Store Bought Tomatoes Are Yucky

A trip to Gilcrease Orchard is worth the time and effort, even if you only go once a year to pick your own tomatoes. If you've never been, Gilcrease is located in the NW at 7800 N. Tenaya Way. I like tomatoes and I'll dutifully buy them from the grocery store the rest of the year, but when I bite into a homegrown tomato, I want to cast the other sad and mealy tomatoes into the trash heap where they belong.

A tomato sandwich brings back fond memories of childhood, when we lived out of our garden all summer. A tomato sandwich is best on a thin slice of toasted hearty bread (preferably homemade or purchased from a bakery) spread lightly with mayonnaise. A couple of thick slices of tomato liberally salted and finished off with a fresh grind of pepper is the best taste of summer there is. Although biting into a homegrown peach is a strong contender.

Gilcrease has an app you can download to see what's in season. Gates open at 7am on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays and they close at 10am.