Confit tomatoes, garlic, shallots with Grana Padano and courgette, dill & Grana Padano salad
Alexandra Dudley
One of my favourite things about summer is being able to eat outside. I tend to cook simply and to make the most of a few good ingredients. This was a supper we had last week. Tomatoes, garlic and shallots cooked confit – slowly in the oven with lots of olive oil and some rosemary which I paired with a quick zesty salad of thinly sliced courgettes tossed with lemon, dill, olive oil and lots of Grana Padano. Also on the table were some big chunks of focaccia, crunchy radishes for freshness and more Grana Padano to slice, eat and top juicy tomato open sandwiches. I use Grana Padano in so much of my cooking and it is often the key to really bringing flavour to my recipes but I also love it eaten just simply like this. The heart of a good meal. I have shared the recipes below.
Ingredients
- Courgette, dill & Grana Padano salad:
- 4 courgettes
- Zest of one lemon
- Juice of one lemon
- Big handful of dill
- Olive oil
- 100 grams or more of Grana Padano
- Confit tomatoes, garlic, shallots with Grana Padano:
- 800g cherry tomatoes on the vine
- 3 banana shallots
- 2 whole bulbs of garlic
- A few sprigs of rosemary
- Olive oil
- Grana Padano and focaccia or good bread to serve
Preparation
Courgette, dill & Grana Padano salad.
Finely slice the courgettes using a knife or mandolin, set aside.
Toss everything together in a bowl, then shave over more Grana Padano
Confit tomatoes, garlic, shallots with Grana Padano.
Preheat the oven to 160 degrees fan setting.
Carefully slice off the bottom of the garlic cloves and place them in a large over proof dish with the tomatoes. Peel and quarter the shallots and nestle evenly between the garlic and tomatoes.
Season with sea salt and add enough olive oil to come half way up the tomatoes. Cook for about 1 hour until the garlic is browned and the tomatoes and shallots are soft and jammy.
Enjoy with good bread and generous slices of Grana Padano.
