Cheezy Jalapeno Tomato Chips!

I met my friend Monica for lunch on my birthday, and she gave me a bag filled with some of the last juicy summer tomatoes from her garden. They had so many, and they didn't know what to do with them all. And then, a couple days later, when I went to my parents' house to celebrate my birthday with them, my Granny gave me even more fresh garden tomatoes. I wasn't sure what I'd so with so many tomatoes, but I knew I'd figure it out.

It so happened that one of my birthday gifts — from my friend Greg — included a bag of Just Pure Foods raw tomato chips. Like kale chips but made with tomatoes. I'd never tried tomato chips, but one taste, and I was hooked. But there were only two servings in the bag he gave me. That's when it hit me — I can make my own tomato chips and put those tomatoes to good use!

So I pulled out the dehydrator and threw together a similar cheezy cashew base to the one I use when I make kale chips. I slathered the cashew mixture onto the tomatoes and dehydrated for hours. And hours. And hours. And then out came these yummy, crispy, Cheezy Jalapeno Tomato Chips!

I'm not sure how long they'll keep, but since they're dehydrated, I'd guess a good long while. Kale chips last forever (well, they would if I didn't eat them all right away!). Here's the recipe. You'll need a dehydrator for this one.

Cheezy Jalapeno Tomato Chips

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4 medium tomatoes, sliced

1/2 raw cashews, soaked for 4 hours

1/4 cup nutritional yeast

2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar

1/2 jalapeno, minced

1 tsp. garlic, minced

1/2 tsp. sea salt

1/4 cup water

Place the slices of tomato on a paper towel, side by side (don't stack them). Place another paper towel on top of the slices, and press slightly to soak up any liquid. Leave the slices on the towels for 5 to 10 minutes to drain out more of the tomato liquid.

While the tomatoes are draining, drain any excess water off the soaked cashews, and add them to a food processor. Add the nutritional yeast, vinegar, jalapeno, garlic, salt, and water. Process until smooth and creamy, stopping once to scrape down the sides of the bowl.

Place the tomato slices into a mixing bowl. Pour the cashew mixture into the bowl and gently stir to coat the tomato slices, being careful not to break the tomato slices. You may need to get your hands in there and slather the mixture onto the slices.

Place the slices side by side on a Teflex dehydrator sheet and set the dehydrator to 115 degrees. Allow to dehydrate for 8 hours. Open the dehydrator and remove the trays. Gently remove the slices from the Teflex sheet, turn them over, and place them back onto the dehydrator trays without the Teflex. Dehydrate for another 5 to 6 hours or until the tomatoes are crispy. They may be a little chewy in the thicker places, and that's okay, so long as they're mostly crispy. If they're not crispy enough after the 5 to 6 hours, dehydrate for another hour or so, checking for doneness every once in a while.

Store in an airtight plastic container. I like to add those little "Do Not Eat" packets to the container to ensure freshness.