Tomato, marjoram and shaved Berkswell salad
This tomato salad looks and tastes even better with a mixture of tomato varieties, sizes and colours. Some of my favourites to look out for, or grow myself are classic plum shaped san Marzano, juicy ribbed Costoluto, beefsteak Marmande, sweet Golden boy and tiny Yellow Pear. Store tomatoes out of the fridge and always eat them at room temperature or warmed by the sun, never cold. Berkswell is a British sheep’s cheese with a nutty flavour, but you could also use other hard cheeses such as Pecorino, Manchego or salted ricotta.
Serve as a side dish or on its own with toasted sourdough rubbed with garlic and olive oil.
Serves 6
This recipe originally appeared in House & Garden magazine, photo courtesy of Helen Cathcart
Ingredients
1kg tomatoes (the ripest and sweetest you can find)
1 clove garlic
2tbsp marjoram leaves
1tbsp mint leaves
80g Kalamata or other strong black olives, stoned removed, roughly torn
1tbsp best quality red wine vinegar (I use Volpaia)
3tbsp Extra Virgin olive oil
Flaked sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
100g Berkswell cheese
Instructions
- Cut the tomatoes into irregular shaped wedges, removing any hard white core as you go.
- Cut the garlic clove in half and rub it around the inside of your salad bowl.
- Put the tomatoes in the bowl with the herbs and olives. Pour over the vinegar and oil and season well with salt and pepper and toss well. Shave thin slices of Berkswell and scatter over the salad.
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