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Here are the tastingspoons players. I’m in the middle (Carolyn). Daughter Sara on the right, and daughter-in-law Karen on the left. I started the blog in 2007, as a way to share recipes with my family. I’m still doing 99% of the blogging and holding out hope that these two lovely and excellent cooks will participate. They both lead very busy lives, so we’ll see.

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BOOK READING (from Carolyn):

Music of Bees, Eileen Garvin. Absolutely charming book about a woman in midlife, lonely, who raises bees, also makes unlikely friends. Heart-warming and very interesting about beekeeping.

A Postcard from Paris, Alex Brown. Really cute story. Dual time line, 1940s and present day about renovating an old apartment in Paris, things discovered.

Time of the Child, Niall Williams. Oh such a good book. Very small village in Ireland, 1960s. A baby is left on the doorstep. The town all whispers and helps. I listened to an interview of the author, which made me like him and his books even more.

Sipsworth, Simon Van Booy. If you like animals you’ll swoon. An old woman who really wants to die finds a tiny mouse in her house and befriends it and finds a reason to live. Utterly charming book.

The Forger’s Spell, Edward Dolnick. True story. For seven years a no-account painter named Han van Meegeren managed to pass off his paintings as those of Johannes Vermeer.

If You Lived Here, You’d be Home by Now, Christopher Ingraham. Could hardly put it down – about a journalist who takes on a challenge to move to small town in Minnesota and write about it. He expects to hate it and the people and place, but he doesn’t. Absolutely wonderful true story.

The River We Remember, William Kent Kreuger. 1950s, Minnesota. A murder and the aftermath. Could hardly put it down. Kreuger has such a vivid imagination and writing style.

How the Lights Gets In, Joyce Maynard. An older woman returns to New Hampshire to help care for her brain-injured son. Siblings and family, lots of angst and resentments.

The Filling Station, Vanessa Miller. Every American should read this book. A novelized retelling of the Tulsa massacre in 1921. Absolutely riveting.

The Story She Left Behind, Patti Callahan Henry. Love this author. Based on a true story. A famous author simply vanishes, leaving her husband and daughter behind. She had invented a mystical language no one could translate. Present day, someone thinks he’s solved the riddle, contacts the family. Really interesting read.

The Girl from Berlin, Ronald Balson. Love anything about Tuscany. An elderly woman is being evicted from a villa there, with odd deed provenance. Two young folks go there to help unravel the mystery. Loved it.

The Island of the Colorblind, Oliver Sacks, M.D. Nonfiction. The dr is intrigued by a remote Pacific island where most of the inhabitants are colorblind. He also unravels a mystery on Guam of people born with a strange neurological problem. Medical mysteries unveiled. Very interesting.

The Bookbinder, Pip Williams. Post 1914 London. Two sisters work at a bookbindery. They’re told to not read the books. One does and one doesn’t. One has visions beyond her narrow world; the other does not. Eventually the one gets into Oxford. Lovely story.

The Paris Express, Emma Donoghue. 1895 on a train to Paris, a disaster happens. You’ll delve into the lives of many people who survived and died in the crash.

A Race to the Bottom of Crazy, Richard Grant. This is about Arizona. Author, wife and child move back to Arizona where they once lived. Part memoir, research, and reporting in a quest to understand what makes Arizona such a confounding and irresistible place.

The Scarlet Thread, Francine Rivers. A woman’s life turned upside down when she discovers the handcrafted quilt and journal of her ancestor Mary Kathryn McMurray, a young woman who was uprooted from her home only to endure harsh frontier conditions on the Oregon Trail.

A Place to Hide, Ronald Balson. 1939 Amsterdam, an ambassador has the ability to save the lives of many Jewish children. Heartwarming.

Homeseeking, Karissa Chen. Two young Chinese teens are deeply in love, but in China. Then their families are separated. Jump to current day and the two meet again in Los Angeles.

North River, Pete Hammill. He always writes such a good story. A doctor works diligently healing people from all walks of life. His wife and daughter left him years before. One day his 3-yr old grandson arrives on his doorstep.

A Very Typical Family, Sierra Godfrey. A very messed-up family. Three adult children are given a home in Santa Cruz, Calif, but only if the siblings meet up and live in the house together. A very untypical scenario but makes for lots of messes.

Three Days in June, Anne Tyler. The usual Anne Tyler grit. Family angst. This wasn’t one of my favorites, but it was entertaining and very short.

Saved, Benjamin Hall. Author is a veteran war reporter. Ukraine, 2022, he nearly loses his life to a Russian strike. Riveting story – he survives, barely.

Grey Wolf, Louise Penny. Another Inspector Gamache mystery in Quebec. She is such an incredible mystery writer.

All the Colors of the Dark, Chris Whitaker. A missing person mystery, a serial killer thriller, a love story, a unique twist on each. Could hardly put it down.

Orbital, Samantha Harvey. Winner of 2024 Booker Prize. I don’t usually like those, but I heard the author interviewed and she hooked me. This is not a normal book with a beginning, a story and an end. It’s several chapters of the day in the life of various astronauts at the ISS (Int’l Space Station). All fictional. She’s been praised by several real astronauts for “getting it” about space station everyday life.

The Blue Hour, Paula Hawkins. An island off Scotland. Inaccessible except when the tide is out. Weird goings on. An artist. A present day mystery too.

Iron Lake, William Kent Krueger. A judge is murdered and a boy is missing. Riveting mystery.

Tell the Wolves I’m Home, Carol Ricks Brunt. 1980s. A 14-yr old girl loses her beloved uncle. Yet a new friendship arises, someone she never knew about.

Four Treasures of the Sky, Jenny Zhang. 1880s, a young girl is kidnapped in China and brought to the United States. She survives with many hurdles in the path.

The Boy Who Fell out of the Sky, Ken Dornstein. Memoir, 1988. The author’s brother died in the PanAm flight that went down in Lockerbie, Scotland. A decade later he tries to solve “the riddle of his older brother’s life.”

Worse Care Scenario, T.J. Newman. Oh my. Interesting analysis of what could/might happen if a jet crashed into a nuclear plant. Un-put-downable.

Song of the Lark, Willa Cather. Complicated weave of a story about a young woman in about 1900, who has a gifted voice (singing) and about her journey to success, not without its ups and downs.

Crow Talk, Eileen Garvin. Charming story which takes place at a remote lake in Washington State, about a few people who inhabit it, the friendships made, but also revolving around the rescue of a baby crow.

The Story Collector, Evie Woods. Sweet story about some dark secrets from an area in Ireland, a bit magical, faerie life, but solving a mystery too.

A Sea of Unspoken Things, Adrienne Young. A woman investigates her twin brother’s mysterious death. She goes to a small town in California to figure it out, to figure HIM out.

The King’s Messenger, Susanna Kearsley. 1600s England, King James. About one of his trusted “messengers,” and his relationship with a young woman also of “the court.” Lots of intrigue.

In the Shadow of the Greenbrier, Emily Matchar. Interesting mystery in/around the area of the famous resort in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia.

Isola, Allegra Goodman. Hard to describe, survival story on an island in the 1600s.

Save the Date, Allison Raskin. Rom-com, witty, LOL funny. Clever.

The Sirens, Emilia Hart. Numerous time-lines, Australia. Mysteries abound, nightmares, abandoned baby, weird allergies.

Red Clay, Charles Fancher. LOVED this book. Mostly post-Civil War story about the lives of slaves in Alabama during Reconstruction.

Stars in an Italian Sky, Jill Santopolo. Dual time line, 1946 and recent time. Love stories and a mystery.

Battle Mountain, C.J. Box. Another one of Box’s riveting mysteries. Love his descriptions of the land.

Something Beautiful Happened, Yvette Corporon. A memoir of sorts in Greece, tiny island of Erikousa, where the locals hid Jews during WWII. All elusive stories told by the author’s grandmother.

The Jackal’s Mistress, Chris Bohjalian. 1860s Virginia, about a woman who saves the life of a Union soldier. Really good story.

Song of the Magpie, Louise Mayberry. Really interesting story about Australia back in the days when it was mostly a penal colony. Gritty strength of a woman trying to thrive with her farm.

The Boomerang, Robert Bailey. A thriller that will have you gripping the book. About a lot of secrets surrounding the president (fictional novel, remember) and his chief of staff and about cancer. A cure. Such a good story.

Care and Feeding, Laurie Woolever. Really interesting memoir of a woman driven to succeed in the restaurant business. She worked for Mario Batali and then Anthony Bourdain. Gritty stories.

Everything is Tuberculosis, John Green. Maybe not a book for everyone. A real deep dive into the deadly tuberculosis infection, its history. I heard the author interviewed and found the book very interesting.

The Book Lovers Library, Madeline Martin. Fascinating read about Boots’ drug stores’ lending library. And the people who worked in them.

The Arrivals, Meg Mitchell Moore. LOL funny, about a middle-aged couple whose children (and their various family members) return to the family home and the chaos that ensues.

My Life as a Silent Movie, Jesse Lee Kercheval. About grief. A big move to Paris, finding herself a new life with a new set of real blood family.

Escape, Carolyn Jessop. Another memoir about a woman really in bondage in Utah, Mormon plural marriage.

 

Tasting Spoons

My blog's namesake - small, old and some very dented engraved silver plated tea spoons that belonged to my mother-in-law, and I use them to taste my food as I'm cooking.

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Posted in easy, Salads, on July 26th, 2010.

Did you ever taste something – way back in your youth – and you never knew how to make it? And you’ve still not found out? Even though you’re a foodie? And you cook a lot? And you read a lot of cookbooks? And you know how to do internet searches? And you’ve still not found the recipe? That’s what this post is all about.

The neighbor who made marinated tomatoes and let me taste just a tiny bite, served them to me when I was in my 20’s. She would not share the recipe. She said it was her family’s secret recipe. Darn. My palate wasn’t as fine-tuned as it is now – sometimes I can dissect what’s in a dish if I really think about it. I close my eyes and allow the taste to roll around in my mouth. But sometimes flavors are very elusive. Like salty flavors – it could be salt itself, or it could be Vietnamese fish sauce in small quantities. I don’t suppose I could tell the difference, actually.

In any event, I’ve never been able to find a recipe that satisfies me – enough that I’d think it was the recipe. But this one comes close. I thought I’d try it as-is first, without making many changes to it, then if it worked, I’d try it again adding shallots. I do remember there were shallots in the marinade. At the time I don’t think I knew what shallots were, but I could tell they weren’t garlic, and they weren’t onions, either. Years later I had an ah-ha moment when I discovered shallots in a gourmet market and they were frightfully expensive. (And, no, I didn’t buy any.)

The marinade also contained oil and vinegar, I think. Maybe some lemon juice. And pepper and salt. But that’s all I could determine. At the time I’d never even heard of marinating tomatoes. Why, I thought? And yet when I tasted them they had a lovely piquant taste. Puckery almost. Yet the tomato flavor shone through. Especially with the summer tomatoes in full swing. I can even describe to you what kind of a dish this neighbor served them in. I was that tuned into wanting to have more of them. She’d put them in a 10×14 Pyrex dish, with each tomato perfectly flat in a single layer. Each slice was from a tomato about the same size. She didn’t even use the smaller ends. And there actually wasn’t any parsley on it. Well, TMI, I know . . .

So over the course of my life I’ve always honed in on any recipe that called itself a marinated tomato. Or if I saw a salad recipe using sliced tomatoes with anything on it. I’ve tried recipes up the gazoo over the years. Of course, I’ve had ample summers since my 20’s to test different methods too. Even though this may not be the recipe, it’s a great recipe. An easy recipe, that’s for sure. Colorful too. Makes an attractive plate to serve to guests. On a hot, summer night.

Now, this marinade is a lot about Italian parsley, as you can see from the photo at the top. A lot of parsley. Maybe too much. But the dressing is interesting. Well, I need to explain about the recipe – it appeared in our local newspaper, eons ago. There is/was a column each week along the lines of  “You Asked for It,” where readers submitted recipes to queries from other readers. Old time recipes they’d lost in a move. Recipes from grandmother’s time for pickles, perhaps. Or a restaurant recipe given out once upon a time. Anyway, this one must have made the rounds here in Orange County because two people had heard of it – the person who asked (for a recipe for “Mrs.. Nylander’s Marinated Tomatoes”) and the person who answered. Who in the heck Mrs.. Nylander was, I have no clue. I looked up on the internet for the recipe and Mrs. Nylander and found nothing. Although I did see that there was a Mrs. Nylander who served at an Assistant Secretary of Commerce, or something like that. Maybe she was from tomato country and it was her contribution to help sell tomatoes! Maybe one of you, my readers, know about this person? If so, please let me know. I’d be curious to find out.

I did make one change to the recipe – the original calls for tarragon wine vinegar (usually that’s a white vinegar, I think). And the recipe calls for “prepared mustard.” Well, I don’t even own hotdog mustard, so it would have to be Dijon. But I DID have some tarragon mustard (good stuff, imported from France, and it’s not like I use it very often!!!). So, I did change the recipe to include the tarragon mustard and upped the red wine vinegar. Regular wine vinegar. Do use good tasting tomatoes (I used heirloom and some vine-ripened ones). Since I did this post, I’ve made these tomatoes several times. The most recent time I used parsley and fresh mint (that’s the picture you see just above this – I used small vine-ripened hydroponic tomatoes. Great combination. So, you see, you can vary the herbs you put in it.

So how was it? Fantastic. I loved, loved this dish. And it was incredibly easy. Looked so pretty. I don’t think I’d marinate them for all that long, though – maybe an hour. But I think my search is over – I need look no further for marinated tomatoes! Whoopee!

printer-friendly PDF

Mrs. Nylander’s Marinated Tomatoes

Recipe By: Adapted from an ancient newspaper clipping, The Orange County Register
Serving Size: 10
NOTES: If you want the best flavor, use heirloom tomatoes. To remove the skin, you can dip tomatoes into just simmering water for about 20-30 seconds. Remove, and the skin should come off easily. Alternately, if you have a swivel, serrated edged peeler, it will peel raw tomatoes quite well. If you don’t have tarragon mustard, add some fresh tarragon to the dressing mixture and use Dijon mustard instead. The original recipe called for red tarragon vinegar and regular red wine vinegar (equal quantities).

8 whole tomatoes — firm, peeled
1/2 cup parsley — chopped
2 whole cloves garlic — crushed, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
4 tablespoons red wine vinegar
4 teaspoons tarragon mustard — or Dijon plus fresh tarragon minced

1. Cut tomato into 1/2 inch slices and place them in a rimmed, shallow serving plate. Sprinkle the chopped parsley all over the tomatoes (evenly as possible).
2. In a measuring cup combine the oil, vinegar, mustard, garlic, salt, sugar and pepper. Stir well to combine, then pour evenly all over the tomatoes. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for 1-2 hours. Allow tomatoes to sit out at room temp for at least 20 minutes before serving. Do save the dressing (drain it through a mesh sieve to remove the wilted parsley and tomato seeds) as it tastes great on any kind of greens or other vegetables.
Per Serving: 124 Calories; 11g Fat (77.4% calories from fat); 1g Protein; 6g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 0mg Cholesterol; 356mg Sodium.

Three years ago: Brunch Grantinee Eggs

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  1. Bob Smith

    said on July 26th, 2010:

    I will definitely have to try this. I too have such an experience with marinated tomatoes in my youth. A family friend married Suzi a French lady, before returning to the US after WWII. Suzi would make the tomatoes and they were heaven. I try to replicate it often in the summer. The taste is never exactly right, but what does after all these years. Sometimes the dish had chopped hardboiled eggs…but not always.

    Have you asked Suzi how she makes them? Or is it the same thing – no, it’s a family secret? I like the idea of the hard boiled eggs. I’ll try to remember that! Well, I’m tickled with this new recipe and will be making them again during the tomato season. . . carolyn t

  2. Karen B.

    said on April 17th, 2022:

    I also got this recipe from my local paper about 30 plus years ago. It has been passed around and never found anyone who didn’t love them. I also made a little change and since I love garlic I upped it to about 8 cloves. These are awesome and will only get better as they marinate in the fridge for a few days. Definitely need to be room temperature to get true flavor.

    That’s so interesting, Karen! I still had the little clipping from the newspaper and yes, it was decades ago. Great recipe. Thanks for commenting! . . carolyn t

  3. Becky Jacobson

    said on August 23rd, 2025:

    I too have this recipe from The Portland, Oregonian of 35 years ago. Mine is a little different calls for 4 tsp. prepared mustard, and tarragon wine vinegar. I get so many compliments on the recipe.

    Thanks, Becky! Yes, I do too – haven’t made these in awhile. I love to use heirloom tomatoes when I do make them. I like the idea of adding mustard to the vinaigrette. I’ll have to try it. . . Carolyn T

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