In the Kitchen: Tomato Pie

Tomato pie is one of my favorite summer recipes. It's perfect as a meal by itself or to take to a BBQ as a side dish. People love it, too. :)

What you need:

2 sweet onions
1 lb tomatoes
Bisquick or Jiffy Mix
1 C mayo
2 C cheddar cheese
1 big handful of basil
salt & pepper

Make 1 recipe for biscuits using either Bisquick or Jiffy Mix. If you want to throw a little garlic powder in the mix, go for it. Spread the biscuit mix in the bottom of a pie pan like a crust, and bake for about 10 min at 350 degrees.

Meanwhile, thinly slice your tomatoes and onions. Chop up your basil as well.

Mix your mayo with the shredded cheddar and set aside.

When the crust has baked for 10 minutes, get it out and layer the bottom with half of your sliced onions. On top, layer half of the tomatoes. Then, sprinkle on half of your basil. Season with salt and pepper, then repeat the layers.

When you have added all of your tomatoes and onions, use your hands to spread the cheese/mayo mixture over the top like a crust.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes, or until the cheese has browned and is bubbly.

We have made this recipe several times. Sometimes we'll cut the mayo in half and use goat cheese. Sometimes I use a mixture of different cheeses instead of just cheddar. Really, any cheese is good in this. Have you ever had a bad cheese? Exactly. We've also added bacon, italian sausage, etc. You can really experiment with lots of different things, as so much goes with tomatoes and cheese! And if you don't like mayo, don't fret. (Don't forget that mayo is just an emulsion of oil and eggs.) You can't taste the mayo in the finished pie. It's just gooey and cheesy and the mayo helps everything stick together, I promise. :)
-L

Adapted from NPR.