Tomato Pie

This recipe lends itself to estimates. Handfuls of this, handfuls of that. I measured, but you could eyeball it and it would still work out. Feel free to change the cheeses around, play with the spices. I made a homemade pie crust, but for this recipe a good quality prepared crust would work fine. Photo by SimplyRecipes.com For other Tomato Pie Recipes go to http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/tomato_pie/

Ingredients for Crust:

 2.5 cups flour

 1/2 teaspoon salt

 1 teaspoon finely chopped sweet basil

1/2 teaspoon lemon pepper

1 cup cold lard or solid vegetable shortening

5 to 7 tablespoons ice water

Directions Combine the flour , salt, basil and lemon pepper in a bowl. Add the lard and work it in with your hands until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add the water, 1 tablespoon at a time, working it in with your hands. Add only as much as you need to make a smooth ball of dough. Wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and place it on a lightly floured surface. For 2 crusts, cut the dough in two and put the second half back in the refrigerator. For each crust, roll the dough out on the floured surface into a circle about 12 inches in diameter and 1/8-inch thick. Gently fold the circle of dough in half and then in half again so that you can lift it without tearing it, and unfold into a 9-inch pie pan. Fill and proceed as directed in the recipe. Depending on your pan, you will only need 1 crust .

4 Large Ripe tomatoes                                                                                                                                         

 1Large Sweet onion                                                                                                                                                      

 ½ Cup bread crumbs                                                                                                                                                      

1 Cup Hellman’s Mayo                                                                                                                                                                                 

1 Egg Yolk

1/2 tsp. Fresh thyme leaves

 2 Tablespoons fresh basil Chiffonade

 1 Cup grated cheddar or mozzarella

1/2 Cup smoked Gouda

2 Tab. Olive Oil plus

2 Tab. Parmesan Cheese plus

Preheat oven to 375”. Fill pie crust with foil and dry beans. Bake 12 – 15 minutes or until lightly golden around edges. Remove foil and beans, return to oven 3 -5 more minutes. Cool on rack. While crust is cooking: Slice tomatoes about ¼” thick and let sit on a paper towel for about 15 minutes to drain, then lightly season with salt and pepper. Thinly slice onions. Mix bread crumbs, olive oil and Parmesan Cheese.  Sprinkle about 1/3 of the bread crumbs in bottom of pie crust. This will help the pie not to get soggy. Place a layer of tomatoes in bottom, using half, top with half of the sliced onions. Mix mayo, egg yolk , thyme and basil together. Spread half of mayo mixture, half of the cheese mixture over the top of the tomatoes. Top with bread crumbs and repeat 1 more time ending with bread crumbs. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with Parmesan Cheese. Bake until bubbly and hot, about 1 hour and 15 minutes.  Remove from oven and allow to cool for at least 30 minutes.