Tomato nation

High tomato season is here, compensation for triple-digit days. I asked Thaddeus Barsotti, one of the owners of Capay Fruits & Vegetables and Farm Fresh To You (www.farmfreshtoyou.com) about his favorite tomatoes:

1. Cherokee Purple: “It’s the most acidic, and that’s what provides the real tomato punch. This is the tomato to use on sandwiches and places where you want a really good tomato flavor.”

2. Marvel Stripe: “This is a big red and yellow marbled tomato, all the way through—it’s a small work of art. When you’re doing something like sliced tomatoes with mozzarella and basil, drizzled with olive oil and balsamic, the Marvel is a great tomato for it.”

3. Red Brandywine: “Dip it in boiling water just long enough to skin it easily. Then cut out the stem and any scars. Put it in a small baking pan with basil in the bottom and maybe a half-inch of olive oil and then bake it at 350 degrees or 400 degrees for 45 minutes. The tomato just melts, so it’s fork-tender but doesn’t lose its shape—you can put it on a bed of rice.”