So I have made an extremely similar iteration of this recipe not too long ago using black mission figs – this recipe uses the same bread dough and the sweet and savory miso-ricotta spread, which I am obsessed with. But this time around, I wanted to use Momotaro tomatoes. Momotaro tomatoes are these light pink tomatoes that are popular in Japan, and also grow here in Southern California as well. I love them for their sweetness and mild tart notes. One of my personal favorite memories with the Momotaro tomatoes was at a now-closed Japanese restaurant in Costa Mesa, where they made this Japanese styled carpese salad with them and shiso(basically Japanese mint) instead of basil. That restaurant was called “Masa” and it served so many unique Yoshoku(Western-styled Japanese cuisine) dishes that I came to love. From this braised beef tongue stew to a delicious cheese-stuffed cabbage to that Momotaro tomato caprese, so many dishes that really invoke so many fond food memories for me. The reason why Masa closed was because the chef/owner, chef Masa, did not want to be his own employer anymore, which was a shame, because his food really was quite tasty. And for that reason, we are essentially recreating chef Masa’s Momotaro tomato caprese salad, but replacing the mozzarella with Meiji tofu(think freshly made, silky, custardy, but almost sweet tofu that is very similar to a freshly made ricotta or mascarpone in flavor), compressing the Momotaro tomatoes into little faux cherry tomatoes, and pairing that with a tangy ponzu-like marinade instead of balsamic, and using some fresh shiso as a garnish. This recipe eats quite savory thanks to the tomatoes and ponzu, and invokes a dish that I grew up loving to eat.

In terms of technical difficulty, all of the technique lies in the bread. If you are making your own sourdough bread from scratch, that requires a starter. Luckily I do have a previous post that entails all of the instructions to make your own starter. I did cheat a bit with the bread I used here and made my sourdough with starter and yeast, just because with sourdough starter, it can be inconsistent so the yeast does guarantee that the bread will proof and rise properly. If you really want to be lazy though, just use a good quality pre-made sourdough, and then this recipe goes from a 6 or 7 out of 10 in difficulty and time commitment to a 1. When I was making this recipe the day of, I already had made a sourdough loaf the day prior, so it look me less than 20 minutes to get everything prepped, made, and photographed. With the Momotaro tomatoes, I took a page out of chef Jacque Pepin’s book and made them into little “cherry tomatoes” by peeling the tomatoes, cutting them into smaller pieces, and using a towel, pressing them from wedge form into little spheres. You can totally just slice up tomatoes and serve that instead if you want, I just wanted to do something that looked a little cute and different. With the Meiji tofu, I used silken since it is super creamy and soft. Meiji tofu is quite special because it uses twice the amount of soybeans compared to regular tofu to give it that ultra-silky texture and delicately sweet flavor. It was funny because this recipe was originally going to use ricotta cheese, but I used that up on another recipe, and while I was rummaging through the grocery store, I saw Meiji tofu and realized that this would be a way better fit anyways, so we are running with it! If any substitutions are needed, you can also just regular silken tofu if it comes down to it, but I would recommend adding a little olive oil onto it if you want to go that route, just to bring a richness back into the tofu itself. That being said, this recipe was a tasty one and makes for a great snack!

Makes 16 individual tartines:
For the sourdough bread:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 packet active-dry yeast
12oz lukewarm water
16oz sourdough starter
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp oil

In a bowl, mix everything together until just combined. Allow the bread dough to proof at room temperature for 2 hours. Then transfer the dough into an ovenproof French oven, and proof for another 2 hours. Spray the top of the bread loaf with water. Bake the bread loaf at 30 minutes at 400 degrees F, covered. Then remove the cover and bake at 450 degrees F for another 30 minutes. Allow the bread to cool before attempting to cut into 1/2 inch-thick slices and toasting them on each side.

For the Momotaro “cherry tomatoes”:
6 Momotaro tomatoes
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp rice or kelp vinegar
a pinch of salt

Score the tomatoes. Blanch the tomatoes in hot water for 1 minute, then shock them in iced water for another. Peel the skins off the tomatoes. Cut the tomatoes into slices, then cut the slices in half width-wise. Place down the rounded side of the tomato wedge onto a paper towel. Then pull up the paper towel around the wedge, allowing the edges to come together to form a round tomato sphere. Repeat these steps with the other tomato wedges – you should have roughly 16 spheres. In another bowl, mix the other ingredients. Toss the tomatoes in the other ingredients to finish.

For garnish:
6oz silken Meiji tofu
Shiso
Maldon salt

Cut the Meiji tofu into 1/8-inch thick slices that are roughly the same size as your toast pieces. Place the Meiji tofu on top of the bread and sprinkle on top of that the Maldon salt. Layer on top of that the tomatoes and finish with torn pieces of shisso.