Quick and easy cherry tomato confit recipe that requires almost no active prep time. Preserve the flavor of those fresh summer tomatoes for your cold winter nights!
1lbcherry tomatoessubstitute with Roma or vine tomatoes
4garlic cloves
¼cupolive oilextra virgin preferred
2sprigsfresh thymecheck notes for dried herbs
2sprigsfresh oreganocheck notes for dried herbs
12basil leaves
2teaspoonssea salt
½teaspoonblack pepper
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 250°F
In a deep baking dish, add 2 sprigs of fresh thyme and oregano and 10-12 fresh basil leaves. Add 1 lb of cherry tomatoes and ~4 garlic cloves. Season generously with sea salt and black pepper.
Pour ¼ cup of olive oil over the tomatoes and make sure the tomatoes are covered with olive oil.
Bake at 250°F for 2.5 to 3.5 hours - when done, the tomatoes will appear blistered but still retain the shape.
If you haven't already removed the green parts of the tomatoes and the garlic peels, remove those.
Transfer the confit into a sterilized airtight glass jar, cover with olive oil (you can top up if there isn't enough oil) and store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks!
Notes
Types of tomatoes. You can use almost any type of fresh, juicy, ripe tomato in this tomato confit. I prefer using cherry tomatoes since it doesn't require additional prep time! However, you can use vine or Roma tomatoes - just halve them!
Fresh versus dried herbs and variations. I find that the combination of basil, oregano and thyme (or lemon thyme) gives me the best approximation to the Mediterranean flavors I used to love in tomato confit (when I lived in Italy). I prefer fresh herbs since you can chuck them into the storing jar but you can substitute with dried herbs (approximately half a teaspoon each). You can also add red pepper flakes or other herbs of your choice.
Storing: You'll want to make sure the tomato confit is not exposed to air - so once you transfer to an airtight container, cover with olive oil until the top is fully covered. Then store in the fridge (potentially up to a month, but ideally 2 weeks).
Freezing: You can portion this into individual freezer-safe containers (or better yet, ice cube trays!) to freeze up to a couple of months. Make sure to thaw (since olive oil will harden in the fridge or freezer).