This is the summer pick-me-up you’ve been waiting for: a timely new cookbook that offers instant inspiration. Martha Holmberg’s Simply Tomato: 100 recipes for enjoying your favorite ingredient all year long is gorgeous, approachable, fresh and packed with gems you can enjoy right now – like Grilled Bread Salad with Tomatoes, Shrimp, Lemon and Thyme, a Tomato-Gruyere Galette with Walnut Crust, Tomato Toasts, two kinds of gazpacho – and this fabulous BLT Salad with Creamy Salad Dressing.

Simply Tomato will take you through the fall and winter as well with recipes like Macaroni and Cheese with a Layer of Roasted Tomatoes and Green Chiles and Braised Beef Short Ribs with Tomato, Dried Porcini and Red Wine. (Yes, Martha embraces canned tomatoes.) And my favorite section is “Tomato Snacks and Drinks,” which includes techniques for “semi-preserving” tomatoes in jams, confits, pastes, and pickles – as well as things like fried tomato leaves (yes, they’re edible), a Tomato Shrub, and a G & T & T (Gin and Tonic and Tomato).

Photo of Martha Holmberg by John D'Anna. Cover photo by Ellen Silverman.

It those recipes all sound delicious, that’s because Martha is the best cook I know. Seriously. Martha was editor-in-chief and then publisher of Fine Cooking magazine, where we became colleagues and good friends. Since then Martha has written or co-written nine cookbooks, including the James Beard-award winning Six Seasons: A New Way With Vegetables, and founded, contributed to, edited or chaired a host of other culinary publications and organizations. True to our Fine Cooking roots, where our job was to translate chef’s techniques into doable recipes for home cooks, Martha — always with good humor — gives you all the tips and tricks you need to meet with success.

Susie Middleton

Now all you need do is hit up Island farm stands – North Tabor, Beetlebung and Ghost Island in particular — where beefsteaks and cherry tomatoes alike are proliferating.

Susie Middleton

While you’re waiting for your copy of Simply Tomato to arrive (it’s available in several countries, but please order from your independent bookstore if you can), we'll keep you tomato-busy with Cook the Vineyard recipes, starting with our Tomato Salad with Chickpeas, Quick-Pickled Red Onions, Herbs & Lemon-Tahini Vinaigrette, which was a big hit last summer.

Susie Middleton

We’re ready to mix our Sungold cherry tomatoes with fresh corn, and Morning Glory’s own ears are starting to come in, though in small amounts. No matter, the farm is also bringing in good corn from Rhode Island and Massachusetts, so you’ve got what you need to make Black Bean and Corn Party Salad.

Susie Middleton

Or Sirloin Tip Steak with Summer Tomato-Fresh Corn Dressing, Feta, and Arugula.

Susie Middleton

Give the tomatoes a day off and make Corn, Zucchini, and Fresh Herb Pancakes.

Susie Middleton

Or Cod, Corn, Bacon, and Leek Chowder with Fresh Thyme.

Susie Middleton

Or give the corn a day off and make Crispy Sheet Pan Chicken with Baby Potatoes, Cherry Tomatoes, and Smoked Paprika.

That all sounds so good, one hardly needs dessert. Except that we haven’t yet made Louise Tate King’s Blueberry Crisp this summer. Need to rectify that situation!

Isn’t summer eating the best? I’ll see you on Instagram at @cookthevineyard. Be sure to follow us if you haven't already.

 

What's Open, What's Happening

If you're looking to make a dinner reservation or wondering which farm stands and markets are open, visit What's Open on Martha's Vineyard for regularly updated listings.