I love heirloom tomatoes; they're weird-looking and sometimes ugly (though as Chef Ed Brown says in this video, "the uglier, the better"), which in my opinion, makes them really cool. Definitely better than those cookie-cutter flavorless giants you find wasting away on supermarket shelves. Each heirloom is distinctly unique, and you never know what each one will taste like. I buy the most interesting-looking ones I can find, and love being surprised by the different flavors -- some juicier, some sweeter, some more intense.

I was drooling over this clip about heirlooms today, and in fact, I think I'm going to make myself a tomato-ricotta tartine tonight. But I gotta say -- doesn't Al Roker seem *way* too into his gazpacho martini? I'm sure it's tasty, but maybe he had a few too many cups of coffee earlier that morning.