Can canned tomatoes be substituted for fresh in winter?

I have great results subbing in Campari tomatoes during the winter. They have a summery flavour, especially when roasted/warmed. Make sure you are using actual Campari tomatoes, however. The similar-sized ones which are NOT actual Campari labelled are really not the same and don't taste nearly as good.

Canned tomatoes, fine in their own right, would be terrible here. The whole point of the dish (and the fresh basil) is to make use of perfect summer ingredients, with as little fuss as possible.

I would suggest waiting for summer, or at least try it again in the summer to see what it should taste like. Winter tomatoes, in my opinion, just aren't the same as the glorious summer tomatoes.

Agree with Nancy W option. You may also be able to find some colorful assorted small tomatoes. Whole Foods carries them in the winter. Its an assortment of yellow, grape, orange , green etc... They have decent flavor and look nice in the dish

Maybe, but the texture would be pretty soft. I think that oven roasted grape tomatoes (even in the winter) would be a better match.