Put those summertime cherry tomatoes to use with this recipe, which works especially well with Sun Gold cherry tomatoes. It’s from the pages of “Flavorama,” a new cookbook by Arielle Johnson, a Ph.D.
flavor scientist who’s worked with Noma in Copenhagen. The recipe yields a tomato sauce with bright, fresh, clean flavor. Serve it with pasta, rice or other cooked grains.
Serves 2 to 3 2 tablespoons cultured butter 1 teaspoon sea salt 1 small chopped garlic clove 1 pint stemmed Sun Gold cherry tomatoes 1⁄3 cup yogurt whey (prepared by straining roughly double the amount of whole milk plain yogurt through four layers of cheesecloth or a very clean dish towel; give it 8 to 12 hours to drain.) 10 ounces shaped pasta like orecchiette, conchiglie, or campanelle Melt cultured butter with sea salt in a medium saucepan or a nonstick skillet and let it lightly brown over medium heat. Turn the heat down to low and add the garlic.
Stir and let cook for about 30 seconds; don’t let the garlic brown. Add the cherry tomatoes and turn the heat back to medium. Cover and let cook for about 2 minutes, until the tomatoes start to burst and soften.
Crush them lightly in the pan with a potato masher, making sure you break each tomato open. Add yogurt whey and continue to cook, uncovered, at a brisk bubble for 8 to 10 more minutes. The tomatoes will break down into a chunky sauce and the mixture will thicken a little bit.
Taste and adjust the salt as necessary. To serve over pasta, cook 10.