Last Updated on September 9, 2026 by Carrie Korem, FNTP
The piles of beautiful in-season produce at the markets provide a good reminder to buy organic as much as possible. Pesticides and herbicides don’t stay on the outside skin of produce, they can soak into the flesh, too.
Fruits and vegetables with thin skins absorb the most chemicals. According to the Environmental Working Group, different pesticides have been linked to cancer, nervous system toxicity, endocrine (hormone) system effects, and skin, eye, and lung irritation. If you would like to read further, here is a simple and easy to read website with basic information about pesticides.
My mom gave me this recipe a few years ago and I think it brings out the sweetness of a tomato better than any other recipe I’ve tried. You can eat it alone as a side dish, or use it as a topping on fish or thick crusty pieces of sourdough. Enjoy!
Baked Garden Tomatoes with Cheese
Adapted from Epicurious.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons ghee
- 1 medium yellow onion, minced
- 3 garlic cloves, chopped
- 3 tablespoons green onion, minced
- 1 3/4 pounds (about 6) vine-ripened or heirloom tomatoes, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 1 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and adjust rack to middle position. Heat 2 tablespoons ghee in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until soft, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and green onion sauté for 30 seconds, until fragrant. Stir in tomatoes and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook until tomatoes just begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Pour tomato mixture into an 11 x 7-inch baking dish and sprinkle evenly with cheese. Bake for 20 minutes, until cheese melts and is golden. Cool for 5 minutes before serving.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: Serves 6
I love baked tomatoes! This sounds like it smells amazing, such a fresh and light dinner! Thanks for posting. Great pics from the Farmer's Market, what kind of camera do you have?
Beautiful! I know what I'm serving for lunch tomorrow with the portabello and arugula sandwiches. There is a show on PBS called "From Farm to Table" that my daughter and I like to watch: http://www.wmht.org/index.php?s=1&b=10&p=36Is this the one your friend works on?Thanks for another great recipe!
Great receipe! I like percorino romano on tomatoes!!
Healthy.Happy.Well.: I have a canon rebel xti. I mainly use the 50mm 1.8 lens. Love that camera!! Elizabeth: Oh yes, it would go great with your sandwiches! That show is a different one than the one she is working on.
I have a bunch of tomatoes I need to use up…this may be just the thing!-Gail
These roasted tomatoes are right up my alley!! I would love to shop the Farmer's Market with u guys :)xo
so, so, jealous you have local organic tomatoes already… that looks like a delicious dinner, i'll have to put it on my list for later in the season!
I made these tomatoes last night for a dinner party. They were so good and a big hit! Thanks for sharing!
Don’t forget to add some fresh basil 🙂
These were delicious! I used mini heirloom tomatoes and Parmesan because that’s what I had, but it turned out great! The tomato flavor really intensified. Thanks!
Love your site and your recipes! Just wanted to give you a little heads up though about buying tomatoes at a farmers market so you dont get ripped off or told any lies. Peak Season for tomatoes is May to July- maybe August if you are lucky, so if you are buying tomatoes from a farmers market in March to early April chances are it was grown in a hot house (and judging from the way-too-perfectness of the picture to have on this recipe that is what you got, if these are the tomatoes you bought). Thats not to say they are not still organically grown or a better quality than the grocery store, just be warry of super perfect tomatoes ( or any produce for that matter) with no blemishes or bug bites, orange spots, etc. because that either means they are hot house, bought from Mexico or they are lying about not using pesticides. So just be sure to think about that especially in peak season, because tomatoes taste WAY BETTER when they are grown in the ground and have a ton of sunshine. By the way I know all this because I participate in our local farmers market with my entire family and we dont use any pesticides or herbicides….so you are getting it “straight from the horses mouth”, as they say!
Thanks for the tips! When I wrote this post I was living in Southern California where we can get all sorts of produce year-round. 🙂