15 Unexpected Ways To Use Tomatoes

The summer months grace us with sunshine, beach days, blooming flowers, and most importantly, tomatoes. The versatility of the tomato is endless, complimented by both sweet and savory flavors in dozens of forms. Hoarding perfect tomatoes at the tail end of the summer is a genius move, but using them all up in creative ways can be tricky. There are the go-to's like tomato sauce and ketchup, but how else can we celebrate tomatoes all year long?

Ingenious kitchen gadgets can help us make our favorite snacks and mix-ins right at home, like fruit leathers and sun-dried tomatoes, but upfront costs aren't cheap. Luckily, peak-season tomatoes can be utilized in countless recipes that require nothing more than a knife and an oven. Whether biting into a tomato like an apple or simmering them down into a paste, tomato lovers unite when this season rolls around, and we're prepared to hang onto that tasty goodness all year long with these unexpected ways to use tomatoes.

Pickling isn't just for cucumbers. Pickling is a simple way to use up a plethora of fresh tomatoes and preserve your harvest for months at a time. A pickling concoction can be thrown together within half an hour or so and tweaked as desired. The best part is, tomatoes will only get better as days go on and they absorb all the tangy flavors of the brine, leaving them with a long shelf life of up to a year, provided they aren't gobbled up first.

These pickles can be tossed back two at a time for a speedy snack, mixed up in a salad, layered in a sandwich, anything goes. With a base of vinegar, water, salt, and sugar, just about any fruit or vegetable can be transformed into a pickle, and tomatoes are the underrated choice. Paul Virant's dill pickled tomatoes sub the more traditional mustard seed for dill seed along with fresh dill fronds, garlic, and black peppercorns. These tangy tomatoes are so delicious, it would be wise to can and store as many jars as possible, but if eagerness wins, then they can be stored in the fridge for at least two hours for quick pickling.

Despite the endless debate, the tomato is in fact technically a fruit but its juice isn't typically found alongside apple juice. When it comes to chugging a tall glass of tomato juice, people often hold strong stances with little room to waver. Although, when vodka is added, the hesitancy often leaves the building. Bloody Marys are a brunch staple but they're only one of many tomato-based cocktails. The Caesar is its often-forgotten cousin, sometimes even referred to as the Bloody Caesar. If the thought of sipping tomato juice makes you shudder, then just wait until you hear what's in a Caesar.

Caesar's foundation is tomato juice but with a little unexpected addition: clam juice. The star of the Caesar, clamato juice, is tomato juice punched up with clam broth, onion, celery, and an assortment of spicy seasonings. The clamato cocktail is traditionally made with vodka, a few dashes of Worcestershire, and as much Tabasco as the drinker can handle. If you're sick of mixing up cocktails with boring ol' tomato juice, try whipping up some clamato juice with extra tomatoes and bring some fishy flair to happy hour.

Move aside, strawberries. It is the tomatoes' turn to be sweet. We know that roasting tomatoes yields an entirely new texture, but it also alters the flavor by adding a whole new level of sweetness. When we think of fruit cobblers, savory renditions aren't the first to come to mind, which is a shame because there's a full spectrum of cobblers to enjoy. With cobbler dough being somewhat similar to a biscuit, it's super easy to switch gears by adding sweet or salty ingredients. For a tomato cobbler, you can ease up on the sweetness by adding onions and garlic to create a rich, tomato filling. Topping it with a cheesy biscuit dough is the cherry on top.

For a lighter after-dinner cobbler, reach for sweet, cherry tomatoes. Topped with basil ice cream (or any other savory-leaning ice cream), this sweet version celebrates summer produce to the fullest.

A savory tart is the ultimate way to debut those stunning heirloom tomatoes. When the farmer's market produce is that gorgeous, it can feel sacrilegious to toss them in a blender or mash them in a mortar and pestle. Thankfully, a tomato tart calls for no such thing. Layering thinly sliced tomatoes atop a flaky crust results in a bubbly, savory tart that could pass for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

One could argue that this tomato and ricotta tart is more an art piece than a dish, but why not both? With a buttery, Gruyère crust, and a herby ricotta filling, it's hard to imagine it getting any better, but an assortment of perfectly ripe tomatoes makes this tart a true masterpiece. Ricotta lends itself well to luscious tomatoes thanks to its salty, creamy notes, but lighter fillings that don't crowd tomatoes can be just as scrumptious.

Before writing this one off, consider a gazpacho on a hot summer day. It can be tough to distance crushed ice from snow cones and frozen treats, but chefs have been experimenting with the technique for years. A traditional Italian granita is somewhat similar to a snow cone, with shards of flaky ice melting in unison with sweet, fruity syrups. When taking a savory path, granitas can act more as an accompaniment than the primary treat. Cool flavors like cucumber and aromatic notes are well suited for the frozen form and can enhance anything from oysters to watermelon.

Tomato granita is refreshing and slightly salty like a cold glass of tomato juice, if that's your kind of thing. We like to call it "tomato snow," as a nod to snow cones, despite the tartness. To create this special fusion, tomato juice is frozen with sherry vinegar, lemon juice, and agave. This is another recipe that's well suited for extra ripe tomatoes, making it a great go-to for using up an abundance of tomatoes on a sweltering day. It can be enjoyed solo via spoon or accompanied by some grilled veggies or a nice piece of fish.

For days when it's so scorching outside that the ice in your drink barely lasts a minute, popsicles are the only salvation. There's nothing like that first bite of a light, frozen treat on a humid day, much like cracking open a cold beer after a day in the sun. With these Bloody Mary popsicles, you can have the best of both worlds. If downing frozen drinks is one of your favorite summer pastimes, then Bloody Mary popsicles are your new favorite seasonally-inspired treat.

"Poptails" are all the rage, and with good reason. They're fun to eat, easy to transport, and make us feel like we're kids again. While those are all A+ selling points, the real advantage of these boozy pops is the lack of work. The last thing anyone wants to do on a muggy beach day is mix up a cocktail that stays warm for all of thirty seconds. By throwing Bloody Mary popsicles in the freezer the night before, all that's needed is a Solo cup of vodka that your popsicle can be swirled into.

We can't get enough summer tomatoes, so we're even putting them in our lemonade. This one may seem like a prank, but we promise it's worth a shot. Nothing screams warm weather like freshly squeezed lemonade. Pre-made mixes are tempting, but it's so incredibly easy (and affordable) to whip up a fresh batch that it's tough to justify the packaged stuff. A simple blend of lemons, water, and sugar creates the perfect frosty lemonade, and then you have the freedom to season it to your liking. For example, with bright, heirloom tomatoes.

For tomato — yes, tomato — lemonade, simply muddle ripe, juicy tomatoes at the bottom of a pitcher and then fill it with your freshly mixed lemonade. Take the beverage and pour it through a strainer a few times to ixnay any pulp and achieve a smooth, delicate beverage. We like to garnish our tomato lemonade with some savory herbs such as rosemary, dill, or thyme for a unique finish.