While you can use a food dehydrator or oven to make tomato powder, the best and quickest way to salvage a pile of leftover tomato skin is to zap it in a microwave.

Arrange your tomato skins in a single, flat layer on a paper towel on a microwave-safe plate. Put another paper towel on top and microwave them for about four to five minutes.

Once they are papery and dry, give them a spin in either a spice grinder, blender, or mortar and pestle. Add a pinch of salt and sugar to heighten the powder’s tomato flavor.

If stored properly, tomato powder basically lasts forever and can be used to amp up tomato flavor anywhere you see fit.

You can throw the powder into tomato sauce or chili, sprinkle it on bread before baking, make tomato-flavored crackers or breadsticks, create tomato paste, or amp up a Bloody Mary.