This summer I made a vow to get over to the farmers' market—any farmers' market—once a week. For the most part I've managed to do it. And for the past 3 or 4 months I've purchased a bag of fresh ripe tomatoes each week. Ever since they hit the market, I've been obsessed. And now I'm in a downright panic, as they are on their way out.

This week, I had a pile of gorgeous Ella Bella tomatoes—my favorite tomato vendor at the SF farmers' market who just pulled up stakes and moved to Hawaii, wah!—which were threatening to go bad (it's been a busy week!). So, as my one last hurrah, and in celebration of the amazingly sweet, delicious tomatoes I had on hand, I came up with this super fresh, super fast, and super easy gazpacho. It's a delicious way to bid tomatoes farewell for another year.

There are tons of versions of gazpacho, a soup that, at its best, lets the flavor of sweet, seasonal tomatoes shine. It is by far one of my favorite soups of all time, simple perfection on a hot summer day (well, at least for us in the Bay Area where it still seems to be summer). This Andalucian-style version is inspired by a recipe from Wild Honey restaurant in London.

Last Hurrah Gazpacho

Serves: 4

Ingredients:
About 5–6 large ripe heirloom tomatoes
1/2 jar roasted piquillo peppers (about 5 peppers or 5 ounces)
1/2 English cucumber, peeled and seeded
1 small garlic clove
2 teaspoons Worcestershire
2 teaspoons rice vinegar
2 teaspoons white balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup good-quality extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt
Freshly ground pepper
Hot sauce, such as Melinda's habañero sauce

For garnishing:
Cucumber, peeled, seeded and diced
Avocado, peeled, seeded and diced
Olive oil, for drizzling
Croutons or sliced, toasted sourdough baguette

Preparation:
1. Have ready a medium-mesh sieve set over a large bowl. Halve the tomatoes crosswise and squeeze the seeds into the sieve. Cut out the stem, chop the tomatoes and put in a blender. Add the juice from the bowl and discard the seeds.

2. Add the peppers, cucumber, garlic, Worcestershire, vinegars, and oil, and process until smooth. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and hot sauce. Pour the soup through the sieve set over the bowl. Transfer to an airtight container and chill for at least an hour, and up to a day.

3. Garnish with cucumber, avocado, and a drizzle of olive oil. Serve with the croutons scattered over the top or toasted baguette.

I grew up in the 1970s in Dallas, Texas, at a time when processed food was the hot new thing (think Funyuns, Cap'n Crunch and Velveeta, and the list goes on...). So you can imagine what I must have been surrounded by foodwise.

Fortunately, my mom was a foodie at heart—she baked loaves of bread, cultured her own tangy yogurt, and not only grew a good-sized vegetable garden, but maintained a healthy compost pile. She was no doubt considered "weird" for the time and the place, and I for one have never stopped appreciating her weirdness.

My mom's garden was really sweet, and gave me a whole new appreciation of fresh vegetables as a kid. I remember once she grew a cucumber that was nearly as tall as my younger brother. We were in awe. I also remember stealing plenty of tomatoes, fresh off the vine and warm from the sun. And I still think that there is probably no better thing in the world that you can eat than a freshly-plucked tomato at the peak of ripeness.

Up until now, I haven't really been in a place where I could easily grow my own vegetables. So, a few weeks ago, on a whim, I decided to buy a few half wine barrels and start my own urban garden. I managed to find 4 barrels for only $20 each with free delivery on craigslist . What a steal! Finding the soil and then lugging it up our steep flight of stairs to the front of our house wasn't quite as easy, but somehow we managed.

I have to admit I went a little overboard and bought 9, yes NINE, tomato plants and planted 3 in each barrel (I'm saving one barrel because my mom is bringing me cranberry beans to plant this weekend). If they actually work out, I'll be swimming in tomatoes, but that's ok. I love them. Especially plucked right off the vine.

How to Make An Urban Tomato Garden

Ingredients
1 half wine barrel (make sure it has a few holes drilled into the bottom)
A warm, very sunny spot
3 bricks
About 6 large handfuls of large pebbles or rocks or broken terra cotta pots
2.5 cubic feet of good-quality, preferably organic, soil
.5 cubic feet of compost
1/4 to 1/3 cup organic vegetable plant food
2 or 3 tomato plants (I chose brandywine, early girl, beefsteak, roma, and sweet 100s)
A tomato cage
A hose for watering
Gardening gloves

Preparation
1. Put the wine barrel in your sunny spot. Perch the wine barrel atop your 3 bricks so it's stable and not wobbly.

2. Get all your ingredients gathered round and put on your gardening gloves.

3. Cover the bottom of the wine barrel evenly with the pebbles.

4. Add enough soil to fill the barrel about 2/3 full. Water the soil and mix it around with your hands.

5. Add the compost and more soil, and mix them all together with your hands to make a nice, rich base for your tomatoes.

6. Water the soil again, and mix together.

7. Sprinkle the plant food over the soil and mix it in.

8. Place the tomatoes on the soil in the spot you want to plant them. Try to position them so they are evenly spaced from one another, not too close to the outer edge or the center.

9. Dig a little hole for each tomato under the spot you placed them. Remove the tomato plant from it's container (gently!) and (gently!) loosen it's roots.

10. Place the tomato plant lovingly into its hole and pat the soil around it so it feels all snug and tucked in. Water the plants again.

10. Position the tomato cage so the tomato plants can grow up and around it. You might have to tie them as they start. Make sure to water them, not too much and not too little. And give them lots of love and care, and hopefully you will get loads of flavorful, succulent, juicy tomatoes.

There's more to urban hunting and gathering than visiting one's local supermarket. Grocery shopping need not be limited to the likes of Safeway, Whole Foods, and Trader Joe's. They're just so... corporate, and this shopper is a bit bored with the over-marketing of, well, markets. Small, individually-owned stores might not provide their customers with all their shopping needs, but they do offer something that the Big Boys cannot -- individuality.

One such store exists in my Polk Street neighborhood -- You Say Tomato. It's British-owned and operated, by one David Kidd, originally from Stoke-on-Trent. If you're unfamiliar with the name of that town, think again. Yes, the china with the Christmas trees on it -- Spode. Very good. I'm proud of you for remembering. I hope dredging up those holiday memories wasn't too painful for you.

Currently, a flexible-jointed punked-out doll greets passers-by from the front window with a gesture that is considered rather obscene in Britain, which might indicate that this is no typical tea-and-crumpets venue. No, it isn't typical, but, well, there are the crumpets in the cold case to the left, and the tea sits proudly on the shelves near the back. Sensible Anarchists agree that one cannot undermine authority on an empty stomach.

I think it can be agreed that most Americans do, in fact, say "tomato" with the rough pronunciation of toh-may-toh when referencing Solanum lycopersicum. Though I am indeed one of them, I often find my inner voice pronouncing it toh-mah-toh like an Englishman, because I'm just that way and I have a rich, satisfying inner life.

There is evidence, however, that the English do not pronounce "potato" poh-tah-toh:

Mmm...prawn cocktail.

Though I am an Anglophile and have been since childhood-- memorizing the Monty Python jokes I didn't fully understand, and aping the signature hiss of Terry-Thomas , one need not necessarily be like me to enjoy this shop. Two minutes of browsing will make clear the refreshing British distaste for focus groups and gender-sensitive marketing:

(The above Yorkie Bar from Nestlé provoked a train of conversation with David Kidd that led him to pull up their UK adverts on YouTube. Much time was happily wasted by me upon my return home.)

Besides, browsing here is fun, largely because everything just sounds dirty, but isn't: Crumpets, Country Ploughman's Pickle, Ginger Nuts, Chicken & Mushroom Pasties, and my favorite:

How I love the British.

Beyond fun packaging, You Say Tomato is an excellent source for things like Devonshire cream, kippers, tea, jam, sweets, and just about any British foodstuff one could wish for. Don't smirk. There's something here for everyone:

Give a metaphorical "V" sign to the big chain stores once in a while and stop by for a visit-- it's definitely worth it. It's a great resource for stocking one's larder with tasty conversation pieces.

Now, for those of you who don't understand the store's name, shame on you. It's an homage to one of George Gershwin's most playful tunes, "Let's Call the Whole Thing Off". To be accurate, there is only mention of liking tomatoes, not saying the word, though that is, of course, implied.

I'll let Fred and Ginger explain it to you. And on roller skates, too. If I have to explain who Fred and Ginger are, I might just have to kill myself.

You Say Tomato is located at:

1526 California Street (Between Polk and Larkin)
Tel/Fax: 415 921 2828
yousaytomato@sbcglobal.net

Hours of Operation
Monday: Closed
Tuesday - Friday: 10:00 am -7:00 pm
Saturday & Sunday: 10:00 am -5:00 pm