A Little Bit About a Lot of Things

I was recently invited to a Backyard Farms “Tomato Talk and Tasting” event. You’ve probably seen Backyard Farms tomatoes in the grocery store, they come those cute boxes with the white picket fences. Tim Cunniff, EVP at Backyard Farms, was on site to talk all things tomato.

First up, the Somerset Pinks. Don’t be fooled by the Somerset’s pink color, their flavor is quite bold. While they are the best tasting beefsteak tomatoes, they are also the hardest to grow. They are delicious on their own, so you don’t want to do a lot with them. I remember as a kid growing up, my mom and I used to eat tomatoes like apples with just a little sprinkle of salt. Funny how food can bring back vivid memories. I wouldn’t do much with these, maybe a light drizzle of balsamic or olive oil and that’s it.

Our first course was the Somerset Pink Tomato and Burrata Salad: Backyard Farms Somerset Pink Tomato, Burrata, Olive Oil, Saba. Simple and yet super delicious.

Next up, the cocktail tomato. Sweet and juicy, bursting with flavor. They grow about 7-8 on the vine and would taste great with almost anything. Check out these fun facts that I found on their website:

•  Cocktail Tomato clusters start out as groups of 12 to 16 flowers. We prune the flowers to 7 to 8 to ensure even ripening of the fruit and to keep the plant in balance.

•  Cocktail Tomatoes ripen on the vine starting from the fruit closest to the plant to the fruit at the tip. This first tomato is called the king fruit and the last tomato to grow and ripen is called the tail fruit.

The second course was the Backyard Farms Cocktail Tomato Soup: Backyard Farms Cocktail Tomato, Onion, Dill, Tarragon, Oregano, Honey. Check out the recipe here. I have to admit that I don’t generally enjoy tomato soup, oh the childhood memories, but this recipe was SO delicious!! Something about the honey and the lemon juice just gave it a sophisticated flavor.

We also had a Somerset Pink Tomato, goat cheese and prosciutto panini: Backyard Farms Somerset Pink Tomato, goat cheese, prosciutto and basil on Francese bread. In addition to the Somerset Pink and Cocktail Tomatoes, Backyard Farms also offers a beefsteak tomato and tomatoes on the vine.

Backyard Farms is located up in Maine. They have a 42 acre greenhouse that allows them to grow tomatoes all year long. At other farms, it’s like a factory – one day everyone will go out and prune, another day everyone will go out and pick, etc. At Backyard Farms, each personal gardener is responsible for 10 rows of plants – these personal gardeners have a sense pride in their work – these are your plants. While we were listening to Tim talk, you could really hear that he loves his job and Backyard Farms seems like a great place to work. Recently, they switched over to a completely non smoking workplace and the company paid for three months of the patch for employees. In January they offered a subsidized weight watchers program and 40% of employees who signed up have reached their goal weight! In addition, they offer great benefits, including a 401K, insurance and paid time off – not something you see every day with gardeners.

Check out their website for fun facts and delicious recipes: http://www.backyardfarms.com

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