Eating Out of Season

I know it's the cool thing to eat within the seasons—asparagus in the spring, strawberries in early summer and corn a little later and tomatoes when they are fresh off the vine—and if you can buy all of these things grown by local farmers, all the better. It's a nice idea, and I try to stick with it because, after all, what's worse than eating a crunchy, bitter strawberry picked way too early and shipped thousands of miles in February? And tomatoes are best in the summer. It's just a fact.

But sometimes I ignore the rules and eat what I want when I want it. This recipe inspired me to make a tomato salad the other day, using grapes tomatoes grown in a greenhouse in Mexico. I don't know when they were picked or how they were shipped to the middle of Ohio. I only know that I bought a pint and put the things in my salad, and it was all worth the trouble.

This is called Bloody Mary Tomato Salad, but there's no vodka in it. Not a drop. I used Champagne vinegar in place of the sherry, but that doesn't give it a vodka bite. Enjoy, in or out of season.

1 cup finely chopped red onion
3 tablespoons sherry vinegar, divided
2 lb. cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
1 cup chopped celery hearts
1/2 cup chopped brined green olives
2 tablespoons prepared horseradish
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
1/2 teaspoon celery seeds
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
salt and pepper

Mix onion and 1 tablespoon vinegar in a large bowl. Let macerate 10 minutes, tossing often. Add tomatoes, celery and olives.

Whisk remaining vinegar, horseradish and next three ingredients in a medium bowl. Slowly whisk in the oil. Add to bowl with tomato mixture, toss to coat and season with salt and pepper.

(photo by Luc Viatour)