How to Roast Green Chiles

My favorite colors of New Mexico — green chile and turquoise blue.

Sometimes all it takes is a change in latitude. And longitude.

We moved one state south and two states west, and now have access to fresh chiles from Hatch, New Mexico.

It doesn’t fit the 100 Mile Diet, but that’s OK.

New Mexico is among our favorite vacation spots. The landscape, the art and culture. The turquoise jewelry. Green chile, red chile, blue corn.

There, I could eat huevos rancheros three times a day—when I’m not having blue corn enchiladas. And while I like Tex-Mex and Sonoran styles of cooking an awful lot, it’s the flavors of New Mexico that really appeal to me. It’s because of those chiles.

Tomato Dust or Oven Dried Tomato Skins

Tomato Dust — Ground, Dried Tomato Skins

My first thought was that they were pretty, those tomato skins. There they were in a little bowl, squeezed between the saucepan of scalding water and a tall stock pot as I prepped for canning tomatoes.

The next thought was that I hated to waste them. Surely they could be put to good use. I say that about many items — well crafted boxes and sturdy shopping bags, especially—and I say that about people, too.

The pile rose higher.

So I took a break and consulted the oracle Twitter. Seems I wasn’t alone in my query as the Food52 community was discussing what to do with leftover tomato skins. Could they be dried in the oven and ground to a powder, one asked.

Recipe for Tomato Tarte Tatin

The July and August issues of Bon Appetit are favorites because there’s always a gorgeous fruit dessert on the cover followed by enticing recipes inside. The August 2010 issue featured a Tarte Tatin using not the traditional apple, but rather the love apple — the tomato.

Tomato Tarte Tatin

Though they are fruits, tomatoes are type cast as savory stars. I admit that I tend to think of them only for main dishes. Some tomatoes, though, are sweeter tasting than certain other fruits. (I’m thinking of some really tart strawberries and blueberries I’ve had over the years. And bitter blackberries.)

When you see how the tomatoes taste after they are softened and glazed with caramel, you might be inspired to create other tomato desserts.