Having traveled to farmers markets across the country for work, I can tell you that August is nearly universally “peak” for Summer crops such as corn, peaches, and tomatoes (sorry, Florida!). Even though I’m in California now with Summer produce well into Fall, I wait all year for this bountiful month where you never know when you might go home with a case of tomatoes or peaches that you can preserve, indulge, and experiment to your heart’s content.
Back in 2016, I was moving to California and no longer had an active lease in Connecticut so I planned back-to-back work travel to cover my lodging in various cities across the east coast in order to fill the gap. I was at the East Atlanta Village farmers market in Georgia when I learned it was the “last week” of peach season for the year…..
So, naturally, I purchased a large cardboard case of mixed peaches to take back with me.
In the next 24 hours, that case of peaches rode on trains, planes, and automobiles as I flew from Atlanta, took the bus from LaGuardia to a participating market in Harlem, and rode the train back to New Haven on the Metro-North. On its travels, it was even tested for bomb residue, a fate I’ve witnessed many times as I’ve carried produce with hard pits through TSA.
Not having a kitchen of my own, I continued to tote this case of peaches everywhere I stayed and left bowlfuls at friend’s houses as payment for letting me crash for the night. I brought some on a trip to Rhode Island where I picked up some juicy ‘seconds’ tomatoes and some goat cheese. Little did I know what would happen next.
This recipe was a happy accident that changed the way I make tomato salads in that I always salt/marinate them for 30 minutes first now so that the extracted tomato juice can meld with your other ingredients as happens here with the goat cheese. I also love the addition of peaches into this summer salad as the two forms of sweetness (the tomato and the peach) compliment each other and can even become indistinguishable underneath the opaque goat cheese dressing.
Enjoy!
How Long Will it Take? 45 Minutes
What Will You Need?
- 3-4 Large Tomatoes or a Clamshell of Small Tomatoes
- 2-3 White or Yellow Peaches
- 1 Small Log of Goat Cheese
- 1 Sprig of Basil (8+ Leaves)
- 1 Lemon
- Salt
- Olive Oil
- Vinegar
Step 1: Chop and salt the tomatoes. I do this for all my tomato-based summer salads because sprinkling a pinch of salt a splash of oil/vinegar and letting the tomato juices pour out over 30 minutes creates a medium for other flavors to meld into; and, in this salad, I use it as the base of the dressing. Depending on the type of tomato, chop into bite-sized pieces (half for cherry sized ones and no bigger than 1 sq inch for larger tomatoes) so you won’t need a knife.
Step 2: Slice up the rest of your ingredients while you wait 30 minutes.
Peaches: I like to slice peaches into the traditional wedge shape, but keep the size in mind so you won’t need a knife. Unless that’s your thing. Also, think about the shapes of the tomatoes and the peaches on the plate together, as they can look indistinguishable under the dressing if both roughly chopped in similar shapes.
Basil: Ribbons! Essentially, you stack all your basil leaves in the same direction and then roll them into a tube at an angle. Chop off the stems and discard. While rolled into a tube, slice thin ‘ribbons’ that will resist browning over time and generally look fancier as a garnish.
Step 3: Drain the tomato juice for the dressing and mix in goat cheese. Here’s the thing: when I made this salad the first time I did not do this step. I simply noted that the juice that had collected in the bottom of my bowl of tomatoes transformed into a tangy sauce after I added clumps of goat cheese and mixed it up to serve. I have found as I’ve made this salad again that the presentation is better when I have more precision with the goopy-ness of the goat cheese dressing; so, this summer, I’ve been draining the juice and transferring it into a tall bowl to mix in goat cheese gradually to create my preferred ratio of juice to cheese. Start with a half of the log and taste as you go to see if you want/need the whole thing. I also squeeze in half a lemon and add salt, vineger, and oil to taste. It’s your salad dressing — who am I to tell you how to make it?
Step 4: Mix it all together or Plate it. You’ve made a salad! Pour on your dressing, mix with a spoon, and add basil ribbons to garnish the plate; OR, spread dollops of dressing across your plate and spoon the salad on top with garnish. Do what makes you feel good!
Bonus Planes, Trains, and Automobile Peach Pics:
