four bags that were about 65% baked goods and 35% personal items. Though it was terribly early in the morning and I hadn't gotten a wink of sleep, I sat in the back of the car with a small smile on my face. I had packed it all -- no cookie left behind. Through security checks and connecting flights, the smile remained. I snuck into St. Louis just before a monster snow storm and with a multitude of treats in tow, not a one of which was broken or crushed in transit. A happy (holi)day, indeed.

These are my favorite oatmeal cookies ever. They're so good, in fact, that I may never bother with trying another oatmeal cookie recipe for the rest of my life. They're huge, soft, and very moist. The coconut gives them a great texture, but it doesn't steal the limelight from the rest of the cookie. (I don't particularly care for coconut because it gets all stuck in your teeth and it reminds me of eating grass, but it doesn't do that in this recipe.) Again, this is the best oatmeal cookie I've ever had. You won't see me post another one here.

Oatmeal-Raisin Cookies
Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook
Yields about 2 dozen large cookies

1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup sweetened, shredded coconut
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup packed light-brown sugar, or 1/2 cup Splenda Blend brown sugar
1/3 cup pure maple syrup, preferably Grade B*
1 egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1 cup raisins**

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Stir in the coconut. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and brown sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3-4 minutes. Add the maple syrup and mix to combine. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until well combined.

With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture in two batches; mix until just combined. Add oats and raisins and mix until combined.

Using a 2" scoop (= 3 tablespoons), drop dough 2 inches apart onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake until golden brown, 15-20 minutes. Let cookies cool on the baking sheet until firm enough to remove to wire racks, about 2 minutes.

Cookies can be kept in an airtight container for about 2 weeks. (Martha says 4 days, but I've made these a zillion times and they don't taste any different on day 11 than they do on day 4.)

* Put Mrs. Butterworth down. She can't work her magic here.

** I like to use Sunmaid baking raisins. They come packed in their juice so they stay plump and moist while baking. If you can't find these, the regular Dole raisins work well, or you could always soak the raisins you have on hand in a little bit of water or alcohol to reconstitute them before baking.

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mexican wedding cookies (snowballs)

When I was younger, my grandmother (on my mom's side) was the primary cookie baker in the family. She would make cookies throughout the year, but there were a few varieties she would only make during the holidays, leading me to believe they were extra special. One of these was a bite-size cookie that reminded me of a powder-coated pebble. Grandma called them "snowballs." I can't remember eating the snowballs often, if ever, but I don't think it was because I didn't like them. If my memory serves me correctly, Grandma put rum in her snowballs, and knowing I wasn't old enough to have liquor, I don't think I ever even asked to try one of the cookies. I can, however, remember my dad nibbling on them with glee. The sugar would always get caught in his mustache -- a sight that delighted me endlessly.

When I began my search for new Christmas cookies this year, I naturally turned to my trusty copy of Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook. I stopped on the page with her recipe for Mexican Wedding Cookies because the picture instantly brought Grandma's holiday snowballs to mind. Mexican wedding cookies always look dry to me, so I was delighted to discover that these cookies are anything but dry. In fact, they practically melt in your mouth, just like Martha promises. And they get bonus points for using minimal ingredients and being quick and easy to make. I was actually able to prepare, bake, cool, and package the cookies before I left for work today. This recipe will definitely become part of my standard holiday repertoire. I think I'll even give them a try with rum instead of almond extract next time to see if I can come up with something like Grandma used to make. Either way, I know dad will love them, which means there is certain to be a sugar-frosted mustache to make me smile every time the snowballs appear.

Mexican Wedding Cookies (Snowballs)
Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook
Yields about 5 dozen cookies

1 cup (3 3/4 ounces) pecan halves
2 cups confectioners' sugar
2 cups flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a food processor, combine pecans with 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar and pulse until nuts are finely ground. In a medium bowl, whisk together the sugar/nut mixture, flour, and salt. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and 3/4 cup confectioners' sugar* on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Beat in the vanilla and almond extracts. Add the flour mixture and beat on low until the dough just comes together.

Using a 1" scoop, drop dough about 2 inches apart onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake until cookies are pale and just beginning to get tiny cracks on top, 10-12 minutes. Leave cookies on the baking sheet until firm enough to move, 1-2 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Place remaining 1 cup confectioners' sugar in a shallow bowl and roll cookies in it to coat completely. Cookies should be kept in an airtight container layered between sheets of waxed or parchment paper. Martha says they can be kept 4 days, but I suspect they'll last longer. I'll edit this when I find out.

* I went ahead and sifted this portion of the sugar. I've combined butter and confectioners' sugar enough (for frostings) to know how lumpy the mixture can be if you don't sift the sugar.

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ginger snaps

Let's just start off by saying that I made 376 of these over the weekend. Yes, 376. Sometimes I get very excited about an opportunity to feed people and before I know it, my mouth has opened up and I have volunteered to take on a task that many people would consider their own personal hell. I usually end up realizing what I've done sometime around batch 5 or 6 of whatever baked good I have decided is tasty enough to feed the masses. Oh well; it's done.

I don't know if it was my change from vegetable to canola oil or just a different oven, but this year the cookies flattened out into very thin disks as opposed to the slightly fluffier cookies of years past. At first I was disappointed by this, but then I tasted them and decided they were actually more "ginger snappy" than before because they snapped when I bit into them. I do not like crisp cookies, so normally I would be put off by this. However, despite their thinness, these cookies manage to retain a soft and chewy center. I think Santa will love them just as much as I do.

[Additional note: Two-thirds of those 376 cookies were wrapped up into little packages as gifts for our Board of Directors. I thought it was a nice gesture and I know the cookies are delicious, but I never expected people to make such a to-do over them. The festive little bundles earned numerous compliments and a hearty round of applause during the meeting. Perhaps more surprising, though, was that after the meeting I noticed that my stash of six extras -- which I had stowed way off to the side of the room, almost entirely out of sight -- had mysteriously dwindled to just two, and the three or so extra that had been left on the tables were definitely nowhere to be found when the room emptied out.

There are a few lessons to be gleaned from this story: 1) These cookies are delicious, so you should make them right away. 2) People really appreciate thoughtful, homemade gifts. 3) Presentation is important. For each Board member, I wrapped up seven cookies in a clear treat bag, tied it with grosgrain ribbon (pronounced "grow grain" -- my favorite -- it always looks classy, and if you need proof, even the Board members who ate their cookies during the meeting took the strand of ribbon with them), and attached a glass ornament and hand-stamped, handwritten tag that read "Best wishes for a holiday season filled with homemade treats and happiness." Click here to see the detail on the stamp.]

Ginger Snaps
Recipe via Allrecipes.com
Yields about 3 dozen cookies

1 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup vegetable or canola oil
1/4 cup molasses
1 egg
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
granulated sugar for decoration

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Sift together the flour, baking soda, salt, and spices in a bowl and set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, mix together the brown sugar, oil, molasses, and egg until well combined. Gradually add in the flour mixture and mix until well combined. Chill dough until firm enough to hold its shape. Use a 1" scoop to form dough into balls. Roll each ball in granulated sugar and place onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper (no need to flatten; cookies will spread out considerably in the oven). Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the tops begin to crack and the cookies no longer appear sticky. Cool on the baking sheet until firm and then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling.

These cookies may lose their "snap" when you put them all together in an airtight container, but they will stay soft and chewy for weeks that way. (If you want them to stay crisp, put them in a not-so-airtight container.)

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fruitcake

Yesterday started out just like any other day. Got up, got dressed, and got ready for work. Just before leaving the apartment, I took inventory of my liquor cabinet above the fridge to see if I had the requisite spirits for making Christmas fruitcakes. In order to do this, I was forced to acknowledge and move aside the stubbornly-too-large-for-the-cabinet bottle of metaxa ouzo, an anise-flavored liquor. I bought it to use in an apple cake I made in September, certain that if I tried the anise in an otherwise delicious baked good, I would like it. No such luck. I thought the cake was gross and then, because that dumb bottle was too large for the cabinet, I left it just outside the cabinet and on top of the fridge.

Surely you know where this story is going.

Fast forward about 10 hours. I got home, ate a light dinner (that fire-roasted tomato sauce was good when I made it, but it's even better now), and caught up on a few phone calls with friends. I unintentionally took a post-phone-call nap and then woke up very hungry. I opened the freezer -- out of habit more than anything else, I suppose; there isn't any ready to heat and eat food in there -- and CLINK, CLANK, CRASH. Down went the bottle of metaxa ouzo. I stood there for a moment, unreasonably surprised that a glass bottle just shattered all over my floor, and then pondered how I would get out of the kitchen without sustaining further injuries since that irritating bottle threw shards of glass 15 feet in every direction, including the direction of my bare feet. Fortunately, a short hop onto the island was all that was necessary to remove myself from destruction zone created by that malicious bottle of booze. The liquid has now been mopped up and the floor has been vacuumed, but I can only imagine how many batches of Christmas cookies it will take to overcome the nauseating smell that still permeates my apartment. I think it's safe to say there will be no anise-flavored goodies spilling forth from my kitchen anytime soon. At least not unless I drop something on the floor.

Ahem...OK, I'm over it. Anyway, last year I decided that this year I would make fruitcakes. (It took a lot of mental preparation, apparently.) Considering that the fruitcakes just came out of the oven and I meant to begin in October, I got kind of a late start. The cakes will still have over two weeks to age and be repeatedly doused in brandy, so I'm fairly confident that will at least be enough time for me to tell if this recipe is a keeper or if I should search for a new one. I really wanted to make the fruitcake recipe Martha Stewart swears by (Mrs. Maus's fruitcake), but when I saw that it calls for glaceed fruit, I lost interest. It also didn't help that the baking time for Mrs Maus's cake is 3.5 hours. I have too many things to bake to spend 3.5 hours with my nose pressed up against the oven door. (If scientists ever prove that is harmful to one's health, I'll be the first to suffer ill effects.)

Mkay, one very important note about making fruitcakes:Use the best quality ingredients you can find. Under NO circumstances should you use that goopey candied fruit in the little plastic tubs. High fructose corn syrup, preservatives, and artificial colors do not a good fruitcake make. Plus, fruitcake doesn't need you out there contributing to its undeserved bad reputation. I used dried fruit that didn't contain any sweeteners (Craisins = no, no, no). Yes, this will be pricey, but making good fruitcake is an expensive endeavor. If you aren't willing to spend the money, then perhaps you should trot over to the refrigerated cookie dough section of the supermarket and find your inspiration there. (Zing!)

I don't intend to cut into my fruitcakes until Christmas Eve or Christmas morning, so I'll be sure to come back and post my analysis of them after that. However, I can say that while those beautiful, jewel-toned fruits were simmering on the stove, my apartment was filled with a heavenly holiday scent. Mmm....

[Postscript: This fruitcake was fantastic and enjoyed by all who were willing to try it.]

Fruitcake
Adapted from Alton Brown's Free Range Fruitcake recipe
Yields one gigantic 10" loaf or a smattering of smaller cakes

1 cup golden raisins
1 cup currants
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup dried blueberries
1/2 cup dried cherries
1/2 cup dried apricots, chopped
Zest of 1 lemon, chopped coarsely
Zest of 1 orange, chopped coarsely
1/2 cup spiced rum
1/2 cup Grand Marnier
1 cup sugar
5 ounces unsalted butter (1 1/4 sticks), melted
1 cup unfiltered apple juice
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 3/4 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 eggs, whisked until yolks and whites are just blended
1 cup toasted pecans, broken
Brandy for basting

Combine dried fruits and both zests in a non-reactive pot. Add rum and Grand Marnier and macerate overnight, or microwave for 5 minutes to reconstitute the fruit.

Add the sugar, butter, apple juice, and spices. Bring mixture to a boil, stirring often, then reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and cool for at least 15 minutes. (Batter can be completed up to this point, then covered and refrigerated for up to 2 days. Bring to room temperature before completing cake.)

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Combine the remaining dry ingredients and sift into the fruit mixture. Quickly bring the batter together with a large wooden spoon, then stir in the eggs until completely integrated. Fold in the nuts. Spoon the batter into a greased pan (10" loaf or multiple smaller pans) lined with parchment* and bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Remove the cake from the oven and place on a cooling rack. Baste with brandy and allow to cool completely before turning out from pan. When cake is completely cooled, wrap it in cheesecloth that has been soaked in brandy. Then wrap it well in foil and place it in a tight-sealing, food-safe container. Every 2-3 days, feel the cake; if it is dry, baste it with brandy and/or resoak the cheesecloth in brandy. The cake's flavor will enhance considerably over the next two weeks.

* See my picture above for an illustration. You can trace the bottom of your pan onto parchment paper and then cut out the round. You should grease your pan, place the parchment round in the pan, and then grease the top of the parchment.

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fire-roasted tomato sauce

I thought for sure I would do something this weekend worth posting about, but it turns out that I didn't. I bought a fedora -- and it's smokin' hot -- but who wants to read a whole post about that? I bought some Christmas presents, too...along with 8 zillion other shoppers this weekend. Not interesting. I did finally get around to renting Transformers, and holy smokes, it was good! I can't remember the last time I was so utterly thrilled by a movie. It was like I was only 6 years old again, anxiously watching Optimus Prime and his team battle against the evil Decepticons. (Perhaps I've just made this obvious, but I wasn't a very "girly" child.) Transformers was my absolute favorite cartoon, and last night I was reminded of just how ridiculously cool it was. Even the theme song is great. (And is it just me, or does Optimus Prime have a completely sexy voice? Oh, please make a sequel....)

I have no transition whatsoever between the movie and this tomato sauce except to say that the movie was so awesome that I watched it again today as I made this sauce. And I may have danced around the kitchen while the theme song was playing. Anyway, I had been staring at the bag of cherry tomatoes and the yellow onion on my counter for over a week, so I decided it was time to either do something with them or push them off the counter. They wouldn't do anyone any good on the floor, so I opted to make some tomato sauce instead. (I'll be expecting my congratulatory call for the MacArthur "Genius" Award any day now....) I started off by using this recipe to roast the cherry tomatoes. They came out fantastic and I'll definitely be making them again because they would be great tossed with pasta and a little olive oil. However, for no particular reason (except to use up that onion), I continued on and created a full-blown sauce. Considering that it was sort of an ad hoc effort, I'm pleased with how this sauce turned out. It's different, with more of a Southwestern flavor than a traditional tomato sauce. You might even say it's "more than meets the eye." (Autobots, roll out!)

Fire-Roasted Tomato Sauce
Partially adapted from a recipe by Deb at Smitten Kitchen; partially original
Yields about 4 1/2 cups

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
12 ounces ripe cherry tomatoes, halved
1/3 cup plain dry bread crumbs
1/8 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1/8 cup freshly grated pecorino romano cheese
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 28-ounce can whole fire-roasted tomatoes (Muir Glen), drained, with juices reserved, and pureed
1/2 - 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper

Preheat the oven to 400°. Grease an 8" x 8" baking dish with the 2 tablespoons of oil.

Place the tomatoes cut side up in the dish. Sprinkle the garlic, cheese, and breadcrumbs over the top, ensuring that the cut sides of the tomatoes are covered with the mixture. Sprinkle on the salte and pepper and bake until the tomatoes are cooked through and the cheese is starting to brown on top, about 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, melt the unsalted butter in a medium-size saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the fire-roasted tomatoes, red pepper, and the reserved juice and heat through. Salt to taste. When the cherry tomatoes have finished baking, add them to the mixture or use them as a garnish.

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