That’s my (tomato) Jam
Who ever said ‘newspapers are a dying business’ really doesn’t know what they are talking about. There’s nothing I love more than sitting outside pouring over the Sunday papers with a cup of coffee (umm yes, French press. Life as a yuppie is so hard).
In all seriousness, it’s the stories about men like Bobby Paterson and his heroism the day of the Boston bombings or the reporting on new industries popping-up that really make a person feel connected to the city.
Last weekend, the Boston Globe Magazine had a recipe for tomato rosemary jam. Vaguely intrigued, I gave it a shot. Within 30 min, I had an absolutely delicious condiment with serious brag potential. Once I tasted it, I couldn’t stop thinking about the excuses vehicles on which I could use it, fritatta, toast and baked eggs, grilled cheese with banana peppers, roast beef and boursin sandwich…
Tomato jam sounds so fancy. It was ridiculously easy. Just need to keep an eye on it and stir. Maybe even dance a little bit.
SIMPLE TOMATO JAM
Makes about 1 cup
2 pounds Roma tomatoes (about 10 medium), cored and quartered
½ cup plus 1 tablespoon light brown sugar, packed
Salt and pepper
3½ tablespoons fresh lemon juice
½ cinnamon stick (about 1½ inches)
In a food processor, pulse tomatoes, sugar, 1¼ teaspoons salt, ¼ teaspoon pepper, and 3 tablespoons lemon juice until fruit is finely chopped but not completely pureed and sugar is dissolved, about 6 2-second pulses. Pour into a 12-inch nonstick skillet, add cinnamon stick, and bring to a boil over high heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid has reduced noticeably, about 9 minutes. Adjust heat to medium-high and simmer vigorously, stirring more often as the mixture reduces, until it is glossy and has a jammy consistency between sauce and paste, 10 to 18 minutes. Set aside off heat to cool to room temperature.
Discard cinnamon stick and stir in remaining lemon juice. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper, if desired, and serve (can be refrigerated for 1-2 weeks).
Variations
LEMON-ROSEMARY TOMATO JAM
Makes about 1 cup
Follow Simple Tomato Jam recipe, with these changes:
1) Substitute granulated sugar for the brown sugar. Before pulsing the sugar with the tomatoes in the food processor, process the sugar with 1½ tablespoons of finely grated lemon zest and 2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary until moist and fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes and lemon juice and pulse as directed.
2) Omit cinnamon stick and proceed as directed.
Check out the magazine for other interesting variations.
New American Kitchen 
Whadaya Think?