Weekly Meal Plan: Dinners That Celebrate Tomatoes

It’s the middle of August and tomato season (one of my all time favourite food seasons I’ll have you know) so for this weeks Weekly Meal Plan I thought I’d focus on five delicious weeknight dinners that have beautiful fresh tomatoes (rather than the tinned tomatoes we rely on for most of the year) as their star ingredient. 

Monday: Strapatsada with Basil & Toasted Pine Nuts

I love this quick one pan mixture of cooked tomato and creamy egg (perfect for scooping right out of the pan with crusty bread at the end of a long day) for using up fresh tomatoes that have gone slightly soft in the fridge. Pine nuts and basil are my preferred toppings,  but just see what you’ve got!

Tuesday: The Only Tomato Salad Recipe You’ll Ever Need

Yes, I eat a big tomato salad (served with crusty bread for mopping up all those delicious juices – have you detected a theme in my summer eating yet?!) as a main meal, and on those evenings where you’ve got really good, fresh, and preferably home grown tomatoes and it is too hot to think about cooking, you should too.

Wednesday: Tagliatelle with Creamy Almond & Tomato Sauce

I love raw pasta sauces and this one makes the most of summer tomatoes, blitzing them up with soaked blanched almonds for a creamy vegan sauce. I do serve it sometimes as here with fresh parmesan and basil, but I’ve got a version in One Pan Pescatarian (ad) where I sprinkle it with dukkah instead.

Thursday: Tomato & Coconut Cassoulet

For something a bit heartier with fresh tomatoes I love this vegan ‘cassoulet’ for it’s rich flavours – I like to dish this one up when I need a vegetarian option for a larger summer spread, but I also love making this for everyday as the leftovers happen to be rather delicious cold, too.

Friday: Sardine and Pea Shoot Bruschetta

In my mind – other than a simple tomato salad – bruschetta is one of the very best things you can make from really ripe, really fresh summer tomatoes. I’ve made it a meal here by topping it with simple pan fried sardines, and pea shoots.

A few things to try for the weekend (recently I’ve noticed food talk turning around to stocking up again in case there is another lockdown – local or national – when schools go back in September so I thought I’d share a few batch cooking ideas you can also stash in the freezer): Vegan Romesco Roasted Red Pepper Soup, Easy Sausage Ragu, Classic Bolognese Lasagna, Slow Roasted Tomato & Squash Soup with Homemade Garlic Bread, Lemony Pork Meatballs with Pine Nuts, Easy Summertime Courgette Soup, Spicy Carrot Soup, Simple & Delicious Bolognese Sauce, Freeze-ahead Red Lentil Ragu.

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