The problem with making jam in the UK is that soft fruit is expensive even in the Summer so you need to either grow your own or have a useful friend with a useful garden. My garden has nothing useful. Even the pears are small and gnarly. So when I first started making jan I hunted down a farm where you can pick your own fruit. However, the fruit at the farm is fresher but not cheaper. The cheapest fruit available is actually the frozen fruits available in the supermarket.

So with a local fete coming up, I have promised to make something but can’t quite bring myself to sell jam at less than cost. I’ve decided to oven dry some cherry tomatoes that are glutting up everyone’s kitchen at the moment.

Take a huge amount of cherry tomatoes and slice almost in half. Lie down on a greaseproof piece of paper on an oven tray. Salt and pepper before placing in a coolish oven (120C fan).

They are best cooked slowly so check every hour or so until they start to dry out. Then check after 30 minutes, then 15 minutes.

It usually takes me somewhere between 3 and 4 hours.

Put the tomatoes into sterilised jars and top up with plain olive oil.

Tomatoes are difficult to dry completely so storing under oil will keep them for around a month. To keep them for longer, then store the tomatoes in the freezer (inside a plastic bag with all of the air squeezed out).