If you have the luxury—I mean, the problem—of too many end-of-season tomatoes, then this confit is for you. Confit is an ancient form of preservation in which perishable food is slowly cooked at a low temperature in fat and then stored in fat. It was (and is) an efficient and safe method to cook and store meat and fish that would otherwise perish. The term “confit” also applies to preserving fruits and vegetables, which may be slowly cooked in oil or a sugar syrup—a method that yields jams, chutneys, and candied fruit.
This end-of-summer confit is a rich, bright, and buttery blend of tomatoes and garlic. The key to the recipe is its simplicity of ingredients and the slow cooking time, which allows the tomatoes to reduce to a juicy sludge and a whole head of garlic to collapse and melt into a buttery paste. Your reward is a savory jam with myriad uses. Smear the confit on crostini, spoon a dollop into a bowl of pasta, use it as a pizza sauce, or dilute it with cream for a silky, rich soup. No matter the use, it will be a warm and sunny memory of summer’s tomato bounty.
Tomato and Garlic Confit
Active time: 10 minutes Total time: 1 hour Yield: Makes about 2 cups- 1 large garlic head
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 pounds cherry or heirloom tomatoes
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme or marjoram
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
