A Messy End

Even my little strip of a blooming garden has produced enough to brighten up my meals.  Although from the picture you can see the biggest crop seems to be Hollyhocks. Today I pulled up my basil.  I will cook it fresh in a tomato, basil, cheese pie.  The rest I will save to dry and use all winter.  The basil is done, the green peppers are creeping along, none of them likely to turn red.  There are very few cherry tomatoes left.

I like to make omelets and frittatas loaded up with my own chives, green peppers, and chopped Walla Walla Sweets, bought not grown.  I cook the veggies first, this morning I included some carrots sliced into tiny, thin strips.  I'm planning on having steamed broccoli with dinner and will cook enough to save for breakfast eggs.  Sometimes I sear and cook down the little cherry tomatoes, add basil, both fresh from the garden, put in some garlic and cheese with the eggs and wrap it in a tortilla. It's a great way to use up those little bits of fresh and cooked veggies, for any meal.  I'm making myself hungry.

Here's my favorite Tomato Tart recipe.

I am a packaged pie crust fan, faster, easier.
Prep: 20 minutes.  Bake 25 minutes, test with a toothpick.  Let stand for 5-10 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 450° F.

1 prepared pie crust
1 1/2 cups shredded queso fresco cheese (6 oz.)
4 roma tomatoes
1/4 - 1/2 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves
4 cloves peeled garlic
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup cotija or Parmesan cheese
1/8 tsp ground white pepper
Fresh basil leave for topping (optional)

Press the pastry into your pan or dish and flute the edges but don't prick. Partially bake the pie crust for 5-7 minutes or until the dough is dry.  Remove crust from the oven.  Sprinkle 1/2 cup of queso fresco cheese evenly in the crust.  Cool the pan on a wire rack. Reduce the oven temperature to 375° F.

Meanwhile cut the tomatoes into wedges, drain the wedges on paper towels.  Arrange the wedges over the melted cheese in the baked crust.

In a food processor, combine the 3/4 cup basil and garlic. cover and process with off-on turns until coarsely chopped.  Or, snip the basil and mince the garlic. (that's what I do, smells wonderful)

In a medium bowl, combine the basil/garlic mixture, the remaining queso fresco cheese, mayonnaise, cotija cheese, and pepper. Spread mixture evenly over the tomato wedges.

Bake in the 375° F oven about 25 minutes or until cheese is golden.  Let it stand 5-10 minutes before cutting into wedges.  Serve warm, if desired, garnish with additional basil leaves. 

Makes 8 appetizer or 4 main-dish servings, yummy with a salad.