Put your tomatoes to use in Summery Southern Tomato Pie - Tampa Bay Times

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The hot temperatures and afternoon thundershowers of a Florida summer mean bumper crops of home-grown tomatoes. When your kitchen counter is overwhelmed with an abundance, turn on the oven for just a bit and serve up this killer Summery Southern Tomato Pie.

Tomato pie topped with tomatoes that are intensely red and flavorful is what summer tastes like in the South. Sitting elegantly on top of my cake stand, you can taste the intense flavors of this pie with one glance. And the aroma will knock you over. This pie deserves a place of honor on your table.

Tomato pie is easy to prepare — you can use whatever cheese or herbs you like to flavor the custardy filling. You can buy ready-made pie crust and save yourself some time, but my Parmesan and buttermilk crust is the foundation that will make this pie memorable. Make sure you have the basics on hand: domestic or Italian Parmesan cheese, extra-sharp white cheddar cheese, sweet onions (Vidalia if you can find them), good-quality mayonnaise (Duke’s is the classic), your favorite fresh herbs and plenty of rich red local tomatoes.

When it comes to your tomato pie, just about anything goes for the crust. Many cooks use slices of day-old bread, puff pastry, canned biscuit dough, refrigerated rolled pie dough or phyllo dough for their creations. My crust blends a mixture of butter and vegetable shortening for both stability and flavor. The addition of Parmesan cheese and buttermilk enhances the flavors. The addition of earthy turmeric gives the pastry a nice accent.

You’ll want to thinly slice your tomatoes, arrange them between layers of paper towels, sprinkle with a little salt and leave them alone for a few minutes. This will help absorb excess liquid and prevent a watery, soggy pie. Sweet Vidalia onions, scallions or spring onions, as well as fresh oregano, basil and chives, will complement the tomatoes. Use a blend of cheeses for a flavor boost; sharp cheddar and Parmesan make good companions. Switch the cheeses to use provolone, mozzarella or Asiago.

You’ll mix the grated cheese with mayonnaise. I like to use just a couple of teaspoons of Dijon mustard, too. To the tomato topping, some cooks add a little dill weed or cayenne pepper for a slight kick. Take a shortcut and use a store-bought tub of your favorite pimento cheese as the filling, then layer the sliced tomatoes in between and on top. Let’s get busy making this pie before summer passes us by.

Summery Southern Tomato Pie

Tomato pie [ LORRAINE FINA STEVENSKI | Special to the Times ]

For the Parmesan buttermilk pie crust:

2 ½ cups all-purpose flour

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 teaspoon ground turmeric, optional, for color

½ teaspoon fine sea salt

¼ teaspoon black pepper

¾ cup (1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter, cold and cut into pieces

¼ cup solid vegetable shortening, cold and cut into pieces

6 tablespoons whole buttermilk, cold

For the topping and filling:

2 pounds assorted medium red ripe tomatoes, about 3, for the filling and topping

1 teaspoon fine sea salt, divided

1 ½ cups grated extra sharp white cheddar cheese

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

⅔ cup mayonnaise

1 large egg, lightly beaten

½ cup finely sliced fresh basil leaves, divided

2 tablespoons finely minced fresh chives, divided

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

1 cup finely sliced and peeled sweet onion, sliced ¼ inch thin

Make the pie crust: To the bowl of a large food processor, pulse the flour, cheese, turmeric (if using), salt and pepper just until combined, about three pulses. Add the butter and shortening and pulse just until pea-sized, about five pulses. Drizzle in the buttermilk and process just until the dough begins to come together. Do not overprocess. Turn the dough out onto a piece of plastic wrap and lightly knead into a ball and then flatten into a disc. Wrap tightly and refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Roll the dough out on a large piece of parchment paper into a 14-inch circle about ½ inch thick. Transfer to a 9-inch pie dish, pressing the dough into the bottom and up the sides. Trim the edges, leaving 1 inch overhanging. Fold the edges under and crimp with your fingers with any design you favor. Freeze the dough in the pan for 20 minutes. Line the pie crust with parchment paper and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake the crust for 15 to 20 minutes. Remove the parchment and weights and further bake for another 8 to 10 minutes or until the edges are golden and the bottom crust is set. Cool completely before filling.

Make the filing and bake: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Slice the tomatoes ¼ inch thick, then cut each in half. Place on a paper towel-lined half sheet pan, sprinkle with ½ teaspoon of salt and cover with another layer of paper towels. Let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Pat dry before using in the filling and topping.

In a large mixing bowl, stir together the grated cheddar, Parmesan, mayonnaise, egg, ¼ cup basil, 1 tablespoon chives, mustard, pepper and remaining ½ teaspoon salt.

Evenly arrange the sliced onions on the bottom of the partially baked pie crust. Gently and evenly spread with half the cheese mixture and layer with half of the sliced tomatoes overlapping. Repeat with the remaining cheese mixture and remaining tomatoes. Top with the remaining basil and chives. Bake on a half sheet pan on the center rack of the oven for 40 to 50 minutes, covering the crust with foil after 20 minutes to prevent excess browning. Let the pie cool completely before serving to firm up. Serve at room temperature.

Makes about 8 slices.

Source: Lorraine Fina Stevenski

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