Heirloom Tomato Pie

For our CSA share last week, we received lots of good things, but one of the things I noticed the most were the tomatoes.

So help me, I swear we got two pounds a metric ton of tomatoes. Though I love tomatoes, I was a little scared-I needed to figure out a way to use all of these tomatoes. A lot of people would have told me, "make sauce!" which would have been fine, except that I really wanted to use them in different ways (look for another tomato related post coming up!). Knowing we were going to have friends over this past weekend for dinner, and knowing that I wanted to make something summery, and knowing that this meal is incredibly simple and one of our favorites, heirloom tomato pie was a no brainer.

I began making this pie last year when I saw it in the Food Network magazine (and, ironically, the recipe showed up as a recipe of the day in my email inbox when I went to make it on Sunday. Coincidence??). I loved tomatoes, and it looked so good on the cover (isn't that always how it goes?) that I had to make it for us for dinner.

And then I made it again. And again. And again. Every time I saw heirlooms, I knew we were having pie. I knew Adam wouldn't mind, because I think he liked it even more than I did. Maybe it reminded him of pizza, but whatever it was, I knew I had a dish that I could make every day if I wanted and we would eat it.

Now, heirloom tomato season is back, and when I got those tomatoes last week, I knew exactly what to do (though admittedly, the tomatoes we got weren't heirloom. I did have a few extra of those already. Regular tomatoes work just as well in this dish).

I will admit that I cheat a bit on this dish. The recipe calls for a homemade cornmeal crust, and I use a storebought pie crust. I use basil instead of the herbs it calls for, and I use greek yogurt as the binder because I usually have a ton of that lying around, and I don't always have mayo (though admittedly, I have done it with mayo, and the pie does become a bit richer. It tastes fantastic either way.).

Heirloom tomato season is short. Putting this dish together is fast and easy. Eating it is awesome. I suggest you get on this one immediately.

 *This is in a tupperware dish to go in my lunch. Not on the bare counter!

Heirloom Tomato Pie (recipe adapted from foodnetwork.com)

• one storebought pie crust
• 3/4 c. shredded pecorino romano cheese
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 large onion, diced
• 6-8 mixed heirloom tomatoes
• 3/4 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 c. greek yogurt
• 3 Tbsp. panko breadcrumbs
• 5 Tbsp. fresh chopped basil
• Freshly ground pepper and salt
• 
  

Directions

Saute onion in a large skilled over medium heat with 1 Tbsp. olive oil until soft and opaque, about ten minutes. Slice the tomatoes; toss with 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and drain in a colander until fully drained, about ten minutes (if you get impatient, skip it. I often do. It makes the pie a little soupier but still just as good).

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Combine both cheeses, greek yogurt, breadcrumbs, the basil, 1/4 teaspoon each kosher salt and pepper, and the sauteed onion in a bowl. Take the pie crust and unfold it into a standard pie dish. Spread the cheesy onion yogurt mixture in the crust. Arrange the tomatoes on top. Drizzle with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and season with pepper. Bake until the tomatoes are browned, about 50 minutes.