Roasted Tomatoes & Garlic + Roasted Tomato Juice

Since I got into cooking I have loved this recipe from Tom Colicchio's cookbook "Think Like a Chef". It is simple, and goes well with so many dishes as sauce, or spread on your favorite bread. If you have time to make a full batch, it will be easily devoured, however the recipe is easy to cut down & shorten the amount of time, and portion size to make it a quick-easy preparation to compliment to your meal. 

Here is the full recipe, in my well-used book, but then I shrink it down for us to make quickly and easily. 

Find the rest of the cookbook recipe below...

INGREDIENTS

• 12 ripe tomatoes stems removed
• 1 head of garlic divided into unpeeled cloves
• 2 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil
• salt and pepper
• 5 sprigs of fresh thyme 

METHOD

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350F.
2. Cut the tomatoes in half through the "equator" and place them in a mixing bowl with the garlic and olive oil, salt and pepper. Mix gently.
3. Place the tomato halves and garlic cloves face down on in a roasting pan and pour any extra olive oil and seasoning over the top. add the sprigs of thyme to the top.  
4. Place tomatoes in the oven for 20 minutes.  
5. Remove them from the oven and let cool before you remove the skins, thyme, and garlic cloves and place in a separate bowl. 
6. Place the tomato juice that formed at the bottom of the pan into a separate container (I always use glass especially when juice is warm).
7. Place the inside of the tomatoes back into baking pan. 
8. Change the oven to 250F and place the tomatoes into the oven for half an hour longer.  
9. Remove and let cool, and then place in a serving dish or a glass pyrex for storing in the refrigerator.  

The tomato juice can be used as a marinade, dressing or added to sauces for pasta. 

The roasted garlic can be removed from the skins and spread on bread for garlic bread, or spread on fish or veggies before grilling. 

Oh and the roasted tomatoes! Use it in pasta, spread it on baguette, top it on a mozzarella ball as an appetizer, or just take a forkful and enjoy. It is so good!