Tomato Chutney

Wow. Tastebuds watch out. Watch out I say!  To have a chutney this good, and have it be homemade!  Incredible. The ginger and garlic are so flavorful in this recipe, it's almost overwhelming. Almost. A dab of this chutney will go a long way.   It must be made ahead of time, as it simmers on the stove for 3 hours.  How exciting that a gem like this is buried in the Fiddlehead cookbook.

Try a new way of peeling garlic. This recipe requires a head and a half of garlic, so you'll need to be efficient about it. Or your legs will get tired and you will quit and go back out onto the porch for another glass of chilled Moscato. Ahem...So, here's the method: Knock the heads hard against the counter first to loosen the cloves apart. Then pile them into a metal bowl and cover with another metal bowl, making a dome.  Shake shake shake the heck out of those metal bowls, and the skin sloughs right off. Spend 60 seconds doing a quick culinary study by watching this video that explains visually what I just told you: How to Peel a Head of Garlic in Less than 10 Seconds. Magic! Okay, it's not perfect, but it helps.  You still will have to also use the old-fashioned broad-side-of-the-knife smashing trick. And dig your fingernails right in.

I recommend a seated position for peeling the ginger. 4oz is a big hunk of root.  Moscato helps. So does sunshine. Both of these ingredients that start with the letter G (garlic and ginger) must be pureed in a food processor with some apple cider vinegar and oil.  That's all the difficult part. Add honey and spices and simmer it for 3 hours, stirring frequently.  Hopefully you have a silent movie to watch (we watched The Artist), or something equally interruptible to do while you pass that time.