Spiced Cherry Tomato Salad

I remember Expo 67 as a turning point. International cuisine entered the Montreal mainstream with a bang. Quiche Lorraine, Indian cuisine, Chinese food gravitated from Cantonese to Szechuan, Greek food became a staple, Lebanese food made inroads. Suddenly the world of exotic flavour exploded in our neck of the woods. The family of my youth embraced all the new and unusual treats.

Decades later when my life entered the blended family era, I tried to please everyone, in spite of their disparate food tastes. Smorgasbord became the norm. I carpeted the table with this, that and the other thing, hoping someone would like something. So different from how I grew up. No one catered to individual tastes in my childhood home. It was take it or leave it, and we basically all took it.

These days food sophistication levels have reached new and dizzying heights. Almost everyday I’m exposed to something new in the culinary arts. TV, internet, books, sharing food information has gone wild. Today’s recipe is a case in point. The simplest of foods, with a new and exciting cloak of desirability.

Tomatoes. So simple. So perfect. Who doesn’t like tomato salad?

Spiced Cherry Tomato Marinade

1 T brown sugar
1/2 t kosher salt
2 T white vinegar
3 T extra virgin olive oil
1 T each fresh ginger and fresh garlic, chopped
1/2 t each mustard seed, ground pepper, cumin, turmeric, saffron threads
pinch of cayenne pepperCombine sugar, salt and vinegar in a bowl until the sugar is dissolved. Heat oil in a heavy skillet until hot. Add ginger and garlic, sautéeing for 1 minute. Stir in all spices, then remove from heat and add to the vinegar mixture. Cool to room temperature.

1-2 jalapeño peppers, seeded and finely diced
2 scallions, thinly sliced
2 T cilantro, chopped
3 c cherry tomatoes, halved

Mix the 2/3 of the marinade and the salad ingredients 3-4 hours before serving. Serves 8 as an appetizer, or 4 as a salad.