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Two weeks ago I posted a quiz: what is pictured above. No one guessed the right answer, so here it is: a tomato chip.

What would you use a tomato chip for? How do they taste? It’s a garnish, really for visual appeal. It tastes like a dry tomato with a little bit of “jerky” texture.

What do you garnish with a tomato chip? In the wonderful new Payard Desserts by Francois Payard and Tish Boyle, the chip is used a Red Berry and Tomato Gazpacho with Tomato Chips. That recipe will appear here in a couple of days. The chips can be used as garnishes on salads and on the rim of beverages [but not in the beverage, it’ll dissolve!].

These chips have a lifetime of only a couple of days, so make and use quickly. When you see a recipe that calls for skinless tomatoes, say in gazpacho, and you started to mumble something like “What a pain” you need to think again. Getting the skin off the tomatoes is easy and you can have these lovely chips to bemuse and puzzle everyone.

This recipe calls for dusting the skins with confectioners’ sugar as part of the drying process. I can imagine doing this with chili powders or paprika as well. Perfect for a Blood Mary.

 

Tomato Chips

 Yield: lots, depending on how you skin the tomatoes

 Ingredients:

  •   ·    6 medium ripe tomatoes
  •        Confectioners’ sugar for dusting Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 175°F. Line a half-sheet pan with a silicone baking mat [parchment paper does NOT work well]. Fill a bowl halfway with ice water.

Using a paring knife, make a small X at the bottom end of each tomato. Bring a large pot half full of water to a rolling boil over high heat and immerse the tomatoes in the boiling water for about 30 seconds. Remove them with a slotted spoon and immediately plunge the tomatoes into the ice water. The skins should start to come off the tomatoes.

Remove the skins with your fingers [try to remove them in one piece, but you’ll probably get fragments]. Pat the skins dry with paper towels. Reserve the skinned tomatoes for other use [as in gazpacho].

Arrange the skins on the prepared sheet pan and dust them with confectioners’ sugar. Bake for 1 to 2 hours, until dry. The skins will crisp up they cool. Store in an airtight container until ready to serve.

 

Source: Payard Desserts by Francois Payard with Tish Boyle

Photo Information Canon T2i, EFS 60 mm Macro Lens, F/5.6 for 1/8th second at ISO‑1600