Oven Sun Dried Tomatoes

I just returned from a holiday in British Columbia. Though it's early in the season, the produce is fresh and ample. Every time I leave BC, I stop at the fruit stands along the roadside and load up on fresh goodies. These grape tomatoes simply had to come home with me. 

Along with the delicious produce came some unwelcome holiday bloat. Salt bloat. I so rarely eat out, I struggle anytime I holiday. Even when I'm surrounded by delightful produce, I puff up like a balloon if I'm eating at restaurants. On my way back to Calgary, I did some research on diminishing salt retention and bloating. It seems that potassium is key. Potassium helps your body to process additional sodium and passes it along with your urine.  (Did I seriously just use the word urine in a blog post? Yup. Yup I did). Needless to say, my next move was to research foods that were high in potassium. Dried fruits, specifically apricots, were at the top of the list, along with bananas, skin on baked potatoes and tomatoes...even more so, sun dried tomatoes. That last one got me thinking. I can make sun dried tomatoes!  

What a cool way to preserve the flavour of my days away. Who am I kidding? The flavour of my holiday was definitely wine!! Regardless, I tried something new and it worked!

Oven Sun Dried Tomatoes 

1/2 lb of grape or cherry tomatoes, tops removed and sliced in half

1 tsp of olive oil 

1 tsp-tbsp of oregano 

1 tsp of olive oil

Sea salt and pepper to taste

Preheat your oven to 200F

Mix your sliced tomatoes with your olive oil and seasoning. 

Spread on a baking sheet and bake for 2.5 to 3 hrs. 

The tomatoes are complete when they are mostly dried out with only a small amount of moisture left. 

Cool and store in the refrigerator in an airtight container. I ate mine in 24 hours, I'm sure they'd love happily in your fridge for 7-10 days. 

I loved my delicious tomatoes, they found their way into salads, pastas and straight out of the refrigerator!!  Sprinkle these things everywhere!!!!  

Thanks for reading!!  If you have any questions, comments or you just liked this Big Idea, feel free to comment below. 

Chick Pea Addiction

Ok...we all have that one friend. The friend that makes you giggle whether or not she knows she's being funny. This friend of mine is hilarious. She has a witty, dry sense of humour and she is seriously one of the best cooks I know. 

This girlfriend of mine used to make a chick pea dip that she served with nachos. I would stand by the bowl and shovel it into my mouth, party after party. Anytime I was heading to her house, I knew I was going to be the embarrassing girl at the back of the room stuffing my face with chick peas. I have no defences against this dip or salad, as I now call it. I'm weak in it presence. Which is fine, because it's actually pretty healthy. 

Years ago, I begged her for the recipe. I now make it almost weekly. I serve it over spinach, arugula, eat it with nachos, throw it into a soup, mix it in with rice and use it as a side. It's delicious, simple to make and lasts all week in the refrigerator. You can keep it in a baking dish and reheat it again and again. Have I mentioned I love this dish? So delicious, so versatile!

 

Please comment below if you have any questions, or you just liked this big idea!