When I walked around the village this morning every narrow street seemed to smell of tomatoes, thyme, olive oil and garlic, the distinctive scent of summer in the Midi and all around the Mediterranean. I didn’t want to be left out of this treat, so as soon as I got home I put some of our tomatoes and aubergines in the oven. I sliced the tops off the tomatoes and halved some small aubergines lengthwise. I removed the hard ‘core’ of the tomatoes (some varieties don’t have this, but the Languedocian ones do) and made slits in the flesh of the aubergines. Then I added chopped garlic, thyme, salt and pepper and poured olive oil over them all in an oven-proof dish. After 45 minutes our kitchen smelled like the rest of the village and the vegetables made a delicious lunch, with some left over for later.
olivesandartichokes 
Sounds like a good idea to me I have an overflow of tomatoes at present. Diane
Now that is an honest dish…fresh tomatoes are the jewels of summer, and this simple recipe is just perfect to let their unique flavor shine through!
Simple and tasty – a recipe, I will try for sure ! Thank you !
Oh that makes me hungry! That is one of the best ways to prepare tomatoes, simple and utterly delicious. I’m sure the eggplant is delicious that way also. I’m getting very impatient with my slow tomato and eggplant production…
Fresh tomatoes!! I can’t get enough of!! I imagine myself dunking a slice of toasted country bread into those delicious tomatoes!!
We´re finally getting our first red tomatoes! And I love what you said about your house “smelling like the rest of the village”! I know eactly what you mean. Looks wonderful.
Just beginning to think about sowing tomato seeds here, while the snow falls outside and the wind and rain throw themselves at the world! What a great inspiration this post of yours is to believe that summer WILL come eventually.
Delicious.
Thanks to all for your comments. There’s something magical about tomatoes – simple and yet they inspire so many thoughts and comments. And one of the joys of blogging is to hear from Kate in Australia, confirming that the year turns round, a continuing cycle from seed to delicious harvest.
Oh lovely… mine have come and gone already! I’m wondering about a second crop though… Spring came soooo early this year maybe fall will never come and I can just keep tomatoes cycling through the garden forever! Mmmm…