Autumn Tomato Salad

Autumn Tomato Salad

It’s always kind of sad to say goodbye to fresh tomato season. There should be another month until frost hits our area and I am trying to eat as many fresh tomatoes as I can between now and then. I have been getting heirloom tomatoes from my friend Carl at Blue Pike Farm.  I needed a salad for a dinner with friends and decided to make this simple but tasty tomato salad. That’s the thing about fresh tomatoes. You really don’t need to do much with them. Heck, I’m happy with some fresh slices and a sprinkle of salt. For this salad I started with slices of fresh tomatoes. I had a bottle of this amazing olive oil so I added a drizzle of it to the tomatoes along with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar, too. I also added a few basil leaves and some freshly ground sea salt. I wanted a crunch element and decided to add toasted pumpkin seeds. You can buy them already toasted or just toast them yourself.* I sprinkled them over the tomato salad and it added just the texture I was looking for.

The olive oil I used

*To toast pumpkin seeds place a layer of pumpkin seeds in a dry skillet and cook them, over medium heat, until they start to brown a little. Toss or stir often. Be careful not to burn them. The seeds will jump a little in the pan. That’s normal. Once seeds have toasted remove them from the heat and let them cool down.