Type of dish: Condiment

Cut the tomatoes in half lengthwise.

Cut out the tough part around the stem and any bruised or soft parts.

You can then quarter the tomatoes, if you’d like, depending on how big or small you want the final dried pieces to be. Usually they shrink to 1/4 their original size.

Preheat the oven to 150ºF. If your oven won’t set that low, just use the lowest setting you’ve got.

Arrange the tomatoes on cake racks, spread out, not touching each other. Cookie sheets will work if you don’t have cake racks or screens – but you will need to flip or stir the tomatoes once in a while to expose the other side of them. Some people prefer to sprinkle the tomatoes with sea salt, kosher salt and/or some spices (typically basil). Close the oven. It takes about 10 to 20 hours, but you’ll need to check periodically, including rotating the shelves and moving them up or down to get even heating. If you want to speed it up, you can bump the heat up to as high as 200ºF, but you’ll need to watch them much more closely.

The amount of time it takes depends on the water content of the tomatoes, the thickness of the slices, and how well the air is able to circulate around them. When done, the tomatoes should be flexible, like a raisin from a fresh bag; not brittle. Most describe them as leathery with a deep red color, without free water or a tacky feeling.

Let the tomatoes cool to room temperature (about 20 to 30 minutes), then put them into zipper or vacuum bags. Don’t overfill the bags, leave a little room for expansion. Be sure to squeeze out the extra air.

Store your sun-dried tomatoes in the freezer, where they will retain their color and flavor for 9 to 12 months.

Recipe courtesy of Gazy Brothers Farm