Tomato Pie Recipe

Tomato, tomato, tomato.

Its just about that time in the summer when the tomatoes start to really pile up on the windowsill and counters in my house.  I've had the tomato grilled cheese, the BLT, the bruschetta, the tomato sandwich, caprese salad, and now I'm looking for a different, delicious way to eat up some of these tomatoes.  

I found the answer in Tomato Pie!

First for the tomato pie, you need the pie crust.  You are welcome to make one from scratch, but I totally used a refrigerated store bought crust. Preheat the oven to 350 and pre-bake your crust for 10-12 minutes, until lightly browned.  I recommend using dried beans or something to help hold the edges up while pre-baking the crust. 

Now the tomatoes.  You can use any tomato you have.  I just used these gorgeous Big Beef.  I think the pie would be lovely with some colorful heirlooms too.

First cut the tomato horizontally and squeeze to remove the excess juice.  It is important to squeeze the tomatoes or your pie will be watery. Then give the tomatoes a rough chop.  You need 3 cups of chopped tomatoes.

Next chop 1/2 onion and chop some basil, about 1/4 cup.

In a medium bowl, mix together 2 cups grated cheese ( I used mozzarella and parmesan), 3/4 cup mayonnaise, Tabasco, a sprinkle of salt and pepper.

In the pre-baked pie shell sprinkle in the chopped onion.

Spread the chopped tomatoes over the onion and sprinkle with basil.

Spread the cheese mixture over the tomatoes

Place in oven and bake 30-40 minutes until bubbly and browned.

Holy Cow! So good!

Tomato Pie Recipe

1 9inch pie crust

3-4 tomatoes, cut in half squeezed to remove excess juice, and then roughly chopped (3 cups)

1/2 onion, chopped

1/4 cup chopped basil

2 cups cheese, I combined mozzarella and a little parmesan, but any cheese would work.  Cheddar and 

                       Monterey would be goooood!

3/4 cup mayonaise 

1 tsp tabasco sauce

Preheat oven to 350. Pre-bake pie crust 10-12 minutes until lightly browned.  Sprinkle the bottom of the pie crust with chopped onion. Top with chopped tomatoes and sprinkle with basil. In a medium bowl mix the cheese, mayo, tabasco sauce, salt, and pepper.  Spread over the tomatoes.  Bake until bubbly and browned. 30-40 minutes!

Basil Pesto. Soooo good!

What to do with that large amount of basil? My answer. Pesto. Period.

 Let's make the pesto.

 Add 3/4 cup of basil leaves to the food processor bowl.

 Add 1/2 cup parmesan cheese.

 Add 3 Tablespoons pine nuts (you could use walnuts, instead)

 Add 2 cloves garlic.

 Put the lid on and turn on the food processor.  While it's on drizzle in 1/3 cup of olive oil.

 Beautiful! Now if you stop here you have Pesto.  Yum.  You could add this straight to drained pasta and it would be delicious or to take it to another level.

 Heat 1/2 cup of cream and 2 tablespoons of butter in a saucepan and add the pesto.

 Stir in an extra 1/4 cup of parmesan cheese.

 Put your drained pasta in a bowl. 

 Pour over the pesto cream sauce.

 Add some diced tomatoes to the hot pasta and warm pesto sauce.

 Stir.

Dig into this wonderfulness!


Basil Pesto Cream Sauce
3/4 cup fresh basil leaves
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons pine nuts or walnuts
2 garlic cloves, peeled
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup cream
2 tablespoons butter
12 oz pasta, such as fusilli, cooked al dente
2 large tomatoes, diced

To make the pesto: Add the basil, 1/2 cup parmesan, pine nuts, garlic to a food processor.  Turn on the machine and slowly drizzle in the olive oil to make a nice puree. Season with salt and pepper.

To make the cream sauce: Heat the heavy cream in a saucepan and drop in the butter. Then pour the pesto right in. Stir together and just simmer for a few minutes.  At the end add the remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan.

Put the drained pasta in a large serving bowl. Pour on the pesto cream sauce. Then add the diced tomatoes. Toss together and serve right away.

Enjoy!

2012 CSA Week #16

SugarBaby Watermelon, Cantaloupe, Red Cubanelle Peppers, Green Tomatoes, Red Tomatoes, Yellow Peaches, Sweet Corn, (not pictured PYO flowers, herbs, hot peppers)

Here we are WEEK #16.

We are enjoying this mild August weather! To quote Pop-Pop Buzby, "This is good weather for WORKING!"  To quote Farmer Andy, "Man, it is a beautiful day, I think you all should pay me for letting you work outside today!"  Haha.  Can you tell we love our job!  What a privilege to work out in this wonderful world we live in, the sun, fresh air, dirt.  We wouldn't want it any other way.

We have gotten about 5 inches of rain so far this August.  The corn is loving it, I just hope the pumpkins make it through this wet spell.

This originally came to me as a Jalapeño popper recipe.  Recently we have started filling cubanelles with it.  Both ways are amazing! 

This is what my father-in-law, Farmer Andy has to say about Stuffed Cubanelles, "I could eat about 10 feet of the that!"  

The filling:

One 8 oz block of cream cheese

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

1/2 cup bread crumbs

dash of chili powder

dash of garlic powder.

Mix the above and use to fill all kinds of peppers.  For cubanelles bake at 400 until cheese is melty and the peppers are getting some browned edges, about 20-30 minutes. Feel free to use what ever cheese you have, switch out the cheddar for monetary, YUM!

Farmer Andy prefers this filling in red cubanelle peppers.  I cut them in half length wise and take the seeds out, and then smoosh some filling in.  

I enjoy using the cheese mixture to make my own jalapeño poppers. I bake the jalapeños at  300 for little bit longer, 40-50 minutes.  

It is amazing in any hot pepper!

Enjoy!

Grilled Veggies with Herb Vinaigrette!

I'm getting the grilled fired up and ready for the 4th of July. 

What's not to love about fresh veggies cooked with the heat of the grill! And it keeps my kitchen cool on hot days.

Here is what I am grilling today. Zucchini, Yellow Squash, and Eggplant.  

But peppers, onions, and mushrooms  are excellent candidates for grilling.

Let's prep the veggies.

Cut the eggplant in to thick slices. I like to cut the veggies lengthwise.  Then I have less to handle and they don't fall through the grill grates as easy. 

Same with the zucchini and yellow squash.

Aren't they so pretty?

Put about a 1/4 cup of olive oil in a bowl and brush over both sides of vegetables lightly with the oil.

Sprinkle both sides with kosher salt and freshly cracked pepper.

These babies are ready for the grill.

Start with a clean grill on medium-high heat.  To prep the grill I like to put some olive oil on the grates.  Fold up a paper towel and dip it in the olive oil.

Rub the paper towel on the grates. This leaves a nice thin coat of oil on the grill and prevents the veggies from sticking.

On go the veggies.  Squash and eggplant usually take 8-10 minutes on the grill. Peppers take a little longer like 10-12 minutes.

But you really have to watch because it all depend on your grill and how thick your veggies are.  

LOVE the pretty grill marks!

 You just might live in Salem County if you turn around from the grill and see this going down the road.  That is one crazy big planter.

Back to the grill.

It took me a couple batches to get all the veggies cooked on the grill, but its okay.  The vegetables can be served warm or at room temperature.  

I really didn't want crunchy vegetables. So be conscious of how stiff the veggies feel when you pick them up.  

The challenge is grilling them to just the right point--gently charred on the outside and tender within, not pale and crunchy or blackened and mushy.

Now to take these veggies to the next level: THE SAUCE

For the dressing: 2 Tablespoons of olive oil.

3 Tablespoons of red wine vinegar, or balsamic vinegar.  What ever you fancy.

Add 2 cloves of garlic minced.

Grab some fresh basil and parsley

Add the chopped herbs.  Whisk together adding salt and pepper to taste.

Drizzle dressing over platter of veggies. Serve warm or room temperature.

Since I already had the grill warmed up, I threw a steak on for a perfect supper!

Yum Yum Yum.