There is nothing more delightful, appetizing, or addictive than freshly picked harvest tomatoes! Whether taken straight from the vine in your backyard garden or from an overflowing bushel at your local market, ripe-red tomatoes are certain to get your culinary juices flowing in just the right way.

From chilled tomato soup, sliced tomato salads drizzled with a tangy dressing, fresh tomato salsa and main course dishes that feature the tasty tomato, develop your love affair with this easy-growing harvest -- and discover a new favourite along the way with these tasty tomato recipes.

Best harvest tomato recipes: soups and salad

Chilled Tomato Soup with Herbed Tomato Tapenade
A cross between gazpacho and classic tomato soup, this fresh version is made to enjoy cold. Because all tomatoes differ in acidity and sweetness, adjust the flavour of the soup with sugar and lime juice to taste.

Tomato Soup with Herbed Fresh Cheese
Herbed cheese, such as Boursin, is lovely in this soup, but if you use cheese without herbs in it, garnish the soup with some minced fresh chives and parsley.

Tomato and Spelt Salad
Spelt is an ancient type of wheat with a pleasant nutty flavour. It is still widely grown in the Alpine regions of Europe and in northern Italy.

Mixed Baby Greens with Tomato Toasts
Serve broiled toasts over a mixed green salad or as warm, bruschetta-style appetizers. This makes an elegant first course for eight or a casual luncheon dish for four.

Eggplant, Tomato and Two Cheeses with Shaved Fennel Salad
Celebrate the season's wonderful produce with this Italian-style sandwich-and-salad duo.

Yellow Tomato and Lemongrass Salad
Lemongrass adds an exotic citrus perfume to this pale green dressing.

Best harvest tomato recipes: great sides

Tomato Baked Eggs
At this time of year, hothouse tomatoes are your best bet for taste, and baking them intensifies their flavour.

Tomato and Sweet Onion Tart
Serve this tart as an elegant seasonal starter or with a green salad for a meatless lunch or supper.

Tomato Mint Salsa
A perfect salsa for grilled lamb, this one also goes well with pork, chicken and liver.

Goat-Cheese Dip with Tomato, Mint and Coriander
Fresh mint, coriander, ginger and Iime give a perky flavour to this tomato-topped goat-cheese appetizer. Spread it on pita bread, cucumber slices and pepper strips.

Yellow Tomato and Mango Salsa
Serve this spicy and fruity salsa with chips, crackers or crudités, but also with fish or chicken.

Avocado and Green Tomato Salsa
While there are lots of green tomatoes available, make this unique and tangy salsa - a natural partner to grilled chicken or shrimp and nachos, too.

Lima Beans with Tomatoes and Sage
We like the giant dried lima beans for this saucy vegetable side dish, which can be served as a vegetarian main dish with an accompanying whole grain.

Soufflé of Italian Cheeses with Tomato Sauce
Make sure you use a well-aged provolone (such as the sharp Italian Auricchio brand) for a well-rounded, piquant flavour in this simple yet impressive cheese soufflé.

Tomato Pizza Sauce
You can use this basic sauce as a base for many kinds of pizza; add different herbs such as oregano, marjoram, rosemary or basil to taste and to complement the toppings.

Best harvest tomato recipes: main course meals

Spinach and Tomato Baked Pasta
The first wonderful fresh spinach of the season stars in this simple baked pasta.

Fresh Tomato Lasagna
This really is lasagna in a flash, and relies on the stand-out beauty and flavour of fresh, fully ripened local field tomatoes.

Fish Baked with Tomato Sauce
This is a simple Greek method of cooking fresh sea fish. It is especially nice with strong-flavoured fish such as kingfish or snapper or full-flavoured white-fleshed fish, such as striped bass; halibut steaks also are quite good.

Tomato Braised Steak
For this saucy, stylish version of Swiss steak, any simmering steak cut will do, such as cross rib or blade, but you can also use more tender round marinating steak.

Roasted Tomato and Escarole Lasagna
For a slightly richer texture, use regular ricotta cheese. In place of the escarole, you can use 2 heads of curly endive or 8 cups (2 L) of spinach.

Beef and Mushroom Patties with Fried Tomato Halves
These beef patties aren't like regular burgers because they are generously flavoured with mushrooms and green onions. Seasonal ripe tomato halves are fried for a perfect accompaniment.

Mussel and Tomato Risotto
No need to use stock when you have delicious mussel juices to flavour your risotto. If you prefer, replace the oregano and parsley with 1/3 cup/75 mL torn fresh basil leaves, adding half with the onion and half at the end.

Stuffed Tomatoes
Stuff perfectly ripe tomatoes with this mortadella and provolone cheese filling for an easy light yet satisfying supper.