Pretty Ways to Serve Tomatoes

Tired of same-old sliced tomatoes? Check out Pretty Ways to Serve Summer's Best Tomatoes @ AVeggieVenture.com, a collection of photos with recipes from talented food bloggers.
graphic button small size size 10 Hello, Tomato Lovers! Here's just what you've been looking for, a collection of tips and photos, all the prettiest ways to serve sweet, juicy summer tomatoes. graphic button small size size 10

Who else is as excited as all get-out that it is tomato season?! We seasonal eaters, we wait all year long for this moment.

A whole two tomato seasons ago now, I got this idea to collect pretty ways to serve the summer's best tomatoes. No cooking, no grilling, no roasting, just good tomatoes straight from the garden served in beautiful but simple ways.

You'll see what inspired that idea, it's in the first photo below, a beautiful platter of tomato slices sprinkled with dainty white garlic chive flowers with a tiny tomato bouquet of flowers in the center. Yeah, I know, sooo simple and yet so pretty.

I found so-so many ideas but pared them down to just fourteen, all from talented tomato-lovin' food bloggers. And as I studied the photos, trying really hard not to drool tomato juice, I realized that serving tomatoes in pretty ways, well, the ideas hold much in common.

Ideas & Inspiration

Or Skip Straight to the Pictures & Recipes

graphic button small size size 10 THINK COLOR For a rainbow of tomatoes, choose the abandon of leaf-, lemon-, tangerine-, plum- and wine-colors of heirloom tomatoes – or the opposite, the soothing plainness of a single color of tomatoes arranged in simple fashion.
graphic button small size size 10 THINK ARCHITECTURE So many pretty ways with tomatoes are "architectural". You know, stacks or overlapping layers or concentric circles or cute little skewers. I love their symmetry and repetition. But on the other end of the spectrum? A big jumble of pretty tomatoes can be really, really pretty too!
graphic button small size size 10 THINK RIPENESS Most important of all? One blogger after another mentioned how important this is, it's really key to produce a tomato dish that tastes as good as it looks. You know this, right? The tomatoes should be perfectly ripe as if just-plucked warm from the summer sun. Repeat this three times! These recipes are not for January! Well, unless you're in the southern hemisphere.
graphic button small size size 10 THINK PLATES, PLATTERS & BOWLS Clear glass, plain white, these were the choices made by one blogger after another, these really give the tomatoes their "day in the sun". And we all know good tomatoes need sun, yes?! (Teehee, hello gardeners ... )
graphic button small size size 10 THINK "NO RECIPES" The recipes I've selected, well, they're not really recipes, per se. With one quick glance, you'll get the idea and know to start digging into a cupboard for a long-unused platter, to wonder whether the garlic chives are in blossom.



MANY THANKS Finally, let me officially thank Lazy Sunday Cooking, a lovely lifestyle blog in Poland written in English by professional photographer Marta Potoczek. Marta graciously answered "yes" when I asked permission to use her beautiful photo of a box of home-grown heirloom tomatoes. Marta's photo is featured in her tip-filled post called Growing Tomatoes, a must-read for anyone who's growing tomatoes. Thanks so much, Marta! Follow her inspiring work on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram and Flickr.



Looking for tomato recipes, not this collection of tomatoes served in especially pretty ways?

Here are all my tomato recipes and twelve favorites!

What's your favorite pretty way to serve perfect summer tomatoes?

Leave a comment, I'd love to hear (or see) your ideas! I know many of you are on Facebook, if you like, post a photo to your own page, then tag it with @AVeggieVenture. (Hmmm, to do that, you might have to "like" the page first, A Veggie Venture on Facebook.)




Sliced Tomatoes with Garlic Chive Flowers, another Pretty Way to Serve Tomatoes @ AVeggieVenture.com.

FOR SIMPLICITY: PLAIN 'N' PRETTY


Friends brought this beautiful plate of tomato slices to a potluck, it's the inspiration for my search and discovery of the many ways to to serve tomatoes in pretty ways. There's no recipe, per se, the flowers of garlic chive are so pretty during tomato season. So pretty, this plate!
Heirloom Tomato Corn Salad @ UseRealButter.com, another Pretty Way to Serve Tomatoes @ AVeggieVenture.com.
But tomatoes needn't always be sliced. Here, tomato wedges give great surface area to soak up the olive oil and vinegar. Note the platter's sloping sides, we don't want to lose those tomato juices!

Recipe Here:

Heirloom Tomato Corn Salad


About This Recipe:
"The only thing left to do is to inhale the salad and ask yourself why you didn’t make more. I’m partial to heirloom tomatoes because they are not only sweet, but they have fantastic flavor." ~ Use Real Butter
Tomato Mozzarella Caprese Salad @ Laylita.com, another Pretty Way to Serve Tomatoes @ AVeggieVenture.com.

FOR DRAMA: PRETTY STACKS


No question, stacked tomato slices can be ever so dramatic! What's classic about Italian caprese [pronounced ka-PREE-zay] salads is the three simple ingredients: tomatoes, fresh mozzarella and basil. After that? You rarely see the same presentation twice!

Recipe Here:

Tomato Mozzarella Caprese Salad


About This Recipe:
"The basil oil sauce ... allows the flavor of basil to be more distributed on the entire salad – plus it’s so addictive." ~ Laylita
Stacked Caprese @ BuriedCarrots.com, another Pretty Way to Serve Tomatoes @ AVeggieVenture.com.
Personally, I'm smitten with the simplicity of basil leaves tucked between slices of tomato and fresh mozzarella, perfect for a weeknight supper or a simple salad for one or two.

Recipe Here:

Simplicity and Caprese


About This Recipe:
"I wish everything in life were as simple as Caprese. The garden tomatoes are ripe and bursting with flavor. The basil plants are filling out more and more each day — offering sweet, spicy leaves. Add some fresh mozzarella and a drizzle of olive oil and balsamic, and the loveliest summer dinner is served." ~ Buried Carrots
Hasselback Caprese Salad @ MyFussyEater.com, another Pretty Way to Serve Tomatoes @ AVeggieVenture.com.
But turn those caprese stacks on their side to put a Swedish spin on the classic Italian salad. Just lovely!

Recipe Here:

Hasselback Caprese Salad


About This Recipe:
"A simple but impressive way of serving a caprese salad. A great way to get kids excited about tomatoes!" ~ My Fussy Eater
Heirloom Tomato Avocado Caprese Salad @ CookEatPaleo.com, another Pretty Way to Serve Tomatoes @ AVeggieVenture.com.
For a paleo take on caprese salad, omit the dairy-based fresh mozzarella and substitute with rounds of avocado. So pretty!

Recipe Here:

Heirloom Tomato Avocado Caprese Salad


About The Recipe: "The key to this salad is having perfectly ripe produce. You want the tomatoes and basil at their peak of flavor and the avocado perfectly ripe and creamy." ~ Cook Eat Paleo
Tomatoes & Fresh Mozzarella for a Crowd @ KitchenParade.com, another Pretty Way to Serve Tomatoes @ AVeggieVenture.com
For a crowd, though, those dramatic stacks of tomato are just too fussy. Here I broke out my mother's trifle bowl. It's so pretty, such a show-stopper. Just slice and serve, that's it!

Recipe Here:

Tomatoes & Fresh Mozzarella for a Crowd


About The Recipe: "... charmed a crowd of us at a relaxed summer supper. No chopping, no measuring, no fussing, just layer a few slices of tomato and fresh mozzarella in a glass bowl." ~ Kitchen Parade
Heirloom Tomato and Burrata Caprese @ GuiltyKitchen.com, another Pretty Way to Serve Tomatoes @ AVeggieVenture.com.
And then again? All that perfection just might be over-rated. Look how lovely a big jumble of tomato and fresh cheese can be ...

Recipe Here:

Heirloom Tomato and Burrata Caprese


About The Recipe: "This salad was amazing and simple and lovely and even the kids ate some of it ..." ~ Guilty Kitchen
Caprese Skewers with Balsamic Drizzle @ IowaGirlEats.com, another Pretty Way to Serve Tomatoes @ AVeggieVenture.com.

FOR CUTE: PRETTY SKEWERS

Cute food sells! And it's so handy for buffets and parties, just quick no-fork-required appetizers.

Recipe Here:

Caprese Skewers with Balsamic Drizzle


About This Recipe:
"Mini mozzarella cheese balls skewered with tender basil leaves and juicy tomatoes, drizzled with tangy-sweet balsamic reduction will Knock.Your.Socks.Off." ~ Iowa Girl Eats
Tomato Platter with Olives & Feta, another Pretty Way to Serve Tomatoes @ AVeggieVenture.com.

PRETTY TOO: Tomatoes with Feta

Creamy fresh mozzarella and burrata take all the glory with summer tomatoes but taste-wise and budget-wise and yes, "tang-wise", feta is a great summer choice.

Recipe Here:

Tomato Platter with Olives & Feta


About This Recipe:
"A platter of perfect sliced summer tomatoes and cucumber, topped with olives and crumbled feta from the olive bar. Perfect for one or two or a crowd." ~ A Veggie Venture
Warm Feta with Tomatoes @ Lily.FI, another Pretty Way to Serve Tomatoes @ AVeggieVenture.com.
Be still, my beating heart. W-A-R-M feta.

Recipe Here:

Warm Feta with Tomatoes


About This Recipe:
"I used herbs to make a 'bed' for feta and added a little honey, olive oil and black pepper and roasted the little packet made from parchment paper until the cheese was warm and the herbs were wilted ..." ~ Lily.Fi
Summer Tomato Feta Salad @ BusyInBrooklyn.com, another Pretty Way to Serve Tomatoes @ AVeggieVenture.com.
I love how a long rectangle platter shows off the shape of these pretty red and yellow tomato slices.

Recipe Here:

Summer Tomato Feta Salad


About This Recipe:
"With summer tomatoes being so juicy and delicious, you really don’t need much to make them sing. A simple drizzle of good quality olive oil and balsamic vinegar is enough to dress them up." ~ Busy in Brooklyn
Tomato, Peach, & Burrata Salad @ TwoPeasAndTheirPod.com, another Pretty Way to Serve Tomatoes @ AVeggieVenture.com.

PRETTY PAIRS Summer Tomatoes + Summer Fruit

Tomatoes and fruit? That doesn't seem quite so strange when you remember that tomatoes, too, are fruit. Remember that? First up, tomatoes and peaches.

Recipe Here:

Tomato, Peach, & Burrata Salad


About This Recipe:
"[This salad] is so simple, but sometimes simple is best, especially when summer produce is at its peak. The fresh ingredients do all of the work!" ~ Two Peas and Their Pod
Quilted Salad @ Mango Tango, another Pretty Way to Serve Tomatoes @ AVeggieVenture.com.
And finally, tomatoes with watermelon. Simply stunning!

Recipe Here:

Quilted Salad


About This Recipe:
"The flavors of tomatoes and watermelon are wonderful together and the cucumber gave it some crispness." ~ Tango Mango
Tired of same-old sliced tomatoes? Check out Pretty Ways to Serve Summer's Best Tomatoes @ AVeggieVenture.com, a collection of photos with recipes from talented food bloggers.

So That's It!

I hope you're feeling inspired to paint plates and platters with summer's best tomatoes, you know, "pretty tomatoes"! Does one pretty way especially suit your style? Are you jazzed to build a pretty plate in your very own pretty way?

Collection Here:

Pretty Ways to Serve Tomato's Best Tomatoes




Still Hungry?



MORE TOMATO SALADS: WORTHY OF GOOD SUMMER TOMATOES

~ Never Take a Good Tomato for Granted: Twelve Favorite Tomato Recipes ~
~ Old Liz's Old-Fashioned Cucumber & Tomato Salad ~
~ Fattoush (Traditional Middle Eastern Salad) ~
~ Jerusalem Salad ~
~ more tomato recipes ~
from A Veggie Venture

~ Favorite Summer Salad Recipes ~
~ Panzanella ~
~ Fresh Corn & Tomato Salad ~
~ Greek Pasta Salad ~
~ more tomato recipes ~
from Kitchen Parade, my food column

A Veggie Venture is home of "veggie evangelist" Alanna Kellogg and the
famous asparagus-to-zucchini Alphabet of Vegetables.

© Copyright Kitchen Parade 2015



Alanna Kellogg
Alanna Kellogg

A Veggie Venture is home of "veggie evangelist" Alanna Kellogg and the famous asparagus-to-zucchini Alphabet of Vegetables.

Comments

  1. Great (and pretty) tomatoes! When I was growing up on our Midwestern farm, as soon as the tomatoes and cucumbers started to ripen, they were served at both dinner and supper meals. Mom did the same thing her mom and mother-in-law did - serve up peeled, sliced tomatoes on a big platter. Often these would be accompanied by pickle-like slabs of fresh-from-the-garden cucumbers, either on the same platter or in a separate dish. Tomatoes were eaten simply as a fresh vegetable. My grandma always set the table with small bowls for the tomatoes. Salt and pepper would be available or the sugar bowl, for those that liked to sweeten their tomato slices. Thanks for sharing these interesting recipes!

    ReplyDelete

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Thank you for taking a moment to write! I read each and every comment, for each and every recipe, whether a current recipe or a long-ago favorite. If you have a specific question, it's nearly always answered quick-quick. ~ Alanna