Sunday, June 8, 2008

Tomatoes have me seeing Red!


Tomatoes, Salmonella & the resulting health scares involving this standard Summer fare have me seeing red these days! In Mexico we have to wash, soak & scrub all fruits & veggies we eat. I think this might be a safe choice back home for all concerned with the frequent food born illnesses. With 16 states affected by the Raw Tomato scare the FDA better get a handle on the situation. Summer without Tomatoes is almost sinful!! For those of you not blessed with fresh from the garden tomatoes these are cooked & quite safe. I think this is an excellent time to start hitting the local farm stands & farmer's markets. I have been a tomato fan all of my life but fondly remember going on bicycle as a kid, one Summer with two friends to a hot house which grew fabulous tomatoes. All we took was a shaker of salt. Where are you now Heidi Peterkin & Van Grainge??? Those were the days, good times. Summertime means tomatoes. Enjoy the recipe & by all means santize & wash that produce.













Tomato Pie
1 c. crunched Cracker crumbs
*not finely crushed, saltines, wheat crackers or you choice.
4 Tbs. Butter melted
9 inch Tart or Quiche pan
3 or 4 Tomatoes, sliced in rounds
2 Tbs. Fresh Basil, sliced thinly
3 Tbs. Green Onion, reserve 1 for garnish
Oregano,
Salt, Ground Black Pepper
Crushed Red Pepper
1 Med. Onion, diced
Olive Oil for sauteing
8 oz. grated Oaxaca, Monterrey Jack or Cheddar Cheese
1/2 c. Light Mayonnaise

Toss Cracker crumbles with butter in bottom of tart or quiche pan. Slice Tomatoes, drain slightly on paper towels if they are very juicy. Arrange over the cracker crust, sprinkle with salt, red & black peppers, basil, green onions. Saute the onion in a small amount of Olive Oil then spread evenly over the tomatoes. Mix grated cheese, mayonnaise & spread over the top of tomatoes. Bake at 35O* 25 to 3O minutes, or until the cheese starts to brown slightly. Garnish with extra green onions, serve warm or at room temp.

5 comments:

Hornsfan said...

Looks yummy - I will say this is the third summer I've planted my own tomatoes and I'm certainly glad I did!

Dee said...

Me too, sweetie, me too!

Becky said...

how do you wash your produce? i just use water but with so many cases of food borne illness i wonder if i should be doing more?
those tomatoes look really fab. i can't wait till tomato season really kicks in here. i have two tomato plants with lots of flowers... not much longer now.

Dee said...

I use drops in our water with all of the produce. Here is is called Microdyn. There are several clean products similar to this in the states. I soak mine for 20 min. then rinse it in purified water. *in Mexico, a huge must. I have to clean every bit of produce we eat here like that.
Tomatoe season~nothing like it!!!

Pattie @ Olla-Podrida said...

I'm growing five different varieties of tomatoes, so will certainly put this recipe to good use.