Savory Tomato Pie Food

TOMATO PIE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450°F.
• Peel tomatoes (this is an easy method for peeling tomatoes) and slice into thin slices (1/4" thick).
• Lightly salt tomato slices and spread over a double layer of paper towels to dry.
• Poke pie crust with a fork. Sprinkle ¼ cup mozzarella cheese on the bottom and bake for 10 minutes until lightly browned. Cool completely.
• Combine ¼ cup cheddar cheese and ¼ cup mozzarella cheese in a small bowl.
• Sprinkle tomato slices with garlic powder, oregano, and black pepper to taste. Layer ½ of the tomato slices, ½ of the cheese mixture, and ½ of the basil. Repeat layers. Top with halved grape tomatoes.
• In a small bowl combine the remaining ¼ cup cheddar cheese, ½ cup mozzarella cheese and 1/4 cup mayonnaise. Dot over grape tomato mixture.
• Reduce heat to 350°F and bake uncovered for 30-35 minutes. Cool before serving.

TOMATO PIE

Steps:

• Arrange the tomato and onion slices in a single layer on a paper towel-lined baking sheet and sprinkle with salt. Let sit for 1 to 2 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Fit the pie crust into a 9-inch pie plate and crimp the edges. Prick the bottom and sides with a fork. Line the crust with aluminum foil and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake until the edges of the crust are just golden, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove the foil and weights and continue to bake until the bottom of the crust is dry and brown, another 15 to 20 minutes. Cool completely.
• Mix together the Cheddar, mozzarella and mayonnaise in a medium bowl. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few cracks of black pepper.
• Transfer the tomatoes and onions to a dry paper towel and pat dry. Liberally season the tomatoes with cracked black pepper. Arrange a third of the tomatoes in a single layer in the pie crust, overlapping slightly. Sprinkle a third of the basil over the tomatoes and top with a third of the onions. Repeat twice with the remaining tomatoes, basil and onions. Spread the mayonnaise mixture over the top of the onions.
• Bake until the topping is golden brown and bubbling, 30 to 35 minutes. Let cool completely. Garnish with basil leaves. Serve at room temperature.

SAVORY CHERRY TOMATO PIE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• In a large skillet cook bacon until just done but not crisp. Transfer to paper towel; drain. Reserve 1 tablespoons bacon drippings in skillet; set aside.
• Let pie crust stand at room temperature for 20 minutes. On a lightly floured surface, stack the two piecrusts. Roll from center to edges to form a 12-inch circle. Wrap pastry around a rolling pin; unroll pastry into a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate. (Sides should be 2 to 2 1/2 inches deep). Ease pastry into pie plate, allowing edges to form a loose ruffled or scalloped effect. Gently press pastry into the bottom of pie plate. Sides will not lay flat against pie plate. Prick bottom of pastry.
• Line pastry with a double thickness of foil; bake 10 minutes. Remove foil; bake 5 minutes more. Remove, and reduce heat to 375 degrees F. Sprinkle 1/2 cup of the cheese over the piecrust. Place half the bacon slices around the edge of the crust. Set aside.
• Cook onion in reserved bacon dripping over medium heat until tender. Drain drippings. Set aside.
• Halve 2 cups of the cherry tomatoes, leaving the remaining 2 cups whole. Place the halved and whole tomatoes in a large mixing bowl. Add olive oil, 2 tablespoons of the basil, salt, and 1/4 teaspoons of the pepper. Stir to combine.
• In a separate bowl beat together cream cheese, mayonnaise, egg yolk, cooked onion, lemon peel, and remaining Parmesan, basil, and pepper.
• Spoon cream cheese mixture into pie crust.Top with tomato mixture. Place the remaining bacon slices among the tomatoes, weaving bacon between tomatoes. Gently press tomatoes and bacon into the cream cheese mixture.
• Bake pie until tomatoes just begin to brown, about 35 minutes. (Loosely cover pie with foil if edges brown too quickly.) Let stand 60 minutes.
• Top with leaf lettuce shreds and serve with lemon wedges if desired.