LET US EAT PIE

As much as I like my routines and the familiar, every so often I feel a need to challenge myself. In life, this can be taking on a new responsibility like a new volunteer gig; or as simple as working to see something from another person’s point of view that is totally different than mine.

With food it means trying a recipe different than what I normally would try. Recently I had the fortunate situation of receiving some WONDERFUL homegrown tomatoes from friend Sandy grown by her husband Dan. I also had some delicious sharp cheddar cheese I had left over from a recent dinner. Then one day I was in the library looking through their cooking magazines and came upon a recipe for a tomato and cheddar pie in Bon Appétit. Well, it was fate I thought. I must make this pie! It didn’t hurt that the picture they had looked amazing, and decadent Those food photographers are real pros at that. I figured that if the one I made looked and tasted anywhere near as good I would love it, and also knew Steve would love it. Fresh tomatoes, melted cheese and pastry; what’s not to like?

I bought the ingredients and mentioned to Steve that I was thinking of making this for our Sunday dinner. Sunday dinner typically might consist of pizza or bowl salads so this was a bit more but still in the spirit I thought. He thought we might invite Larry over since I was making something that should be appreciated by more than just us. Larry is a lovely guest; he’s like Mikey of the old commercials, he will eat anything. This is a good quality as we don’t have to dance around special diets or sensitivities. I am all for accommodating peoples’ tastes but sometimes it’s nice to be able to treat a guest like a family member. It makes for a comfortable experience for whoever is cooking to just make what we would normally for ourselves. Maybe it’s equally easy for him as well. We don’t make him do the dishes or anything like that. The price of admission is usually just a bottle of wine.

Well, I made the pie and impressed everyone. I say everyone because I include myself in there. It turned out as good as I had hoped. And it looked beautiful. I am used to making galettes which have a different type of pastry dough. This one is, as mentioned in the article about it in the magazine, more of a biscuit-y type of dough. Both good in their own way and it was nice to have had the experience of making this new version. Not sure what other ways it could be used but I will have to try. I had to take a picture so I could include it in this writing. To go with this I made a light-tasting corn salad inspired by all the great corn that is currently available at the farmers market. I served that under a lump crab cake purchased from my local Bristol Farms store. Yum, just thinking about it makes me hungry.


Tomato and Cheddar Pie

Ingredients

Crust
• 2cupsall-purpose flour
• 1 1/2teaspoonsbaking powder
• 1/2teaspoonbaking soda
• 1/2teaspoonkosher salt
• 6tablespoons(3/4 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2" cubes
• 1cupbuttermilk

Filling
• 2poundslarge ripe tomatoes, cored and cut into 1/4" slices
• 2 1/2cupscoarsely grated extra-sharp cheddar (8-9 ounces)
• 1/4cupfinely grated Parmesan (1/2 ounce)
• 1scallion, trimmed, chopped
• 1/2cupmayonnaise (I substituted dijonaise)
• 2tablespoonschopped fresh dill
• 1tablespoonapple cider vinegar
• 2teaspoonssugar
• 3/4teaspoonkosher salt
• 1/2teaspoonfreshly ground black pepper
• 1 1/2tablespoonscornmeal
• Special Equipment
Use a 9"-diameter glass or ceramic pie dish

Preparation
Crust
• Whisk first 4 ingredients in a medium bowl. Using your fingertips, rub in butter until coarse meal forms and some small lumps remain. Stir in buttermilk and knead gently with your hands until dough forms. Wrap dough in plastic and chill for 1 hour.
Filling
• Lay tomatoes in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with 2 layers of paper towels. Place another 2 layers of paper towels on top of tomatoes. Let stand for 30 minutes to drain.
• Preheat oven to 425°. Roll out dough between 2 sheets of plastic wrap to an 11" round. Remove top layer of plastic wrap. Invert dough onto pie dish. Carefully peel off plastic wrap.
• Toss both cheeses in a medium bowl until evenly incorporated. Reserve 1/4 cup of cheese mixture. Whisk scallion, mayonnaise, dill, vinegar, sugar, salt, and pepper in a small bowl.
• Sprinkle cornmeal evenly over bottom of crust, then top with 1/2 cup cheese mixture. Arrange 1/3 of tomatoes over cheese, overlapping as needed. Spread half of mayonnaise mixture (about 1/3 cup) over. Repeat layering with 1 cup of cheese mixture, 1/2 of remaining tomato slices, and remaining mayonnaise mixture. Sprinkle remaining 1 cup cheese mixture over, then remaining tomato slices. Sprinkle with reserved 1/4 cup cheese mixture. Fold overhanging crust up and over edges of tomato slices.
• Bake pie until crust is golden and cheese is golden brown, 35-40 minutes (check crust halfway and tent with foil if it's getting too dark). Let pie cool at least 1 hour and up to 3 hours before slicing and serving.

Bon Appetit!!