Recipes Skillet-Charred Cherry Tomatoes with Basil 5.0 (3,144) Add your rating & review Chris Cosentino remembers charring tomatoes when he was a line cook under chef Mark Miller at Red Sage in Washington, DC. "Mark always said, 'It needs fleck,' " Cosentino says, referring to the blackened bits on the skins. "The fire brings out the sweetness in the tomatoes." More Tomato Recipes By Chris Cosentino Chris Cosentino San Francisco-based chef Chris Cosentino is a James Beard Award nominee renowned for his innovative Italian and whole-animal cooking. He authored two critically acclaimed cookbooks and frequently appears on food television shows such as Iron Chef America and Chef vs. City, and won Bravo's Top Chef Masters in 2012.Experience: Chris Cosentino began building his résumé at several top restaurants, including Red Sage and Kinkead's in Washington, D.C., Rubicon in San Francisco, and Chez Panisse in Berkeley. He helped open restaurants Redwood Park, Belon, and Nob Hill before taking the helm at Incanto in 2002. His rustic Italian menu, which showcased Cosentino's growing mastery of whole-animal cooking and commitment to sustainability, garnered rave local and national reviews. The chef's annual Head-to-Tail dinner, which began in 2004, became Incanto's signature event and contributed to Cosentino's national prominence.Following in the eight-decade tradition of his family's Rhode Island sausage business, he founded Boccalone, an artisan salumeria, in 2007. In 2015, Food & Wine named him one of our 50 Hall of Fame Best New Chefs. After opening the critically acclaimed Cockscomb restaurant, Cosentino expanded beyond San Francisco with Jackrabbit in Portland, Oregon, Arcadia House in Napa Valley, and Rosalie Italian Soul in Houston.When he is not working on his many business ventures, Cosentino can be found on his bike cycling for charities like No Kid Hungry and World Bicycle Relief or hosting his food podcast Losing Your Mind with Chris Cosentino, which he launched in 2019.Education: Chris received his formal culinary training at Johnson & Wales University where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree. Food & Wine's Editorial Guidelines Updated on February 25, 2019 Print Rate It Share Share Tweet Pin Email Photo: © Cedric Angeles Total Time: 15 mins Yield: 10 Ingredients 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil 2 ½ pints cherry tomatoes 24 squash blossoms (optional) ¼ cup small basil leaves or chopped basil Salt and freshly ground pepper Directions Heat a 12-inch cast-iron skillet over high heat until smoking, 5 minutes. Add the olive oil, tomatoes and squash blossoms and cook until the tomatoes are lightly charred and about to burst, 3 minutes. Off the heat, stir in the basil. Season with salt and pepper and serve right away. Rate it Print