At first glance, MTO Café appears to be a hip and tasty breakfast and lunch spot feeding our Downtown denizens. But anyone who’s spent multiple mealtimes there knows it has much more to offer, including a stellar Sunday Night Supper Series and creative cuisine that changes with the seasons.
For fresh summer flavors, chef Johnny Church presents a colorful salad of heirloom tomatoes, sweet peaches, plums and apricots, and creamy contrast with compressed yogurt. It’s a refreshing remedy for the mid-summer heat and deceptively easy to prepare. Make the most of the season’s ingredients and give this a go in your own kitchen.
MTO Café 500 S. Main St., 702-380-8229. Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-2 p.m.; Saturday & Sunday, 8 a.m.-3 p.m.
Heirloom Tomato and Stone Fruit Salad with Compressed Yogurt and Lemon Vinaigrette
(serves four)
Ingredients:
2 heirloom tomatoes
1 peach
1 plum
1 apricot
4 oz. plain Fage yogurt
1 tbsp. lemon zest
½ tsp. sea salt
2 tbsp. lemon juice
1 tbsp. local honey
1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp. chives, chopped
1 tsp. parsley, chopped
1 tsp. tarragon, chopped
½ tsp. thyme, chopped
sea salt & pepper to taste
Method: Mix yogurt, lemon zest and ½ tsp. sea salt thoroughly and press with cheesecloth or durable paper towel between two pans, with a bit of pressure, overnight.
For the vinaigrette, combine and whisk lemon juice, honey, olive oil, chives, parsley, tarragon and thyme. It should look a little separated but not totally emulsified.
Remove pits from stone fruit and slice rustic cuts, some thin, some rough chopped, no rules. Slice the tomatoes similarly. k In a mixing bowl, combine all fruit and dress with the vinaigrette, mixing together gently. Cut pressed yogurt in desired shape and plate, arranging tomato and fruit around the yogurt. Garnish with sea salt and pepper.