Green tomatoes

So, our indeterminate tomatoes are still producing. Our grape tomatoes still have blossoms, and our beefsteaks are producing green tomatoes like nobody's business. The Roma and pear tomatoes are also still alive, but they aren't thriving like the others. Last week I made some fried green tomatoes, and you know what? I didn't really like them (next time I'll use more seasoning!) So, I set out to find a new way to use them. I made tri-color tomato sauce with pasta on Tuesday (that's just homemade tomato sauce with red, yellow, and green tomatoes) but yesterday I found a great way to prepare them: shred those bad boys. Maybe grate is a better description, but shred sounded kind of macho, didn't it? Oh yes.

It turns out that green tomatoes, because of their firmness, grate rather well. I used my food processor, but I suspect a large-hole cheese grater would work just fine. We served it with broiled tilapia that was, well, boring. That's how tilapia is, don't you think?

Green Tomato Pasta

4 servings

8 oz dried fettuccine

4 carrots, scrubbed

4 medium green tomatoes

2 Tbsp butter

4 cloves garlic, chopped

1 Tbsp tomato paste

optional: lemon zest, fresh oregano

salt and pepper

Put your water on to boil and shred your carrots and tomatoes. Heat butter over medium heat in a large skillet. When water is ready, pour in pasta, stirring to avoid starchy stickiness. Add garlic to butter, sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute, then add shredded vegetables. Cook and stir 2-3 minutes, then add tomato paste. Stir and reduce heat to avoid overcooking. When pasta is al dente, drain, reserving 1/2 cup cooking water, then add noodles and water to vegetables. Stir together, cook 1-2 minutes, and season to taste. I added about a 1/2 tsp of leftover lemon zest, some chopped oregano, and salt and pepper. Delicious and quick!