Tomato Fettuccine with Shrimp and Asparagus

A good bit of the fruit and vegetables that we eat comes from our garden and fruit trees.  At the peak of each season the good wife is kept busy canning the excess so we can eat it throughout the year until the next harvest season.  Tomatoes have been coming in strong for a bit now and we have 17 pints of homemade ketchup and 11 quarts and 1 pint of tomatoes canned for making sauces or adding to stews.  Earlier in the season the good wife found a website, http://joybileefarm.com/making-tomato-powder-scratch/?utm_content=buffer67519&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer, suggested an alternate use for the tomato skins that get removed prior to processing and canning.  The use she found was drying and grinding to powder to use for seasoning, thickening, etc.  Making powder was in lieu of composting or feeding to the chickens according to the website.  We'd always composted them.  The process is simple, put the tomato skins in a dehydrator or on a rack in the oven at the lowest temperature setting and letting dry until they were brittle.  Once they are brittle put in them in a food processor, blender, or spice mill.  I used the dry blade container for the Vitamix.  The powder is concentrated tomato flavor.

Tomato skins laid out ready to dry

Tomato powder

To this point we have about two cups of tomato powder and I was brainstorming on a use.  I've been trying flavored pastas with mixed results so I decided to use the same technique I'd used for some mushroom Fettuccine.  Once I had decided on pasta I Googled to see if tomato pasta was a thing.  Unsurprisingly, it was.  They all used tomato paste and it only seemed to be there to color the pasta and add a bare hint of flavor.  I figured my way would yield good flavor and color.

Tomato pasta freshly kneaded and ready to rest

What kind of pasta to make generated some discussion at work during a break.  The choices came down to cheese and shrimp stuffed ravioli or fettuccine.  I settled on fettuccine because it would be less labor intensive and I was wanting to use some asparagus that I had in the refrigerator.  I only had about 8 ounces of mushrooms on hand so I didn't have as many as I'd have liked.

Tomato Pasta with Shrimp and Asparagus

Pasta:
1.5 cups flour
1/2 cup + 2 Tbs tomato powder
3 large eggs
1 tsp salt
1 Tbs olive oil
2 Tbs water

1 lb 31-35 count shrimp
1 lb asparagus
1 medium onion
1/2 - 1 lb mushrooms
1 cup white wine
1 stick butter
salt
pepper
Italian seasoning

For the pasta:  Combine the flour, the tomato powder, and salt.  Make a well in the center and add the eggs, water, and olive oil.  Mix everything together until well combined and turn out on a floured surface.  Knead the pasta until it is smooth and elastic.  Wrap in plastic and let it sit for 20 minutes.  Divide into 4 pieces and roll to desired thickness and cut to the size you want.  After the pasta is cut place in well salted boiling water and cook until almost done.

Tomato pasta ready to run through the cutter

While the pasta dough is resting, cut the asparagus into bite size pieces, thinly slice the onion, and slice the mushrooms.  In 2 Tbs of  butter sautee the asparagus and onion, season to taste, and then place in a bowl.  Sautee the mushrooms in 2 Tbs of butter until they are done and put in the bowl with the asparagus and onion.  Place the shrimp in the skillet with the rest of the butter and put the pasta into the boiling water.  Cook the shrimp until almost done then add the rest of the ingredients back to the skillet.  Pour in the wine and stir to combine well.  Transfer the almost done pasta to the skillet.  Stir to combine the pasta and other ingredients.  The butter, wine, and pasta water will combine and make a sauce to coat everything.  Plate and serve.  This will serve 4 as an entree.

Tomato Fettuccine with Shrimp and Asparagus

If you don't have tomato powder, I believe tomato paste could be used for the same effect.  I would add a 6 oz can along with the wet ingredients and add additional flour to achieve the desired consistency.  I also think you could thinly slice Roma tomatoes and dry them until brittle and grind them into your own tomato powder.  I may have to break out the dehydrator to see how that works.

A tasty supper of Tomato Fettuccine with Shrimp and Asparagus

The final product had a distinct tomato flavor that went well with the shrimp, asparagus, and wine sauce.  The color is nice as well.

Give this pasta a try along with whatever you think will go well with it or use this whole recipe.  Either way, let me know what you think of the tomato pasta.

Uncle T

Green Tomato Relish

We tend to put in lots of tomato plants when we start the summer garden and this year was no exception.  For large fresh eating tomatoes I'd switched to Celebrity tomatoes a couple of years ago because they tend to stay relatively short yet produce heavily.  This year, in addition to the Celebrity tomatoes we put in Roma tomatoes.  The Romas were selected because they are not as juicy and would require less time to make homemade ketchup of the proper consistency.  Since I've not grown Romas before I planted them like I was used to planting Celebrity and other varieties.  In previous years, that meant that once the cages were around the tomato plants I had room to walk between the rows of tomatoes and harvest the ones that were ready.

The tomato jungle with pepper plants in front

Welcome to the tomato jungle.  The Celebrity tomatoes have gone crazy this year and have grown much longer and fuller than previous years.  The Romas grew more than I'd anticipated.  As a result of both varieties spilling over the tops of the tomato cages I have a huge tangle of tomatoes.  In order to harvest the Romas I have to crawl between the rows on my hands and knees.  I imagine I look a sight crawling through the tomatoes in a kilt.

This is why I have to crawl between the tomatoes to harvest

One problem with crawling between the tomatoes is the dislodging of green tomatoes before they are mature enough to finish ripening on the kitchen counter.  Since these tend to be small there is not much to be done with them.  I could save them up and when I had enough on hand to fill a jar I could ferment them.  On a whim while fixing supper I thought I'd whip up a green tomato relish to go with the pork chops I was fixing.


I've made it twice with slight variations and both were good.  I finally got around to searching the internet and found that green tomato relish is a thing but typically far different from mine.  Many are for large batches to can and almost all use far more ingredients.  The result is that the green tomatoes are not really that prominent in the flavor profile.  They also called for cooking the relish which softens the green tomatoes and changes the whole texture of the relish.  I wanted the crunch and the flavor.

A bowl of fresh Green Tomato Relish

Thus far, I've used this relish on both pork chops and chicken breasts.  Both were seasoned with a Szechuan seasoning blend I'm experimenting with.  The pork chops were pan fried in a little butter and the chicken breasts were pan fried in bacon grease left from preparing bacon for tomato pie.  The green tomato relish complimented both very well.

Pork chop topped with Green Tomato Relish, sautéed zucchini and onions, Parmesan smashed potatoes

Green Tomato Relish

2-4 small green tomatoes

1 small red tomato

1slice onion, 1/4 inch thick

basil

oregano

marjoram

parsley

salt

1 tsp olive oil

1 tsp apple cider vinegar

1 small hot pepper, optional

Dice the green and red tomatoes and put in a bowl.  Dice the onion and add to the tomatoes.  Mince the herbs, about 2 tsp each, and add to the bowl.  Add olive oil and vinegar and stir to combine.  Add salt to taste.  Relish is ready to top whatever you are having for supper.

Chicken breast topped with Green Tomato Relish, Parmesan smashed potatoes, and Tomato Pie

Optionally you can add some finely diced hot pepper to give a hint of heat.  I had a small, 1 inch long, jalapeno that I added to the relish that accompanied the chicken.  Another option if you don't have fresh herbs is to use dried Italian seasoning.  I did this once because I didn't want to get out in the heat again.

Later in the year, end of season, I may see about making a fermented version of this relish.  Given the small size of the dice it shouldn't take long.


Give green tomato relish a try if you are growing tomatoes or if you can get them from a Farmer's Market.  This relish goes well with both chicken and pork as well as an accompaniment to peas.  Let me know what you  think.


Uncle T