There’s nothing very complex about this salad. It’s simple and clean, but there’s also something kind of elegant about it. It’s my favorite type of salad. What’s special about it, and the reason I’m sharing it with you, is its unique combination of ingredients…heirloom tomatoes and cherries.
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‘There are only two things that money can’t buy and that’s true love and homegrown tomatoes.’
My friend Hayley quotes that song all the time and it’s SO true.

It’s become my gardening mantra as I slowly narrow down the list of things I’m willing to slave over in the garden. Corn? So not worth it. It never gets quite as sweet as I like it and the ants get it far before it’s fully ripe. Squash? I’ve been banned from planting them after last summer’s saga (it’s a long story but basically, I was bed-ridden with a bad back when Andrew found me on hands and knees in the garden, killing vine borers while sobbing in pain – yes, I’m a little neurotic). Cucumbers? Apparently a rare orange Chinese variety has found its way to my back yard. Essentially, I’m down to peppers, melons, green beans, okra, herbs and homegrown tomatoes.
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I’m not sure if it’s fair to call this ‘ratatouille’.


First of all, I’ve made my version of this traditional French side dish decidedly more Italian with the addition of mozzarella and pesto.
And, instead of chopping and stewing, I’ve layered and baked like the ratatouille made by our favorite little mouse-chef.

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My ability, or inability to be more accurate, to cook tomato soup is legend in my family.

I made a simple mistake over a decade ago and my mom hasn’t let me live it down since.

(as most stories begin) So there was this boy…
He wasn’t a great boy, a talented boy or a smart boy. He really had no redeeming qualities at all except for the fact that I was 14 and he was quite infatuated with me. Needless to say, I was a bit distracted the night my mom asked me to make Campbell’s Tomato Soup for dinner.

Yeah…I know…it’s the easiest thing in the world. How can you screw up Campbell’s Tomato Soup? Well, let me tell you.
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