Crustless Tomato Cheese Pie

They say that necessity is the mother of invention and that certainly turned out to be the case here. I have a bumper crop of tomatoes this season, and decided I was going to make myself a tomato pie. I went to all of the effort to make a crust, and then something went wrong during the blind baking process. I carefully lined my crust with foil (like you do), and put my pie weights on top, baking as I normally would. Only not quite so normally, when I went to remove the foil and weights, the bottom of the crust came with it; so much for that idea.

So, instead, I decided to treat my tomato pie as I would a crustless quiche, and line the pan with softened butter and crumbs. It turned out to be beautiful, incredibly delicious, and half of the calories I had expected it to be.

This is a wonderful summer dish. It utilizes delicious fresh produce, can be served at room temperature, works for any meal of the day (yes, I did have it for breakfast), and will be a welcome change from your normal fare. You are going to love it!

Crustless Tomato Cheese Pie

3 large tomatoes (about 2 pounds), sliced ¼” thick
¾ t. kosher salt, divided
½ T. butter, room temperature
¼ c. Italian breadcrumbs
½ T. butter
½ c. chopped Melissa’s shallots
2 c. grated sharp cheddar cheese
½ c. chopped fresh herbs (basil, oregano, parsley, chives, etc.)
½ t. hot sauce
½ t. freshly ground black pepper
2 extra large eggs

Preheat oven to 300°F. Place tomato slices on paper towels and sprinkle with ½ t. salt. Allow them to drain while oven is preheating. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment, and place tomato slices on top. Bake for about 40 minutes, checking occasionally, until they start to pucker.

While tomatoes are baking, butter a 9-inch pie pan with unsalted butter, and sprinkle with breadcrumbs. Rotate pan to ensure all greased areas are covered with the crumbs; set aside.

Meanwhile, heat a small skillet over medium heat. Melt butter and add shallots and remaining ¼ t. salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until shallots have softened and are just starting to brown, 5 to 8 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool.

In a medium bowl, beat eggs until frothy. Stir in cheese, herbs, hot sauce, and pepper until combined. Stir in cooled shallot mixture.

Arrange a layer of tomatoes on the bottom of your prepared pan. Top with half of the cheese mixture, spreading to cover. Repeat this process one more time, and then finish off with remaining tomatoes. Sprinkle Monterrey Jack cheese on top of pie.

Bake until golden brown, 40 to 45 minutes. Let cool to room temperature before slicing.

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Pumpkin Breakfast Loaf

I don’t need the calendar to tell me that August has arrived, my internal hankering for pumpkin tells me it’s here. And today, as I tend to do every August, I rummaged around at the back of the pantry until I found a can of pumpkin that I bought last winter on sale, and set to work.

Generally speaking, Nordicware and I do not get along. However, a 20% off sale at Williams-Sonoma, coupled with rewards dollars, and free shipping led me to this beauty. It yielded a beautiful loaf. It was an absolute joy to work with, the loaf nearly extricated itself, and it washed up like a dream.

I’m calling this lovely, Pumpkin Breakfast Loaf, because it is just that. It is not a cake, pound- or otherwise, because it is not overly sweet. It doesn’t have an icing or glaze, it is just perfectly pumpkin-y, supremely spicy, with a chewy exterior and tender interior. It is perfect as is for breakfast, toasted and slathered with butter for “Elevenses,” alongside chicken salad at lunch, superb when slathered with clotted cream for afternoon tea, and makes a wonderful snack with a cup of coffee or cocoa in the evening. This is an all-around wonderful loaf, treat yourself and your family, and give it a try.

Pumpkin Breakfast Loaf

1½ c. flour
1 t. ground cinnamon
½ t. kosher salt
½ t. baking soda
½ t. baking powder
¼ t. ground cloves
¼ t. freshly grated nutmeg
2/3 c. granulated sugar
2/3 c. dark brown sugar
¼ c. whole milk
3 large egg whites
1 cup canned pumpkin purée

Preheat oven to 350° F. Thoroughly spray a loaf pan (I used this one) with Baker’s Joy; set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cinnamon, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cloves, and nutmeg; set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together sugars, milk, and egg whites until thoroughly blended. Whisk in the canned pumpkin until fully incorporated.

Slowly add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture, stirring until combined. Do not over mix.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 55-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Allow to cool in the pan 10 minutes before removing. Store on the counter, covered, for up to three days.

Makes one loaf.

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Pesto Cucumber-Avocado Soup

Remember last week when I told you to be sure to make the Lemon Basil Vinaigrette because you would need it again? If not, go back and look, I’ll wait. Here’s the reason that you need it, to add a wonderful fresh pesto taste to this delicious cold summer soup. There is nothing better on a hot day than a cup of cold soup, and this one is cooling, refreshing, loaded with nutrition, and lots of flavor. It’s like summer in a cup.

Pesto Cucumber-Avocado Soup

1 large, ripe avocado, peeled and pitted

1 large cucumber, unpeeled, and cut into large chunks

1½ c. homemade chicken stock (canned, if you must)

1 Melissa’s shallot, quartered

2½ T. fresh lemon juice

1 t. fresh lime juice

½ c. plain Greek yogurt

¼ c. Lemon Basil Vinaigrette

Pinch Kosher salt

Pinch red pepper flakes

Place avocado and cucumber into a large capacity food processor fitted with a metal blade, and process until smooth.  With machine running, gradually pour chicken stock through feeder tube; process until smooth.  Add shallots, citrus juices, yogurt, Lemon Basil Vinaigrette, and process until combined.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Chill for at least 2 hours (the longer the better). To serve, ladle into cups or bowls and top with basil chiffonade, croutons, or drizzles of the vinaigrette.

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Zippy Cucumber Salad with Red Onion

As you may have noticed from my deck garden update, I have a huge cucumber plant that is providing me with loads of cucumbers. (I noticed one of them making himself quite comfortable in the chair that I used to sit in, but I digress...) Many cucumbers have been distributed around the neighborhood, others are being turned into cold soups, and a variety of pickles and relishes are surely in my future, but today I’m enjoying a salad that must be made ahead (Don’t you love that?), and is very tasty indeed.

Zippy Cucumber Salad with Red Onion

2 large cucumbers, sliced thin (I used a mandolin)
½ red onion, sliced thin (see above)
1 t. kosher salt
½ c. sour cream
2 T. white sugar
2 T. cider vinegar
¼ t. Old Bay seasoning
1 T. fresh, chopped chives
1 T. fresh, minced parsley
¼ t. paprika

Spread cucumbers out onto a paper towel-lined cookie sheet; season with the salt and allow them to rest for 30 minutes. Squeeze excess moisture from cucumbers.

While cucumbers are resting, in a large mixing bowl, whisk together sour cream, sugar, vinegar, Old Bay, chives, parsley, and paprika. Fold drained cucumber and red onion slices into the sour cream mixture. Cover and refrigerate for at least eight hours, or overnight. Serve garnished with a few more chopped chives, if desired.

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Deck Garden Update for July

I thought I would give you a July update on the deck garden before I am completely overtaken by the plants. 

Seriously, there are mornings when I wake up and I expect the plants to be tapping on the window. I now have slightly less than one square yard of space in which to navigate among them; this is no exaggeration.

The heat has finally set in, so I am watering much more frequently, but everything is doing amazingly well. I tried a new type of tomato tower this year that is expandable, and I still find that my cherry tomatoes are outgrowing it.

If you’re interested in the expandable trellis, click here. I really like it, and of particular interest are the  clips that accompany this that allow you to clip up branches without damaging them.

I ended up buying 30 extra clips to use on all of my plants. You can see some of them in action on the photo of my green bean plant.

My first harvest was a green pepper, my second jalapeños.

I have lots of them on the plant, so need lots of recipes.

Another great producer are the cucumbers.

Those things are everywhere! As you can see from this picture, this bad boy decided to relax on the chair that I used to sit in when I could find it among the foliage.

I plan to harvest at both full-size and at pickle spear size to make pickles.

The Jasmine has doubled in size since I bought it, and it shooting out branches on all sides. Somehow the thought of de-tangling all of this at year’s end seems daunting. On the plus side, it does scent the garden with the most wonderful fragrance.

The string beans are doing well, and I’m able to harvest about one serving per day.

My large pot of herbs is doing wonderfully, and I find myself using much more of them because if the ready access.

The ginger is hanging in there. 

The X-rated pumpkin is growing well, and looking as though it is planning its escape!

The gourds are growing like mad, spilling over the side of the deck, and starting to threaten the Meyer Lemon tree on the patio below.

The Stella Dora Lily that I ripped up out of my mother’s garden is doing well, despite the fact that it can rarely be seen. I have found a spot in the front yard where I will move it in the fall. Mother’s hostas are similarly thriving, and will soon need transplanting.

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Pesto Salad with Lemon Basil Vinaigrette

I have become absolutely obsessed with this salad! Fortunately, my basil plants are flourishing, and I can whip up a batch of this dressing every couple of days. The kitchen smells fantastic while I’m making it, and the taste is that perfect summertime fresh. This is my “go to” salad for summer. Make up this dressing and see what I mean. Not only will you love the salad, but you will also love another recipe that I’ll be posting later in the week that makes use of this dressing as well. Summer produce at its finest! Take advantage of it while you can.

Pesto Salad with Lemon Basil Vinaigrette

1 head romaine, torn into bite-size pieces

½ cup toasted walnuts

¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 Tablespoons fresh basil chiffonade*

½ cup homemade croutons

Lemon Basil Vinaigrette (recipe below)

Place romaine, walnuts, Parmesan, basil, and croutons in a large bowl. Toss with Lemon Basil Vinaigrette.

Lemon Basil Vinaigrette

2 tablespoons freshly-squeezed lemon  juice

1 cup tightly packed fresh basil leaves

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes

¼ teaspoon garlic powder

1 Tablespoon grated Parmesan

½ cup olive oil

In a blender or food processor, blend together juice, basil leaves, red wine vinegar, salt, red pepper flakes, garlic powder, and Parmesan. With the motor running, gradually pour in oil, continuing to blend until everything is emulsified.

Taste and season as desired. If it's too tart for your taste, add a teaspoon of sugar.

*place 4-5 fresh basil leaves on top of each other, roll lengthwise into a tube, and slice across into strips.

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Coffee/Tea Pot Napkin Rings...This Week's Find

For someone who only used napkin rings at Christmas time (at least that I can recall), my mother sure had a lot of them. Today’s find is a recent unveiling of these darling teapot/coffee pot-shaped napkin rings. In looking at these, and setting them up to photograph, I wonder how many of you have napkin rings that you don’t use. I think we should all make a vow to remedy that.

I really like this cute set. Initially, I looked at them as tea pots, and something that I would use with tea, but the rather rustic finishing (the barn red speckled in white) made me think of them in another way, namely as something that you would use at a formal campsite. (Are there formal campsites? My guess is that today, there are!)

At any rate, I plan to use them in the fall. I particularly like the way they look with these black-checkered napkins. I need to go through my more primitive dinnerware, and come up with something suitable for a camp out in the woods. I can almost smell that coffee brewing over the crackling campfire.

To see last week’s unique find, click here.

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